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Read the passage and then answer the ten questions on DNA.
DNA - Extract 2
In this extract from DNA, Leah weighs “good behaviour” against a terrible secret, and the group’s rehearsed story starts to feel fragile, risky, and hard to live with.
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LEAH sags. She drops her suitcase and sits with PHIL.
Did you see Jan at Adam’s memorial? Floods of tears. It was wonderful, everyone felt wonderful, I felt terrible of course, but everyone felt wonderful. It’s incredible. The change. This place. You’re a miracle worker. Everyone’s happy. You know that? You notice that? Cathy was on the telly. Used that clip on every channel. She’s like a celebrity, there are second years asking for her autograph. Suddenly Adam’s everyone’s best friend. Richard’s named his dog Adam. Mark’s mum says if her baby’s a boy she’s going to call him Adam. Funny thing is they’re all actually behaving better as well. I saw Jan helping a first year find the gym. Mark’s been doing charity work, for Christ’s sake. Maybe being seen as heroes is making them behave like heroes.
PHIL considers his waffle. Decides it needs more jam.
Yeah, everyone happy. Well it’s not all roses, you know. Brian’s on medication. Did you know that? Phil? Did you know that they’ve put Brian on medication?
No answer.
Yep, Brian’s off his head, John Tate hasn’t been seen in weeks, and the postman’s facing the rest of his life in prison, but, you know, omelettes and eggs, as long as you’ve your waffle, who cares.
How do you feel?
PHIL turns to her.
Considers.
For a long time.
Opens his mouth to answer
Stops.
Shrugs and goes back to his waffle.
LEAH stares at him.
I admire you so much.
The waffle is ready. PHIL looks pleased.
JAN and MARK enter.
JAN: You better come with us.
MARK: You really better come with us.
LEAH: What is it?
Beat.
JAN: You really, really better come with us.
LEAH goes with JAN and MARK.
PHIL looks at his waffle, looks after JAN, MARK and LEAH, then back at the waffle. Irritated he puts it carefully away.
* * *
A Wood. CATHY, BRIAN, PHIL, LEAH, MARK, LOU and JAN.
They stand around a BOY who looks like a tramp. His clothes are torn and dirty and his hair is matted with dried blood from an old gash on his forehead that has not been cleaned up. He stands there, twitchily, staring at them as though they were aliens and it looks as though he might run off at any moment.
Finally PHIL speaks.
PHIL: Hello Adam.
ADAM: Alright.
Pause.
CATHY: We found him up there, up the hill
BRIAN: I found him
CATHY: Living in a hedge
BRIAN: a hedge, I found him, I found him, I found Adam living in a hedge, I found him
CATHY: It’s like this hedge complex he’s made, you have to crawl to get in
BRIAN: I crawled, I love crawling, I love crawling, Leah
CATHY: Like a warren in this hedge and he’s dragged bits of cardboard and rags to make it better, more waterproof
BRIAN: I loved it, Leah, it was like a hideout.
CATHY: He’s been living in there.
BRIAN: Living, she was shouting at me to get off the ground, but I love the ground, don’t you like the ground?
CATHY: He was hiding away at the back.
BRIAN: D’you ever feel like the trees are watching you?
CATHY: Terrified.
ADAM: No I wasn’t.
Dennis Kelly, DNA (Oberon Books, 2012)
LEAH sags. She drops her suitcase and sits with PHIL.
Did you see Jan at Adam’s memorial? Floods of tears. It was wonderful, everyone felt wonderful, I felt terrible of course, but everyone felt wonderful. It’s incredible. The change. This place. You’re a miracle worker. Everyone’s happy. You know that? You notice that? Cathy was on the telly. Used that clip on every channel. She’s like a celebrity, there are second years asking for her autograph. Suddenly Adam’s everyone’s best friend. Richard’s named his dog Adam. Mark’s mum says if her baby’s a boy she’s going to call him Adam. Funny thing is they’re all actually behaving better as well. I saw Jan helping a first year find the gym. Mark’s been doing charity work, for Christ’s sake. Maybe being seen as heroes is making them behave like heroes.
PHIL considers his waffle. Decides it needs more jam.
Yeah, everyone happy. Well it’s not all roses, you know. Brian’s on medication. Did you know that? Phil? Did you know that they’ve put Brian on medication?
No answer.
Yep, Brian’s off his head, John Tate hasn’t been seen in weeks, and the postman’s facing the rest of his life in prison, but, you know, omelettes and eggs, as long as you’ve your waffle, who cares.
How do you feel?
PHIL turns to her.
Considers.
For a long time.
Opens his mouth to answer
Stops.
Shrugs and goes back to his waffle.
LEAH stares at him.
I admire you so much.
The waffle is ready. PHIL looks pleased.
JAN and MARK enter.
JAN: You better come with us.
MARK: You really better come with us.
LEAH: What is it?
Beat.
JAN: You really, really better come with us.
LEAH goes with JAN and MARK.
PHIL looks at his waffle, looks after JAN, MARK and LEAH, then back at the waffle. Irritated he puts it carefully away.
* * *
A Wood. CATHY, BRIAN, PHIL, LEAH, MARK, LOU and JAN.
They stand around a BOY who looks like a tramp. His clothes are torn and dirty and his hair is matted with dried blood from an old gash on his forehead that has not been cleaned up. He stands there, twitchily, staring at them as though they were aliens and it looks as though he might run off at any moment.
Finally PHIL speaks.
PHIL: Hello Adam.
ADAM: Alright.
