Task 1B: Malala

Here, we will give you some points to consider when you analyse Text 3 in the preparation material. We will focus on how the writer has used information and language to make the reader sympathetic towards Malala and critical of the Taliban.

Text 3 belongs to the nonfiction genre and can be read as a magazine article. It is the portrait of Malala, a girl from Swat Valley in Pakistan. 

From the very beginning, the writer sets the tone in favour of Malala. He uses hyperbole to characterize the little girl and present her as special: “Malala is living proof that one person can indeed bring positive change in the world.” (ll. 1-2)

Throughout the article, the writer uses multiple positive adjectives to characterize Malala:

• “She first became a respected public figure in 2009 when she wrote a diary (in Urdu) for the BBC about life under oppression”. (ll. 11-13)
• “(…) she has become a worldwide symbol of peaceful protest (…)” (l. 22)
• “(…) the true story of an intelligent and courageous young girl (…)” (l. 26)

The writer emphasizes her uniqueness several times:

“Malala was shot in the head by a brutal terrorist on the bus home from school. It seemed unlikely that she would survive. However, thanks to expert medical treatment, first in Pakistan and then in the UK, Malala made an a...