OCR
GCSE
Classical Civilisation
H408/11: The world of the hero
*1881597106*
A Level
INSTRUCTIONS
• Use black ink.
• Write your answer to each question in the Answer Booklet. The question numbers must
be clearly shown.
• Fill in the boxes on the front of the Answer Booklet.
• This question paper has three sections:
Section A – Homer: Answer either all the questions on Iliad or all the questions
on Odyssey.
Section B – Virgil: Answer all the questions.
Section C – Homer and Virgil: Answer Question 7 and one question from Questions 8,
9 and 10.
INFORMATION
• The total mark for this paper is 100.
• The marks for each question are shown in brackets [ ].
• Quality of extended response will be assessed in questions marked with an asterisk (*).
• This document has 8 pages.
ADVICE
• Read each question carefully before you start your answer.
© OCR 2025 [603/0726/2] DC (PQ) 354627/2
OCR is an exempt Charity
Turn over
Section A: Homer
Answer all the questions on the text you have studied.
Homer’s Iliad
Choose one translation of the Iliad and answer the questions.
Passage A
, 2
Homer, Iliad, 22.300–333
5
‘Evil death is no longer far away; it is staring me in the face and there is no escape. Zeus
and his Archer son must long have been resolved on this, for all their earlier goodwill and
help.
‘So now my destiny confronts me. Let me at least sell my life dearly and not without glory,
after some great deed for future generations to hear of.’
10
With these words Hector drew the sharp, long, heavy sword hanging down at his side.
He gathered himself and swooped like a high-flying eagle that drops to earth through black
clouds to pounce on a tender lamb or cowering hare. So Hector swooped, brandishing his
sharp sword.
15
Achilles sprang to meet him, his heart filled with savage determination. He kept his chest
covered with his fine, ornate shield; his glittering helmet with its four plates nodded, and
above it danced the lovely plumes that Hephaestus had lavished on the crest. Like a star
moving with others through the night, Hesperus, the loveliest star set in the skies - such was
the gleam from his spear’s sharp point as he weighed it in his right hand with murder in his
heart for godlike Hector, searching that handsome body for its most vulnerable spot.
20
Hector’s body was completely covered by the fine bronze armour he had taken from great
Patroclus when he killed him, except for the flesh that could be seen at the windpipe, where
the collar bones hold the neck from the shoulders, the easiest place to kill a man. As Hector
charged him, godlike Achilles drove at the spot with his spear, and the point went through
Hector’s soft neck, though the heavy bronze head did not cut his windpipe and left him still
able to speak. Hector crashed in the dust, and godlike Achilles triumphed over him:
‘Hector, no doubt you imagined, as you stripped Patroclus, that you would be safe. You
never thought of me.’
Translation: E.V. Rieu
‘An evil fate’s upon me, Death is no longer far away, and him there is no escaping. Zeus,
and his son, the Far-Striker, decided all this long ago, they who were once eager to defend
me, and destiny now overtakes me. But let me not die without a fight, without true glory,
without some deed that men unborn may hear.’
With this, he [Hector] drew the sharp blade at his side, a powerful long-sword, and gathering
his limbs together swooped like a high-soaring eagle that falls to earth from the dark clouds
to seize a sick lamb or a cowering hare. So Hector swooped, brandishing his keen blade.
5
Achilles ran to meet him heart filled with savage power, covering his chest with his great,
skilfully worked shield, while above his gleaming helm with its four ridges waved the golden
plumes Hephaestus placed thickly at its crest. Bright as the Evening Star that floats among
the midnight constellations, set there the loveliest jewel in the sky, gleamed the tip of
Achilles’ sharp spear brandished in his right hand, as he sought to work evil on noble Hector,
10
searching for the likeliest place to land a blow on his fair flesh.
Now, the fine bronze armour he stripped from mighty Patroclus when he killed him covered
all Hector’s flesh except for one opening at the throat, where the collarbones knit neck and
shoulders, and violent death may come most swiftly. There, as Hector charged at him, noble
Achilles aimed his ash spear, and drove its heavy bronze blade clean through the tender
15
neck, though without cutting the windpipe or robbing Hector of the power of speech. Hector
fell in the dust and Achilles shouted out in triumph: ‘While you were despoiling Patroclus, no
doubt, in your folly, you thought yourself quite safe.’
