Write about a time when you faced
something you were very afraid of,
only to find that you need not have
been so afraid after all.
West Spring Secondary School (2009)
Analysis of Question Requirements
an occasion / a single event
the writer
• Write about a time when you faced
something you were very afraid of,
the writer
great fear
Analysis of Question Requirements
the writer
false alarm
• only to find that you need not have been so
afraid after all.
main theme: check out the relevant
synonyms to avoid repetitious use of
‘afraid’
Help from Microsoft Word
Help from Microsoft Word
Help from LDOCE
afraid adjective
•
frightened of someone or something
•
frightened • afraid • scared • terrified
• petrified • panic-stricken • live in
fear • scared stiff/scared out of your
wits/scared to death
•
when you do not want to do
something because you are frightened
•
be afraid/be frightened/be scared •
be terrified • dread • fear • be fearful
• for fear of something • have a
phobia about
Possible Plot
• An eccentric park ranger (therefore dirty
tumbledown cabin) was on the way back to
his ramshackle hut in the woods.
• The writer’s car broke down. He was not used
to being alone in such an eerie (OR spooky)
environment. He was anxious. Would there
be wild man-eating animals around?
Possible Plot
• The park ranger noticed the writer’s difficulty
from a distance.
• The former had to answer the call of nature, in
the brush, so took some time before he could
reach the stalled automobile.
Possible Plot
• By the time he arrived, the writer was no
longer to be seen.
• Meanwhile, the writer was making his way
through the thick vegetation towards the park
ranger’s place.
• The forest was eerie in the half light (OR
gathering gloom); the fact that it was stormy
made the environment more scary. He was
filled with dread.
Possible Plot
• The writer had the feeling that he was being
followed. Unknown to him, it was really the
park ranger. But his imagination began to play
tricks on him.
• It was with some trepidation that he sought
refuge in the park ranger’s rickety old house.
He was petrified about the possibility of a
homicidal maniac roaming the area. There
had been a spate of murders in the vicinity.
Possible Plot
• To his horror, he detected the sound of
approaching footsteps.
• In his desperation, he cast around for
something he could use as a weapon to
defend himself.
Possible Plot
• The suspense thickened as the knob turned on
the door.
• The writer, heart palpitating, smashed a beer
bottle on the intruder’s head as he came
through the doorway.
Possible Plot
• After shining his torch at the fallen man, he
realized he had made a mistake: he had
known the man for quite some time, a
harmless fellow who could not hurt a fly.
• The writer was shaken by the possibility of
being responsible for the death of his friend.
• Life returned to him when the man regained
consciousness.
Possible Plot
• The writer laughed at himself. He realized that
what he had been very fearful of was actually
something he need not have been so afraid
about.