Literature tips - Use the IMEJ method-THE CURSE

I - Identify what the question wants

M - Make a statement
E - Elaborate on the answers
J - Justify the elaboration by giving textual evidence from the novel
Framework of the answer
1.

Novel

2.

Author

3.

Introduction

4.

Evidence 1+ Detail

5.

Evidence 2 + Detail

6.

Evidence 3 + Detail

7.

Conclusion (Compulsory)

* Minimum 2 evidence

Sample Question - An incident that changed the life of a character

1.

2.

Identify

The character - HHHHH

Incident -

Make a statement

3.

4.

An incident/event that changes the life of HHHHHH

Elaborate

Answer the question

Where, When, What happened

Justify

Answer the question why do you say so using the evidence from the text.

A CHARACTER THAT INFLUENCES OTHERS IN A NEGATIVE WAY

The novel that I have chosen is The Curse by Lee Su Ann. In this novel there are a
few strong characters. Among these characters, the character that I think has strongly
influenced the others in a negative way is Puan Normala.
Puan Normala, one of the villagers, is described by Siti as a slimy cobra with a
three-forked tongue. Nobody likes the gossips that she spreads. Branded as a rumourmonger, I find that she easily influences the narrow minded people of her village. As a
news broadcaster of the village, everything that happens there does not escape her eyes
and ears. Immediately, it becomes a topic for her to talk about. Her idle talks are capable of
ruining the reputations of the person concern. Most of the villagers, who fail to think
rationally, are easily influenced by her tales which causes a negative impact on the village.
After Madhuris body is recovered, she talks about Madhuris death so frequently that
her daughter carries the gossips to school too. She tells her classmates that Madhuri is
murdered. In another incident, she also talks about Madhuris marriage to Haji Ghani, the
village headman and how their young, handsome teacher is affected by it. This is a strong
negative influence that Noor has acquired from Puan Normala as it is bad for Noor to talk
about matters that are not related to her.
The next incident is when Puan Normala admits that she has seen Madhuris dead
body and that her body was bleeding white blood. Being superstitious, she spreads the
rumour that the village is cursed with Madhuris death. She states that since the village is
cursed, many bad things will happen and the village will soon experience disaster. She
waves the villagers hearts and spoils the harmony of the village. This is a clear evident that
shows how influent she can be in a negative way.
In another incident where we can witness her negative influence on the villagers is
when she blames the old ladys visit to Asrafs house as the reason for the continuous rain.
Furthermore, she is also a mean and malicious person. For example, her influence on the
villagers caused them to provoke Mohd Asraf to confront the old lady by accusing the old
lady as the reason why Asrafs grandmothers dies. Because of that instigation, Asrafs anger
is the main cause for the fire that causes the old lady to die.
Apart from the above evident, there are many other incidents where she tries to
influence the others such as her own daughter and also Siti, her neighbours daughter.
Noor, her daughter is exactly like her and can be branded Like mother like daughter. In her
class, she plays the role that she inherited from her mother. This is a very clear evident that
shows Puan Normalas negative influence on her daughter.
In conclusion, based on the above reasons and evident, I find that Puan Normala is
the one and only character that can influence the others in the negative way. We should not
be like Puan Normala as what we may say, may harm others. Therefore it is necessary for
us to stay wise to create a more peaceful world.

A Decision Made By a Character: was it right or wrong?

