Drama — IGCSE World Literature (0408) questions by topic
Drama on this syllabus turns on how a playwright makes a scene work: dramatic irony in a mayor's boast, mistaken identity used for comic or serious effect, or a strikingly staged moment between two characters. Expect explain, explore and to what extent to set the task, with discuss and how far asking you to weigh competing readings rather than describe events.
Each answer is marked as a 25-mark essay, and the page draws on 60 genuine questions from papers set from 2023 to 2025. Writing full drafts and sending them for instant marking shows whether you are selecting apt references across the whole play and analysing form, not just noting what happens next in the plot.
What examiners look for
- Examiners repeatedly reward answers that keep to the specific terms of the question and the named text throughout, using apt references drawn from across the whole play.
- Reports praise candidates who explore how language, structure and form create effects, rather than merely listing techniques.
- Strong scripts moved beyond surface meaning to a sensitive, evaluative personal response supported by well-integrated quotation.
- On the Mayor's boast, examiners noted the best answers explored how dialogue builds dramatic irony over his coming fall, linking it to satire on 1830s Russian corruption.
May–June 2025, Paper 31
AMA ATA AIDOO: Anowa Read the printed extract, and then answer the question that follows it. (The extract is described in the shared stimulus and is not reproduced here.) In what…
Answer this question and get it marked →ANTON CHEKHOV: The Cherry Orchard Read the printed extract, and then answer the question that follows it. (The extract is described in the shared stimulus and is not reproduced…
Answer this question and get it marked →AMA ATA AIDOO: Anowa How does Aidoo vividly depict the growing tensions between Anowa and Kofi? [25]
Answer this question and get it marked →ANTON CHEKHOV: The Cherry Orchard How does Chekhov create vivid impressions of Mrs Ranevsky's past life? Do not use the extract printed in Question 4 in answering this question.…
Answer this question and get it marked →May–June 2025, Paper 32
Read this extract from Ama Ata Aidoo's play Anowa, and then answer the question that follows it. The extract is the opening of the scene 'On the Highway', set on a road…
Answer this question and get it marked →Read this extract from Anton Chekhov's play The Cherry Orchard, and then answer the question that follows it. In the extract Lopakhin bluntly warns Mrs Ranevsky and Gayev that…
Answer this question and get it marked →In what ways does Aidoo create memorable impressions of Badua? [25]
Answer this question and get it marked →Explore how Chekhov makes the cherry orchard so memorable and significant in the play. Do not use the extract printed in Question 4 in answering this question. [25]
Answer this question and get it marked →May–June 2025, Paper 33
AMA ATA AIDOO: Anowa Read the printed extract (from 'Anowa', Longman, Phase 3, pp110-112), and then answer the question that follows it. The extract is set in the wealthy Big…
Answer this question and get it marked →ANTON CHEKHOV: The Cherry Orchard Read the printed extract (the closing pages of Act 4, Oxford edition pp292-294), and then answer the question that follows it. In the extract the…
Answer this question and get it marked →AMA ATA AIDOO: Anowa Explore the ways in which Aidoo presents masculinity in the play. Do not use the extract printed in Question 2 in answering this question. [25]
Answer this question and get it marked →ANTON CHEKHOV: The Cherry Orchard In what ways does Chekhov vividly portray Lopakhin? Do not use the extract printed in Question 4 in answering this question. [25]
Answer this question and get it marked →May–June 2024, Paper 31
How does Aidoo powerfully portray the relationship between Anowa and Kofi at this moment in the play?
Answer this question and get it marked →How does Gogol amusingly convey the dialogue between Khlestakov and the waiter?
Answer this question and get it marked →In what ways does Aidoo create memorable impressions of the marriage of Badua and Osman?
Answer this question and get it marked →In what ways does Gogol memorably convey attitudes towards morality in the play?
Answer this question and get it marked →May–June 2024, Paper 32
In what ways does Aidoo make this such a revealing moment in the play?
Answer this question and get it marked →In what ways does Gogol create a memorable portrait of Khlestakov at this moment in the play?
Answer this question and get it marked →To what extent does Aidoo make Phase Three (The Big House at Oguaa) a satisfying ending to the play?
Answer this question and get it marked →How does Gogol make The Government Inspector a play that is both amusing and serious?
Answer this question and get it marked →May–June 2024, Paper 33
How does Aidoo make this such a dramatic moment in the play?
Answer this question and get it marked →How does Gogol make these scenes in the play so amusing?
