Reading Two Voices: A Column and a Sarcastic Comment
A Level 3 reading paper includes two short texts about school start times. Text A is a 260-word column in a Korean high school online magazine. The writer, a Year 12 student, argues that classes should start at 9:00 instead of 8:00. She cites a survey: 68% of students sleep fewer than seven hours, and 41% skip breakfast. Her argument uses hedges: “아마도”, “~ㄴ 것 같다”, “~ㄹ 필요가 있다고 본다”. She also writes, “아침마다 부모님은 속이 탄다고 하신다.” Text B is a 40-word comment under the column: “그래서 우리 학교 지각생이 줄었나요? ㅎㅎ 국어사전 찾아보면 ‘현실’이라는 단어가 나올 텐데요.” Students have 18 minutes and a glossary of four words, not including “속이 타다”. The questions ask them to compare the two writers’ attitudes and explain how the comment’s tone is created.
1. What is the author’s stance and what is the commenter’s attitude? Use evidence from both texts.
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The author supports a 9:00 start but hedges. “아마도”, “~ㄴ 것 같다” and “~ㄹ 필요가 있다고 본다” present the claim as reasoned opinion, not fact; the survey numbers support the argument rather than prove it. Her purpose is to persuade the school community while sounding reasonable. The commenter is sceptical or opposed. The rhetorical question “그래서 우리 학교 지각생이 줄었나요?” implies that a later start has not solved lateness; “ㅎㅎ” softens but also mocks; quoting “현실” suggests the author is idealistic. The commenter offers no data, so the attitude is dismissive rather than a counter-argument. A strong answer separates the author’s qualified claim from the commenter’s sarcastic reductio. Simply saying “one is for, one is against” misses the hedging and the tone, which are what the question is testing.
2. “속이 탄다” is not glossed. What does it mean here, and how does context help?
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Literally “the inside burns”; here it means to be anxious or worried sick. Context: 아침마다 (“every morning”), 부모님 (“parents”), and a column about students sleeping less and skipping breakfast. The subject is the parents, and the clause is reported speech (“다고 하신다”), so the writer is quoting parental worry, not describing her own. A student who glosses it as “angry” has missed the nurturing frame; “worry” fits the parental role and supports the author’s persuasive aim. The item tests using surrounding words rather than dictionary recall. The honorific “하신다” also raises the parents, which fits a respectful representation of their concern. In a comparison answer, this detail helps show that the author writes from a family perspective, while the commenter writes from a peer-sceptical perspective.
3. How do “ㅎㅎ” and the quoted “현실” affect the commenter’s tone? Explain the effect.
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“ㅎㅎ” is not a genuine laugh here; it is a softening particle that lets the commenter be rude while appearing casual. Combined with a rhetorical question, it creates a mocking “I’m just asking” tone. The quotation marks around “현실” distance the commenter from the word: they imply the author’s proposal ignores reality. The effect is deniable aggression: the commenter can claim humour if challenged. For the comparison, this matters because the author’s hedges make her sound open-minded, while the commenter’s laughter particle makes disagreement sound offhand. A top answer explains the mismatch between surface friendliness and underlying challenge. It should also note that the comment is much shorter, so it relies on implication rather than evidence, and that this asymmetry is part of the tone.