Pause.
CATHY: We found him up there, up the hill
BRIAN: I found him
CATHY: Living in a hedge
BRIAN: a hedge, I found him, I found him, I found Adam living in a hedge, I found him
CATHY: It’s like this hedge complex he’s made, you have to crawl to get in
BRIAN: I crawled, I love crawling, I love crawling, Leah
CATHY: Like a warren in this hedge and he’s dragged bits of cardboard and rags to make it better, more waterproof
BRIAN: I loved it, Leah, it was like a hideout.
CATHY: He’s been living in there.
BRIAN: Living, she was shouting at me to get off the ground, but I love the ground, don’t you like the ground?
CATHY: He was hiding away at the back.
BRIAN: D’you ever feel like the trees are watching you?
CATHY: Terrified.
ADAM: No I wasn’t.
Dennis Kelly, DNA (Oberon Books, 2012)
1 .
Adam denies that he was terrified while living in the woods. Which of the following is NOT correct?
Adam's denial makes him sound like a young child who insists he is not afraid of something which ought to scare him
Adam's denial emphasises how the woods have been a place of safety for him in a way human society has not been
Adam's denial of fear might foreshadow the terror he will feel when Brian and Cathy kill him
Adam's denial demonstrates that he has forgotten everything about his past life
The natural environment of the woods has sustained and protected Adam to some extent, especially in comparison with the group and the murderous intentions of Phil and Cathy
2 .
BRIAN: I crawled, I love crawling, I love crawling, Leah
What shift is evident in this line?
What shift is evident in this line?
Brian addresses Leah
Brian talks for the first time about enjoying being in the woods
Brian shows that he has suffered no ill effects from the actions the group has forced him to undertake
All of the above
Brian singles Leah out from the rest of the group as he talks about his desire to be close to the earth. Why might he choose to address Leah specifically?
3 .
What is the immediate context for this passage?
Cathy, Mark and Danny have just framed an innocent man
The group has just agreed on a plan to frame someone for Adam's disappearance
Leah has told Phil that she's running away
Phil and Cathy have just silently agreed to get rid of Adam
Leah threatens to run away only to give up when she can't get a response from Phil
4 .
A Wood. CATHY, BRIAN, PHIL, LEAH, MARK, LOU and JAN.
They stand around a BOY who looks like a tramp. His clothes are torn and dirty and his hair is matted with dried blood from an old gash on his forehead that has not been cleaned up. He stands there, twitchily, staring at them as though they were aliens and it looks as though he might run off at any moment.
Finally PHIL speaks.
What is the significance of the word "finally" here?
They stand around a BOY who looks like a tramp. His clothes are torn and dirty and his hair is matted with dried blood from an old gash on his forehead that has not been cleaned up. He stands there, twitchily, staring at them as though they were aliens and it looks as though he might run off at any moment.
Finally PHIL speaks.
What is the significance of the word "finally" here?
The word shows that the rest of the group had been waiting for Phil to take charge
The word shows that Phil is entirely comfortable with the turn of events
The word reminds the audience that Adam is afraid
The word demonstrates to the audience that the group is happy to see Adam alive
The entire group is surprised to discover that Adam is still alive. Quickly realising the implications for themselves and their schemes, they wait for Phil to take charge once again
5 .
What immediately follows this passage?
Adam talks about how he has been surviving in the woods
Leah finally leaves Phil
Cathy, Mark and Danny collect DNA from an innocent man at the sorting office
Danny begins worrying again about getting into dentistry school
Adam's recount is hesitant and confused in parts
6 .
Which of the following words used by Cathy compares Adam to a wild animal?
Hedge
Warren
Cardboard
Rags
A warren is inhabited by rabbits. Using the term emphasises Adam's vulnerability and introduces the idea that he shares similarities with an animal that is common prey
7 .
Which of the following does Adam insist he was not feeling?
Terror
Shame
Anger
Depression
Cathy completes her tale ambiguously with the word "terrified", describing Adam's response to being discovered, but possibly also referring to Brian, who feels himself being watched by the trees
8 .
The order of events encourages the audience to see which of the following as the reason Phil goes to the woods in this scene?
Phil eventually decides to go to the woods because Jan is very persuasive
Phil eventually decides to go to the woods because Mark is very persuasive
Phil eventually decides to go to the woods because Leah has gone there
Phil eventually decides to go to the woods when he realises he does not want his waffle anyway
Despite Mark's "really" and Jan's "really, really", Phil only follows them to the woods once Leah has decided to go. His irritation at not being able to eat his waffle demonstrates his reluctance to follow
9 .
Why are there no full stops after Cathy's and Brian's speech while they tell the others how they found Adam?
The lack of punctuation indicates that this portion of the play is meant to be slowed down
The lack of punctuation shows that Cathy and Brian are interrupting one another
The lack of punctuation demonstrates that Cathy and Brian are reluctant to explain themselves
Dennis Kelly forgot to punctuate these lines
Cathy and Brian interrupt one another in a breathless manner. Are they competing to take the credit for the discovery or are they collaborating? What do you think?
10 .
In which of the following lines does Leah suddenly change her tone with Phil?
"The postman’s facing the rest of his life in prison, but, you know, omelettes and eggs"
"Did you know that they’ve put Brian on medication?"
"Well it’s not all roses, you know"
"Maybe being seen as heroes is making them behave like heroes"
Leah presents all the evidence for Phil being a "miracle worker" before listing the many terrible consequences of the staged explanation for Adam's disappearance
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