memorandum for 02/09/2021
1.1 Cultural appropriation is a popular topic in the media./It is a complex issue./It is not fully discussed./It is not understood.
[Award 2 marks for any ONE point.]
[Award 1 mark for ‘lifting’.] lifting means to take points directly from the passage and not use your own words. (2)
1.2 The writer distinguishes between cultural appropriation and cultural exchange./Cultural appropriation is the unauthorised use of elements of another culture, whereas cultural exchange refers to the borrowing of elements from another culture./Cultural appropriation is equivalent to stealing, whereas cultural exchange is borrowing./There are no clear boundaries between cultural appropriation and cultural exchange.
[Award 2 marks for any ONE point.]
[Award 1 mark for ‘lifting’.] (2)
1.3 The wealthy/powerful take control of cultural elements./The marginalised/more vulnerable are powerless to oppose the exploitation. [Award 2 marks for any ONE point.] (2)
1.4 Celebrities make cultural appropriation acceptable and fashionable./Their popularity allows them to shape perceptions that are not acceptable.
[Award 2 marks for any ONE point.] (2)
1.5 The writer is dismissive of/sarcastic toward/politely rejects foreign chefs appropriating African dishes and presenting them as their own. The West Africans jealously guard their recipes and it should be their right to make them internationally popular. A foreign chef should not be appropriating their dishes.
[Award 3 marks for THREE distinct ideas or TWO ideas well-discussed.] (3)
1.6 The writer uses strong, assertive expressions ('cultural annihilation' and 'loss to colonisation') to display his criticism/rejection of the practice. He acknowledges the importance of culture ('cultures cannot be viewed as simply occurring in a vacuum') and accuses Shriver of being culturally insensitive ('This fact is certainly lost on novelist Lionel Shriver'). He is also derisive of people like her, whom he describes as 'culturally tone-deaf'.
[Award 1 mark for 'attitude' and 2 marks for a well-developed discussion.]
[Credit reference to the repetition of ‘liberty’ and the irony therein.] (3)
1.7 Shriver refutes the seriousness of the concept of cultural appropriation and defends cultural insensitivity. She is unaware of the impact of cultural appropriation and appears oblivious of the disrespect imposed on cultural groups.
[Consider cogent alternative responses of Shriver's view.] (3)
1.8
YES
The writer is promoting mutual respect between cultures. Keeping a 'distance from and relationship to it' implies your ability to revere/admire a culture without transgressing established boundaries.
OR
NO
The person borrowing from the culture could 'amplify the beauty' of that culture by promoting awareness of it. The concept of culture is fluid and is constantly evolving. One cannot keep one's distance from it. All cultures should be embraced. There should be no clearly defined boundaries between cultures.
[Credit valid alternative responses.]
[Consider mixed responses on merit.]
(3)
1.9
D – resentful
(1)
1.10
By wearing a headdress of another culture, the girl is trivialising a significant artefact/disrespecting a culture, or showing her admiration for the culture.
(2)
1.11
This statement alerts the reader to/creates awareness of the damage caused by cultural appropriation. The indigenous people become insignificant ('invisible') when their artefacts are exploited. It is ironic that it is the artefacts, and not the people, that are celebrated.
[Credit relevant alternative responses.]
(3)
1.12
YES
Both texts are highly subjective in their condemnation of cultural appropriation.
Throughout Text A, the writer equates cultural appropriation with theft. He provides anecdotal evidence of people in positions of power exploiting cultures for personal gain. The writer uses emotive terms with a negative bias such as 'demonised and excluded', 'cultural annihilation' and 'no reverence for history'. He concludes his article by urging the reader to acknowledge and respect the cultures of others.
In Text B, the writer outlines the consequences/results of stealing someone's cultural identity, e.g. 'TRIVIALIZES & ERASES HISTORY'. Although the headline poses a potentially balanced view, the details reflect the idea of 'THEFT'. In the writer's view, 'THERE IS NOTHING COOL, RESPECTFUL, OR FASHIONABLE ABOUT IT.'
OR
NO
[A 'NO' response is unlikely. However, mark each response on its merits.]
[Credit alternative responses.]
[Award 4 marks only if reference is made to both texts.]
(4)