We must read only non-fiction books. Agree or disagree?

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We must read only non-fiction books. Agree or disagree?

        Probably one of the most difficult decisions in reading books is to select the type of books to read. For those people without a particular preference for a genre or special interest area, deciding between fiction and non-fiction seems to be their next dilemma. Some people believe that reading non-fiction is way more helpful than reading fiction, while others consider that the latter is better than the former. In my personal opinion, I advocate that fiction books have advantages over nonfiction books, and thereby prefer reading fiction books. By reading fictions, I can get many benefits; it’s enjoyable and entertaining, I will be able to get familiar with various cultures and communities in the world and also get flexibility in my attitudes and thoughts.

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        Firstly of all, it is not controvertible that fiction is more interesting than non-fiction. Often times, non-fiction just provide a piece of information. There is no use of splendid languages, no beautiful expressions and what is worse; there is no sense of humor in non-fiction. On the other hand, there are plenty of pleasing and delightful phrases, expressions and feelings shown in fiction that makes readers want to read more and more. “Entertainment” is perhaps one of the most magnificent factors that make fiction books special and extraordinary.

        Secondly, fiction helps me to get to know more about the world ...

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The Quality of Written Communication is good. The candidate's use of a range of vocabulary and challenging lexes suggest someone who is an extremely confident operative even in exam conditions. There is a successful use of punctuation (complex and simple) and the grammatical standards required of all English GCSE students are upheld fittingly with the analytical nature of the writing.

The Level of Analysis here seems only half done, as there are three good points made about the benefits of reading fiction texts, using a diverse range of vocabulary (which suggests this candidate is very confident with their knowledge of the English language and their essay writing abilities), but there is no recognition of the counter-argument whereby candidates are expected to appreciate an opposing perspective. This must be included in all answer because the command word says that "Discuss" and so a balanced argument is required; if it is not given, it is not correctly answering the question. I would also advise that candidates pay close attention to what it actually is they're writing. It's easy enough to get writer's block when it comes to the opening paragraph but you can't make up facts like " Probably one of the most difficult decisions in reading books is to select the type of books to read.", because that's simply not true. The candidate should recognise the reasons we read non-fiction books (education, mainly) and thus we do not usually read a non-fiction book unless we aim to learn something from it. So it is not a difficult decision at all, to decided whether to read fiction or non-fiction; the decision is based on what it is we want from a book: information or escapism?

This is a Response to a Writing to Argue task. The candidate provides a fair level of discussion about whether or not fiction or non-fiction books are more beneficial reads. However, the command word in the question here is "Discuss" and, as such, the candidates are required to provide strengths and weaknesses with regard to both forms of writing - this means they must provide a balanced argument. This candidate's balancing is slightly in favour of fiction texts as opposed to non-fiction. It is imperative that candidates adhere strictly to the question - particularly the command words (e.g. - Discuss, Compare, Analyse, Comment), as any answer that does not answer the question, regardless of quality, will receive a low mark for not paying attention to what was asked.