Translation: A.S. Kline
20
© OCR 2025 H408/11 Jun25
, 3
OR
1 Explain how far you think Achilles is shown to be admirable in Passage A.
Use references to the passage to support your answer.
2* ‘Evil death.’ Evaluate whether you think this is a fair description of the way death is
presented in the Iliad.
You may use Passage A as a starting point, and your knowledge of the Iliad in your
answer. [20] Homer’s Odyssey
Choose one translation of the Odyssey and answer the questions.
Passage B
Homer, Odyssey, 22.4–40
‘The match that was to seal your fate is over,’ he [Odysseus] called out to the Suitors. ‘Now
for another target which no man has yet hit – if I can hit it and Apollo grants my prayer.’ And
with that he levelled a deadly shaft straight at Antinous.
Antinous had just reached for his fine cup to take a draught of wine, and the golden, two-
handled beaker was balanced in his hands. No thought of bloodshed entered his head. For
who could guess, there in that festive company, that one man, however powerful he might be,
would bring evil death and black doom on him against such odds? Odysseus took aim and
shot him in the neck. The point passed clean through his tender throat. The cup dropped from
his hand as he was hit and he lurched over to one side. His life-blood gushed from his nostrils 5
in a turbid jet. His foot lashed out and kicked the table from him; his food was scattered on
the ground, and bread and meat lay there in the dirt.
When the Suitors saw the man collapse, there was uproar in the hall. They sprang from their
chairs and rushed in confusion about the room, searching the solid walls on every side. But 10
not a shield or sturdy spear was there to lay hands on. They rounded in fury on Odysseus:
‘Stranger, men make a dangerous target; you have played your last match. Now you shall
surely die. You have killed the greatest nobleman in Ithaca: for that the vultures shall eat you.’
Each of them laboured under the delusion that he had killed the man by accident. It had not
dawned upon the fools that the fate of all of them was sealed.
15
The master-strategist Odysseus gave them a black look. ‘You dogs!’ he cried. ‘You never
thought to see me back from Troy. So you fleeced my household; you raped my maids; you
courted my wife behind my back though I was alive – with no more fear of the gods in heaven
than of the human vengeance that might come. One and all, your fate is sealed.’
Translation: E.V. Rieu 20
© OCR 2025 H408/11 Jun25 Turn over
, 4
‘Here is a clear end to the contest. Now I’ll see if I can hit another target no man has as yet,
and may Apollo grant my prayer!’
So saying, he [Odysseus] aimed a deadly shaft at Antinous, who was handling a fine golden
two-handled cup, about to raise it to his lips and sip the wine, his thoughts far from death.
How should he guess among the feasting crowd, that one man however powerful he might be
could dare to bring a vile death and a dark doom on him? But Odysseus took aim and shot
him through the neck. The point passed clean through the tender throat, and Antinous sank to 5
one side, the cup falling at that moment from his hand, while a thick jet of blood gushed from
his nostrils. His foot kicked the table away, dashing the food to the floor, and the bread and
meat were fouled.
When the Suitors saw the man fall, there was uproar throughout the hall, and they leapt 10
from their seats in fear, running to the walls to find a shield or a stout spear of which there
were no sign. Then they turned on Odysseus angrily: ‘Stranger you’ll pay for choosing a
man as your target: no more contests for you, your time is up. You have killed the best of
Ithaca’s young men, and now the vultures will have you.’ They imagined in truth that he had
killed Antinous by accident, not realising that the net of fate had been thrown over them all.
Resourceful Odysseus, glowered at them, and answered: ‘You dogs! You thought I’d never 15
return from the land of Troy, so you laid waste my house, forced my maids, and wooed my
wife in secret though I was still alive, without fearing the gods who rule the wide sky, or that
mortal vengeance would find you. Now the net of fate is thrown over you all.’
Translation: A.S. Kline 20
3 Explain how far you think Odysseus is shown to be admirable in Passage B.
Use references to the passage to support your answer.
4* ‘Revenge matters’. Explain why revenge is important in the Odyssey and evaluate
how it adds to the success of the story.
You may use Passage B as a starting point, and your knowledge of the Odyssey
answer.
[Section A Total: 30] Section B: Virgil
Answer all the questions from this section.
Choose one translation of the Aeneid and answer the questions.