The novel that I have read is The Curse by Lee Su Ann. In this novel I find that
Azreen has made a few difficult decisions. One of the decisions is when she took the
blame for leaving Mr. Mohans farm gate open which caused the bull to escape.
During the school days, Azreen was a good friend of Asraf and she also had a crush
on him. Asraf worked part time on Mr. Mohans farm. One evening, when Azreen went to
visit Asraf on the farm, there was a commotion. As Azreen approached the group, she was
shocked to hear Mr. Mohan and his sons, threatening Asraf. Asraf was being blamed for
leaving the farm gate open and letting the bull from the farm. At that very moment, Azreens
instinct told her to protect the person she loves. She made a difficult decision by taking up
the blame for leaving the gate open. She boldly told off Mr. Mohan and his sons that they
should not make accusations without looking into the matter first. In general, it is not easy to
take a blame for something that one has not done. It takes a lot of guts and I find that
Azreen has that quality.
However, was her decision right? I feel that the decision to take up the blame was
wrong. A friend in need is a friend indeed but not in this situation. Helping a friend does not
mean that one should take up the blame for someone elses wrong doings just to protect the
friend from being punish. In this case, I feel Azreen took the blame just to prove to Asraf her
feelings for him. But was that appropriate? If Asraf was innocent, then he should have
voiced out and stopped Azreen from taking the blame. Furthermore, Azreen should have
requested Mr. Mohan to investigate the situation first and that would have been a better
decision.
Moverover, it was the wrong decision because the escaped bull also cost her mother
to lose the ability to walk. Since Azreen took the blame for the bulls escape, she was
indirectly responsible for the accident. The bull had crashed into her fathers motorcycle
causing her mother to lose the use of her leg. From that day onwards her father was cold
and distant with her as he was furious that it was really her fault that the bull escaped. I find
that the decision that she made was her biggest mistake as she did not win Asrafs heart
after all but her relationship with her father went from bad to worse. They became estranged
until the end.
Based on the above reasoning, I find that making a decision to help someone in
need is a right move but saving someone who may be in wrong or guilty is not a good
decision. In this situation, I feel that the decision Azreen made was definitely wrong as it
cost her to lose her parents trust and love.

INTERESTING EVENT AND LESSONS LEARNT

Based on the novel that you have read, write about an interesting event and the
lessons that you have learnt. Give reasons to support your answer.

The novel that I have read is The Curse by Lee Su Ann. In this novel the interesting
event that I find teaches me numerous lessons is the outbreak of the fire which results in the
Old Ladys death.
When the neighbours visit Asraf, when Asrafs grandmother has passed away
suddenly, they convince him that the Old Lady had poisoned her. Fuelled with anger and
loss, he and the mob of people go over to the Old Ladys place with lit torches. Azreen tries
to stop him but his torch falls and sets the house on fire. Azreen runs inside to try to save the
Old Lady who is trapped under a pillar. Her last words to Azreen are just to learn to forgive.
Then Azreen is pulled away by her father before the house collapses. This event creates a
domino effect on a number of other events which in turn helps Azreen to finally solve the
mystery behind her sisters murder. She finds out that Asrat and Madhuri who is not her
biological sister, had been lovers. The final clue was that her father kills Madhuri upon
discovering about their affair and plans to elope.
The most important lesson I learnt from this event is not to be prejudiced so much as
to cause the death of innocent people. The Old Lady was cast out from the village after the
villagers found out that she had killed her husband. They are so prejudiced that they cannot
see her kindness and good heart. Secondly, we should not let superstition influence us to
the point of being irrational. We see how easily the villagers commit a crime because they
are willing to do anything, including planning an attack on the innocent and harmless Old
Lady just because of superstition. Under the instigation of Puan Normala, the villagers are
convinced to believe that the Old Lady possesses a special power to turn people into rats
and squirrels, so the latter is accused to be an evil witch who brings all the misfortunes and
had omen to the village. In fact, when the rain continues to pour for more than four days,
causing the town to be flooded, the Old Lady is blamed to have put the curse on the village.
From this event, we can see how gullible the villagers are to believe the vicious
rumours spread by the village gossip, Puan Normala. She does not seem to care about the
destruction she causes. Her irrational behaviour thus destroys the reputation of the victims
such as the Old Lady even in the eyes of children. Thus just as it is important not to spread
rumours that can harm others, we should not listen and be influenced by vicious gossip and
superstition.
Finally, I learnt the meaning of love and forgiveness from the Old Ladys actions. In
this event, we see the purity of the Old Ladys heart. Despite being ostracized by the
villagers, the Old Lady bears no grudges against them and is still willing to help people like
Asrafs Nek. More importantly, at the point of her death before the burning house collapses
on her, she reminds Azreen to forgive all the villagers who have wronged her. Azreen follows
her advice and forgives her father and Asraf when she finally finds out the truth about
Madhuri and her death.
Based on the above textual evidence, I definitely find that this tragic event is
interesting as it is a link to the mystery behind Mahduris death. The lessons that are learnt
from this event are very meaningful and can guide us to a better future as well as
strengthening our relationship with people we know and care for.

