Title: Finding Your Voice – A Comparison of Communication Challenges Communication is one of the most important tools we have as humans.
Faglig kvalitetssikret av lærere og toppstudenter · Følger læreplanen (LK20) · Sist oppdatert 2026-10-02
This guide breaks down how to excel on an exam task about finding your voice, using a model essay that compares communication challenges to show you exactly what earns top marks for comparative analysis.
Compare communication challenges in an English-language story of your choosing with either the short story "Who Said We All Have to All Talk Alike", the song "Talk", or one of the films in the preparation material. Your chosen story may be a film, TV series, short story, novel, song, game or other work of fiction.
In your text:
Briefly introduce your chosen stories.
Discuss relevant communication challenges in your stories, giving examples.
Reflect on what we can learn about communication from the stories you chose.
Title: Finding Your Voice – A Comparison of Communication Challenges
Communication is one of the most important tools we have as humans. But what happens when the way we speak is different from what others expect, or when we struggle to speak at all? In this text, I will compare communication challenges in the short story “Who Said We All Have to Talk Alike” by Varsha Shah and the film “The King’s Speech” directed by Tom Hooper.
“Who Said We All Have to Talk Alike” follows a girl who is proud of her background and her way of speaking. She uses a mix of English and her family's heritage language. However, she faces criticism from a teacher who tells her to "talk properly"—meaning to speak “standard English.” The girl is confused and hurt, because she sees her way of speaking as part of who she is. The story highlights how people are sometimes judged based on their accent or dialect, and how this can affect confidence and identity.
In “The King’s Speech”, Prince Albert, later King George VI of England, struggles with a stammer. Speaking in public is extremely difficult for him, which is a serious problem for someone who must lead a nation during war. He feels embarrassed, frustrated, and helpless. The film shows his journey with speech therapist Lionel Logue, who helps him gain confidence and improve his speech—not by changing who he is, but by understanding his fear and treating him with respect.
Both stories explore communication challenges from different perspectives. In “Who Said We All Have to Talk Alike”, the challenge comes from how someone speaks and the pressure to sound a certain way. The girl doesn’t have a problem communicating—others just don’t accept her voice. In “The King’s Speech”, the challenge is physical and emotional. The King knows what he wants to say, but he can’t always say it clearly. Both characters face pressure to conform and feel judged because of how they speak.
What these stories teach us is that communication is more than just pronunciation or grammar. It’s about connection, confidence, and being heard. The girl in Varsha Shah’s story learns that her voice matters and doesn’t need to be changed to fit others' expectations. The King learns that even someone with a speech disorder can inspire a nation when they speak with honesty and courage.
In a world with so many different languages, accents, and ways of expressing ourselves, it is important to accept and value all voices. These stories remind us that people shouldn’t have to change who they are to be understood. Communication is not just about talking the same—it’s about listening with respect.
This type of comparative essay task is a favourite on Norwegian upper secondary English exams because it tests a wide range of skills outlined in the curriculum (LK20). It assesses your ability to comprehend and interpret different texts, to draw analytical connections between them, and to reflect on broader themes like identity, culture, and society. You are not just summarizing; you are constructing an argument using evidence from two sources.
Consider these points:
To analyse these texts effectively, you need a precise vocabulary. Understanding these terms will allow you to describe the communication challenges with greater analytical depth instead of just retelling the story.
| Concept | Definition | Example from the texts |
|---|---|---|
| Sociolinguistics | The study of how language use is influenced by social factors like culture, ethnicity, social class, and power dynamics. | The conflict in "Who Said We All Have to Talk Alike" is fundamentally sociolinguistic. The teacher's preference for "Standard English" over the protagonist's hybrid language is a social judgment, not a linguistic one. |
| Code-switching | The practice of alternating between two or more languages, dialects, or registers in a single conversation. | The protagonist in Varsha Shah's story uses code-switching as a natural part of her identity, blending English with her heritage language. The teacher's criticism is an attack on this practice. |
| Standard Language Ideology | The belief that one variety of a language (the "standard") is inherently superior to others and should be the norm in speech and writing. | The teacher's command to "talk properly" is a clear example. This ideology dismisses the protagonist's dialect as incorrect, linking language to social status and conformity. |
| Speech Impediment | A physical or psychological condition that disrupts the normal fluency and flow of speech, such as a stammer or stutter. | In "The King's Speech", King George VI's stammer is the central communication challenge. It is an internal, physiological barrier, unlike the external, social barrier in the other story. |
| Idiolect | An individual's unique way of speaking, including their choice of words, grammar, and pronunciation. | Both protagonists are fighting for the right to their own idiolect. The girl wants her multicultural idiolect to be accepted, while the King wants to speak with his own voice, despite its imperfections. |
Many students can identify the basic plot, but miss the opportunity to score top marks by falling into predictable traps. Here is how to avoid them. …