Answer this question and get it marked →How does Aidoo’s presentation of traditional values contribute to the dramatic impact of the play?
Answer this question and get it marked →How does Gogol strikingly portray the master–servant relationship between Khlestakov and Osip?
Answer this question and get it marked →October–November 2024, Paper 31
Explore how Aidoo makes this such a revealing moment in the play.
Answer this question and get it marked →How does Gogol dramatically present Khlestakov’s departure at this moment in the play?
Answer this question and get it marked →In what ways does Aidoo dramatically portray Anowa after she marries Kofi?
Answer this question and get it marked →How does Gogol strikingly portray the relationship between the Mayor and Khlestakov? (Do not use the extract printed in Question 4 in answering this question.)
Answer this question and get it marked →October–November 2024, Paper 32
Explore how Aidoo makes this such a revealing moment in the play.
Answer this question and get it marked →How does Gogol dramatically present Khlestakov’s departure at this moment in the play?
Answer this question and get it marked →In what ways does Aidoo dramatically portray Anowa after she marries Kofi?
Answer this question and get it marked →How does Gogol strikingly portray the relationship between the Mayor and Khlestakov? (Do not use the extract printed in Question 4 in answering this question.)
Answer this question and get it marked →October–November 2024, Paper 33
How does Aidoo make this such a powerfully dramatic moment in the play?
Answer this question and get it marked →In what ways does Gogol make this such a comical and significant moment in the play?
Answer this question and get it marked →Explore the ways in which Aidoo dramatically conveys attitudes towards wealth in the play. (Do not use the extract printed in Question 2 in answering this question.)
Answer this question and get it marked →Explore the ways in which Gogol vividly presents deception in the play.
Answer this question and get it marked →May–June 2023, Paper 31
How does Lorca make this such a powerfully dramatic ending to the play?
Answer this question and get it marked →How does Gogol strikingly portray the Mayor and his wife at this moment in the play?
Answer this question and get it marked →How does Lorca’s portrayal of men contribute to the dramatic impact of the play? (Do not use the extract printed in Question 2 in answering this question.)
Answer this question and get it marked →How does Gogol make Khlestakov such an entertaining character?
Answer this question and get it marked →May–June 2023, Paper 32
In what ways does Lorca make this such a memorable moment in the play?
Answer this question and get it marked →How does Gogol vividly portray Khlestakov in these scenes from Act 2?
Answer this question and get it marked →Explore how Lorca powerfully depicts married life in Yerma.
Answer this question and get it marked →In what ways does Gogol present the Mayor as despicable and amusing at the same time?
Answer this question and get it marked →May–June 2023, Paper 33
In what ways does Lorca make this such a powerfully dramatic moment in the play?
Answer this question and get it marked →In what ways does Gogol make this moment in the play so comical?
Answer this question and get it marked →Explore how Lorca strikingly contrasts the characters of Yerma and Maria.
Answer this question and get it marked →How does Gogol use mistaken identity to dramatic effect in the play?
Answer this question and get it marked →October–November 2023, Paper 31
Explore how Lorca makes this moment in the play so revealing.
Answer this question and get it marked →How does Gogol create such revealing impressions of the Mayor and Khlestakov at this moment in the play?
Answer this question and get it marked →To what extent do you think Lorca makes Yerma a moving play? (Do not use the extract printed in Question 2 in answering this question.)
Answer this question and get it marked →‘The characters in this play are interested only in themselves.’ How far does Gogol’s portrayal of two of the following characters persuade you that this is an accurate judgement?…
Answer this question and get it marked →October–November 2023, Paper 32
Explore how Lorca makes this moment in the play so revealing.
Answer this question and get it marked →How does Gogol create such revealing impressions of the Mayor and Khlestakov at this moment in the play?
Answer this question and get it marked →To what extent do you think Lorca makes Yerma a moving play? (Do not use the extract printed in Question 2 in answering this question.)
Answer this question and get it marked →‘The characters in this play are interested only in themselves.’ How far does Gogol’s portrayal of two of the following characters persuade you that this is an accurate judgement?…
Answer this question and get it marked →October–November 2023, Paper 33
In what ways does Lorca make this such a disturbing moment in the play?
Answer this question and get it marked →In what ways does Gogol make this early moment in the play so shocking?
Answer this question and get it marked →How does Lorca vividly capture Yerma’s worsening state of mind? (Do not use the extract printed in Question 2 in answering this question.)
Answer this question and get it marked →How far do you think Gogol makes the ending to the play satisfying?
Answer this question and get it marked →