A CHARACTER WHO TOUCHES YOUR HEART

Based on the novel that you have read, write about one character that touches your
heart. Give reasons to support your answer.
The novel that I have chosen is The Curse by Lee Su Ann. In this novel there are a
few characters that are admirable. However I find that Azreen is an admirable character who
touches my heart. She portrays remarkable courage and open-heartedness when she
realises that her close friend Asraf has been in love with her dead sister instead of her.
She returns from London for her elder sisters funeral. However, she cannot accept
that Madhuri has died of natural causes she thinks she was murdered and wants to find
the truth. We see that Azreen did not have a happy childhood but is a filial daughter. She is
caned often by her father as a child but still remains obedient and loyal to him, even though
she is an adult now. Described as aggressive, self-opinionated, spiteful, hot-tempered and
ganas by others, her real strength of character is revealed when she finds herself let down
by both her father and Asraf. Furthermore, she goes against the other villagers to befriend
the Old Lady who has been ostracized by the villagers. It is the Old Lady who advises her to
forgive and forget.
Azreen is determined to find the truth behind Madhuris death. Finally, when she
finds out that it was her father who had killed her, she does not feel anger or resentment
towards him. She only feels lost and betrayed. She shows that she is a kind, caring, loving
and filial daughter when she forgives him. Her open-heartedness here touches my heart.
She also shows open-heartedness and magnanimity when she accepts Asrafs confession of
love for her sister, though she is shocked and hurt. She finds out more truths Madhuri was
not her real sister but had been adopted when her mother had gone mad.
Her father Salleh had seen Madhuri with a man (Asraf) who was not her husband
and had killed her in anger. Azreen realises that Saleh was the killer after he saves her from
Madhuri s vengeful mother and she sees the latex on his parang.
She has to be commended for her sacrifice and readiness to forgive all those who
hurt and disappoint her finally. Her capacity for love and forgiveness for her fathers and
Asrafs actions is what touches my heart in this novel.

An unforgettable event

In the novel The Curse by Lee Su Ann, an unforgettable event is when Puan Fatihah
fainted out of shock when she sees a silhouette of a Pontianak that looks like Madhuri
appearing from behind a pile of tree trunks.
Firstly, this is an unforgettable event because it makes me sympathise Puan Fatihah.
I find it sad that Puan Fatihah is a victim of her own belief in the supernatural. Prior to the
encounter with the Pontianak, she has gone to seek out the bomoh to get a charm to win
back her husbands affections. She is superstitious enough to resort to such a desperate act.
It is her superstition that makes her believe what she sees as a ghost and that is why she
faints from utter shock. What is so ironic is that she has thrown away the first charm which is
a small piece of paper with written incantation into the river. The result is her husband has
taken the younger woman, Madhuri as his second wife and she has only herself to blame.
Now that his younger wife is dead, she must win back her husbands affections with the help
of Awang, the bomoh.
Secondly, I feel sorry for Puan Fatihah because she is so pathetic. She cannot bear
her husband a child and always feels insecure as she has no power to keep him all to
herself. I can understand her pain of insecurity as she looks at the mirror each day and sees
her aging face. She is haunted by the deepening lines, the crows feet, the sagging skin and
double chin. Which man can still stay in love with a face like that? Her insensitive husband
has spurned her and laughs at her insecurities. Her declining beauty has caused her to feel
envy towards Madhuri and to be angry at her husband. This is really pathetic.
Thirdly, I find this incident memorable / unforgettable because it reminds me of how
fragile a woman can be. Puan Fatihah has tried to be strong and put up a great pretence of
liking the second wife, Madhuri. She has actually succeeded in deceiving everyone in the
village and even Madhuri herself. Madhuri, in her last letter to Azreen has told her sister that
Puan Fatihah is such a kind and understanding lady whom she looks up to as an elder sister.
Madhuri sees her as such a dear sweet woman and is not sure whether she can emulate
her goodness as a person and a wife. Poor Fatihah! She has suppressed her emotions and
has to endure the fights she and her husband have been having lately over trivial matters.
She cannot get his attention when Madhuri was alive and she still cannot get his attention
after she was dead. She was so emotionally fragile that it was not surprising she fainted
when she came face to face with a ghostly figure who has reached out her hands to touch
her.
I would not forget this incident as it has taught me not to believe in superstitions nor
resort to solving problems by using supernatural methods. All of us have problems and we
must not let them overwhelm us.