Passage C
Virgil, Aeneid, 12.908–944
© OCR 2025 H408/11 Jun25
GCSE
Classical Civilisation
H408/11: The world of the hero
*1881597106*
A Level
INSTRUCTIONS
• Use black ink.
• Write your answer to each question in the Answer Booklet. The question numbers must
be clearly shown.
• Fill in the boxes on the front of the Answer Booklet.
• This question paper has three sections:
Section A – Homer: Answer either all the questions on Iliad or all the questions
on Odyssey.
Section B – Virgil: Answer all the questions.
Section C – Homer and Virgil: Answer Question 7 and one question from Questions 8,
9 and 10.
INFORMATION
• The total mark for this paper is 100.
• The marks for each question are shown in brackets [ ].
• Quality of extended response will be assessed in questions marked with an asterisk (*).
• This document has 8 pages.
ADVICE
• Read each question carefully before you start your answer.
© OCR 2025 [603/0726/2] DC (PQ) 354627/2
OCR is an exempt Charity
Turn over
Section A: Homer
Answer all the questions on the text you have studied.
Homer’s Iliad
Choose one translation of the Iliad and answer the questions.
Passage A
, 2
Homer, Iliad, 22.300–333
5
‘Evil death is no longer far away; it is staring me in the face and there is no escape. Zeus
and his Archer son must long have been resolved on this, for all their earlier goodwill and
help.
‘So now my destiny confronts me. Let me at least sell my life dearly and not without glory,
after some great deed for future generations to hear of.’
10
With these words Hector drew the sharp, long, heavy sword hanging down at his side.
He gathered himself and swooped like a high-flying eagle that drops to earth through black
clouds to pounce on a tender lamb or cowering hare. So Hector swooped, brandishing his
sharp sword.
15
Achilles sprang to meet him, his heart filled with savage determination. He kept his chest
covered with his fine, ornate shield; his glittering helmet with its four plates nodded, and
above it danced the lovely plumes that Hephaestus had lavished on the crest. Like a star
moving with others through the night, Hesperus, the loveliest star set in the skies - such was
the gleam from his spear’s sharp point as he weighed it in his right hand with murder in his
heart for godlike Hector, searching that handsome body for its most vulnerable spot.
20
Hector’s body was completely covered by the fine bronze armour he had taken from great
Patroclus when he killed him, except for the flesh that could be seen at the windpipe, where
the collar bones hold the neck from the shoulders, the easiest place to kill a man. As Hector
charged him, godlike Achilles drove at the spot with his spear, and the point went through
Hector’s soft neck, though the heavy bronze head did not cut his windpipe and left him still
able to speak. Hector crashed in the dust, and godlike Achilles triumphed over him:
‘Hector, no doubt you imagined, as you stripped Patroclus, that you would be safe. You
never thought of me.’
Translation: E.V. Rieu
‘An evil fate’s upon me, Death is no longer far away, and him there is no escaping. Zeus,
and his son, the Far-Striker, decided all this long ago, they who were once eager to defend
me, and destiny now overtakes me. But let me not die without a fight, without true glory,
without some deed that men unborn may hear.’
With this, he [Hector] drew the sharp blade at his side, a powerful long-sword, and gathering
his limbs together swooped like a high-soaring eagle that falls to earth from the dark clouds
to seize a sick lamb or a cowering hare. So Hector swooped, brandishing his keen blade.
5
Achilles ran to meet him heart filled with savage power, covering his chest with his great,
skilfully worked shield, while above his gleaming helm with its four ridges waved the golden
plumes Hephaestus placed thickly at its crest. Bright as the Evening Star that floats among
the midnight constellations, set there the loveliest jewel in the sky, gleamed the tip of
Achilles’ sharp spear brandished in his right hand, as he sought to work evil on noble Hector,
10
searching for the likeliest place to land a blow on his fair flesh.
Now, the fine bronze armour he stripped from mighty Patroclus when he killed him covered
all Hector’s flesh except for one opening at the throat, where the collarbones knit neck and
shoulders, and violent death may come most swiftly. There, as Hector charged at him, noble
Achilles aimed his ash spear, and drove its heavy bronze blade clean through the tender
15
neck, though without cutting the windpipe or robbing Hector of the power of speech. Hector
fell in the dust and Achilles shouted out in triumph: ‘While you were despoiling Patroclus, no
doubt, in your folly, you thought yourself quite safe.’
