Paper 2 Overview

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CIE IGCSE English Literature · 0475 / 0992

Paper 2: Drama — The Complete Overview

Big idea in one line: Paper 2 tests you on two drama set texts — you answer one passage-based question and one essay question, on two different plays, and every single answer needs to hit all four Assessment Objectives (AO1–AO4) at once.

Summary — The Whole Chapter at a Glance

Paper 2 is the Drama paper, sat as part of the 100% Exam route for CIE IGCSE Literature in English.
You answer 2 questions on 2 different set texts — never both questions on the same play.
Time: 1 hour 30 minutes. Total marks: 50 (25 per question). Worth 50% of your final GCSE grade.
You must answer one passage-based question and one essay question — one of each type, not two of the same type.
Every question is marked against four Assessment Objectives: AO1 (knowledge), AO2 (meaning), AO3 (writer's craft), AO4 (personal response).
It's a closed-book exam — you can't bring your text in, but relevant extracts are printed on the paper for the passage-based question.
You'll see specific command words (Explore, How, Vividly, How far, Portray, Memorable) — each one tells you exactly what kind of answer is expected.

Topic 1: How the Paper Is Structured

The Basics

What Paper 2 actually looks like on the day

Think of Paper 2 like a two-course meal, except both courses are on different plays. You can't choose the same play for both courses — Cambridge wants to see you handle two separate texts, not go deep on just one.

You'll be given a booklet with several set text options in it. Your job is to find the two options that match what you actually studied in class, and answer one question from each, making sure the two you pick are of different types (one passage-based, one essay).

Paper 2 Key Facts

Paper	Paper 2: Drama
Questions	2, on two different set texts
Time	1 hour 30 minutes
Marks	50 total (25 marks per question)
% of GCSE grade	50%

Why this matters: With 90 minutes for 50 marks, that's roughly 45 minutes per question. That's enough time to plan, write a full response with introduction and conclusion, and still check your work — but only if you don't spend 20 minutes deciding which question to answer. Know your texts cold before you go in.

Analogy Imagine you're a chef who has to cook two dishes using two different sets of ingredients — you can't reuse the same ingredients (the same play) for both dishes. One dish is "cook exactly what's on this plate in front of you" (passage-based), and the other is "cook anything you like from this pantry, just make it good" (essay-based).

Practice Question 1

You've studied two plays: "An Inspector Calls" and "A Streetcar Named Desire". Can you answer both the passage-based question and the essay question on "An Inspector Calls" only?

Practice Question 2

How many total marks is Paper 2 worth, and how much of your final IGCSE English Literature grade does it represent?

Topic 2: The Four Assessment Objectives (AO1–AO4)

Core Concept

Why AOs matter more than anything else in this chapter

same four skills

AO
AO1
AO2

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Also in the full note

Choosing the right questions (and not falling into traps)
Every command word is secretly an instruction manual

What's inside

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Paper 2 Overview

Paper 2: Drama — The Complete Overview

What Paper 2 actually looks like on the day

Why AOs matter more than anything else in this chapter

More English Literature topics