Set texts for examination in 2026 – Paper 2 — Cambridge International IGCSE English Literature
Teaching note checked against the official specification.
Test yourself on Set texts for examination in 2026 – Paper 2 with CAMBRIDGE INTERNATIONAL IGCSE practice questions.
A week of Premium from your first lesson · Then the free plan continues · No card, no charge
Set texts for examination in 2026 – Paper 2 explained
A Taste of Honey is a set drama text for Paper 2 in 2026.
Read the full explanation
In the exam you write an extended critical response to an unseen question on the play, so prepare by knowing the whole text: the characters of Helen, Jo, Peter, Boy and Geof, the Salford setting, and the play's treatment of class, gender, race and sexuality in late 1950s Britain. Build a bank of short, accurate quotations and learn who speaks each one, in which act and scene, and to whom. Practise planning answers that address the exact wording of the question, then support each point with close reference to language, structure and dramatic effect. Paper 2 is closed-book, so quotations must come from memory; keep them brief and precise rather than long and approximate. Rehearse writing under timed conditions and check that every paragraph answers the question asked.
Your focus
- Analyse how Delaney presents character and relationship through language and dramatic technique.
- Select and deploy accurate textual evidence from memory in a closed-book examination.
- Construct a coherent critical argument that responds precisely to an unseen question.
Set texts for examination in 2026 – Paper 2 exam tips
Marking Points
- Addresses the exact wording of the question throughout rather than retelling the plot of the play.
- Supports each point with brief, accurately remembered quotation or close reference to a specific moment in the text.
- Analyses how Delaney uses language, structure and dramatic technique to create effect, not merely what happens.
- Places the play in its late 1950s Salford context where that context illuminates the question.
- Organises the response into a clear argument that develops across the essay rather than a list of separate observations.
Examiner Tips
- 💡Read the question twice and underline its key words before planning, so the essay answers the precise task.
- 💡Keep a revision list of short quotations with speaker, act and scene, and test yourself on them regularly.
- 💡Practise timed plans and full essays so you can select and deploy evidence quickly in a closed-book exam.
Common Mistakes
- Retells the story of the play instead of answering the question; keep every paragraph focused on the wording of the task.
- Invents or misattributes quotations under exam pressure; learn short, exact phrases with speaker and act and scene.
- Ignores dramatic technique and treats the play as a novel; comment on staging, dialogue, stage directions and structure.