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How well do you know the characters in DNA?

DNA - Character

Explore the characters in DNA and how power, guilt, and peer pressure shape their choices, from Phil’s quiet control to the group’s uneasy attempts at survival.

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Fascinating Fact:

Phil is a silent strategist who takes control through calm, methodical plans, revealing power that relies on detachment rather than charisma.

In GCSE English Literature, character questions on DNA ask you to explore how personalities, relationships, and group dynamics reveal themes such as guilt, bullying, responsibility, and the abuse of power.

  • Characterisation: The methods a writer uses to present a character’s personality, beliefs, and behaviour.
  • Status: The level of power or authority a character holds within a group or relationship.
  • Moral responsibility: A character’s duty to act ethically and accept the consequences of their choices.
How should I write about characters in DNA for GCSE?

When writing about characters in DNA, link their actions and dialogue to themes such as guilt and peer pressure. Use short, well-chosen quotations and analyse key words and stage directions.

Why is Phil important in DNA?

Phil is important because his calm, controlling behaviour drives the group’s decisions. His emotional distance raises questions about leadership, conscience, and what happens when others follow without challenging him.

Which themes are linked to the characters in DNA?

The characters in DNA are closely linked to themes of bullying, loyalty, fear, guilt, and shared responsibility. Their reactions to the cover-up show how pressure can distort moral choices.

1 .
Who decides to frame a real person for Adam's disappearance?
Cathy
Leah
Jan
Phil
Phil directs Cathy, Danny and Mark to get a stranger's DNA on one of Adam's jumpers. Cathy decides to find a postman who fits the description of the fictitious perpetrator Phil has decided upon. Although the group undertake this task together, Cathy later claims it as her own idea
2 .
Which character appears to lose his mind under pressure from the group's actions?
Phil
Mark
Brian
Richard
Brian cannot face giving false evidence against the innocent man identified by the police as responsible for Adam's disappearance. During Act Three, he begins to fantasise about eating earth and giggles when Cathy slaps him
3 .
Who focusses most on the impact the incident will have on his future career?
Phil
Danny
Mark
Lou
Danny's first response to the "murder" and to later developments is to think about the consequences for his desired dentistry career
4 .
Which of the following is NOT correct of Adam?
He claims not to be frightened in the woods
He cares for himself well in the woods
He is able to feed himself
He has some difficulty speaking
Adam is surviving in the woods, but he is confused and dirty, with the dried blood from his injuries still apparent
5 .
Who wants to be on TV?
Leah
Cathy
John Tate
Lou
Cathy seems to enjoy being at the centre of the drama. It is fitting that she creates a more complex fiction by deliberately implicating a real person in the fabricated explanation for Adam's disappearance
6 .
Who forces John Tate to face up to reality by repeatedly stating, "He's dead"?
Phil
Richard
Brian
Lou
John Tate tries to ban the word "dead", but Lou mocks his attempt
7 .
Who shows the most concern for Adam when he is discovered living in the woods?
Brian
Cathy
Leah
Richard
Leah questions Adam about how he has been living and is opposed to abandoning him there as Phil and the rest of the group decide. She does not, however, go against the group
8 .
Who tries to get Phil to return to the group at the end of the play?
Mark
Danny
Richard
Leah
Richard pleads and shows off, but is unable to raise a response from Phil
9 .
Who experiences a religious conversion after the "murder"?
John Tate
Adam
Jan
Brian
Leah later reports to Phil that John Tate "joined the Jesus Army [and] runs round the shopping centre singing and trying to give people leaflets"
10 .
Which character is always described in stage directions as eating or drinking?
Leah
Mark
John Tate
Phil
Phil is often non-responsive, especially when Leah talks to him. He listens and rather than responding, continues eating or drinking
Author:  Sheri Smith (PhD English Literature, English Teacher & Quiz Writer)

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