Translation: A.S. Kline
20
© OCR 2025 H408/11 Jun25
, 3
OR
1 Explain how far you think Achilles is shown to be admirable in Passage A.
Use references to the passage to support your answer.
2* ‘Evil death.’ Evaluate whether you think this is a fair description of the way death is
presented in the Iliad.
You may use Passage A as a starting point, and your knowledge of the Iliad in your
answer. [20] Homer’s Odyssey
Choose one translation of the Odyssey and answer the questions.
Passage B
Homer, Odyssey, 22.4–40
‘The match that was to seal your fate is over,’ he [Odysseus] called out to the Suitors. ‘Now
for another target which no man has yet hit – if I can hit it and Apollo grants my prayer.’ And
with that he levelled a deadly shaft straight at Antinous.
Antinous had just reached for his fine cup to take a draught of wine, and the golden, two-
handled beaker was balanced in his hands. No thought of bloodshed entered his head. For
who could guess, there in that festive company, that one man, however powerful he might be,
would bring evil death and black doom on him against such odds? Odysseus took aim and
shot him in the neck. The point passed clean through his tender throat. The cup dropped from
his hand as he was hit and he lurched over to one side. His life-blood gushed from his nostrils 5
in a turbid jet. His foot lashed out and kicked the table from him; his food was scattered on
the ground, and bread and meat lay there in the dirt.
When the Suitors saw the man collapse, there was uproar in the hall. They sprang from their
chairs and rushed in confusion about the room, searching the solid walls on every side. But 10
not a shield or sturdy spear was there to lay hands on. They rounded in fury on Odysseus:
‘Stranger, men make a dangerous target; you have played your last match. Now you shall
surely die. You have killed the greatest nobleman in Ithaca: for that the vultures shall eat you.’
Each of them laboured under the delusion that he had killed the man by accident. It had not
dawned upon the fools that the fate of all of them was sealed.
15
The master-strategist Odysseus gave them a black look. ‘You dogs!’ he cried. ‘You never
thought to see me back from Troy. So you fleeced my household; you raped my maids; you
courted my wife behind my back though I was alive – with no more fear of the gods in heaven
than of the human vengeance that might come. One and all, your fate is sealed.’
Translation: E.V. Rieu 20
© OCR 2025 H408/11 Jun25 Turn over
, 4
‘Here is a clear end to the contest. Now I’ll see if I can hit another target no man has as yet,
and may Apollo grant my prayer!’
So saying, he [Odysseus] aimed a deadly shaft at Antinous, who was handling a fine golden
two-handled cup, about to raise it to his lips and sip the wine, his thoughts far from death.
How should he guess among the feasting crowd, that one man however powerful he might be
could dare to bring a vile death and a dark doom on him? But Odysseus took aim and shot
him through the neck. The point passed clean through the tender throat, and Antinous sank to 5
one side, the cup falling at that moment from his hand, while a thick jet of blood gushed from
his nostrils. His foot kicked the table away, dashing the food to the floor, and the bread and
meat were fouled.
When the Suitors saw the man fall, there was uproar throughout the hall, and they leapt 10
from their seats in fear, running to the walls to find a shield or a stout spear of which there
were no sign. Then they turned on Odysseus angrily: ‘Stranger you’ll pay for choosing a
man as your target: no more contests for you, your time is up. You have killed the best of
Ithaca’s young men, and now the vultures will have you.’ They imagined in truth that he had
killed Antinous by accident, not realising that the net of fate had been thrown over them all.
Resourceful Odysseus, glowered at them, and answered: ‘You dogs! You thought I’d never 15
return from the land of Troy, so you laid waste my house, forced my maids, and wooed my
wife in secret though I was still alive, without fearing the gods who rule the wide sky, or that
mortal vengeance would find you. Now the net of fate is thrown over you all.’
Translation: A.S. Kline 20
3 Explain how far you think Odysseus is shown to be admirable in Passage B.
Use references to the passage to support your answer.
4* ‘Revenge matters’. Explain why revenge is important in the Odyssey and evaluate
how it adds to the success of the story.
You may use Passage B as a starting point, and your knowledge of the Odyssey
answer.
[Section A Total: 30] Section B: Virgil
Answer all the questions from this section.
Choose one translation of the Aeneid and answer the questions.
Passage C
Virgil, Aeneid, 12.908–944
© OCR 2025 H408/11 Jun25
