Grabbing your reader from the very start of your piece is something we must all aspire to. It's really important to 'hook' the reader as quickly as possible, ensuring that they want to read what you have to say. You must also ensure that you clearly outline your intentions, whilst showing off what you know about the novel, in your opening lines.
This TedEd video is awesome. It should help you understand how to compose your writing in a way that draws maximum attention.
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In Literature, the thing that separates 'descriptive' or 'narrative' writing from a top band response is the phrase 'critical analysis'. However, this concept is hard to understand!
In a nutshell, the University of Sussex identifies critical analysis thus: Fundamentally, critical thinking is about using your ability to reason. It's about being active (as opposed to passive) in your learning. It means that when you approach an idea, you do so with scepticism and doubt, rather than with unquestioning acceptance. You're always questioning whether the ideas, arguments and findings you're coming across are the whole picture and you're open to finding that they're not. You're identifying, analysing and, where possible, solving problems systematically. Arguments, here, are not squabbles between people - though they do evaluate other people's ideas: they are the way in which ideas are developed and organised into a line of reasoning which moves in a logical order to the conclusion and which aims to persuade the reader or listener of the validity of the point of view presented. Being able to discern and create structured, reasoned arguments is central to critical thinking. Therefore, when, in a Literature exam, you are asked to explore the importance of, say, violence, you must approach this theme with an open mind and be prepared to question whether the theme is even present at all and, if so, to what extent. We will do more on this in class, but in the meantime, here is a handy 'am I thinking critically?' checklist to help you distinguish between this and simple narrative writing. The Edexcel examination for this novel has two components:
The whole-test question is asking you to make connections between the settings, incidents, themes and characters in the novel. It is designed to test your ability to look at the novel as a whole in addition to one small section of it (to cut the wheat from the chaff, as it were!). Here are some of the more typical questions you might encounter: In this extract, the setting is important. Explain why the setting is important elsewhere in the novel. In this extract, a violent act takes place. Explain how violence is presented elsewhere in the novel. In this extract, the reader sees how Mr Utterson and Mr Enfield interact. Explore Mr Utterson's interactions with other characters elsewhere in the novel. Notice how all of the questions ask you to look outside of the extract. That is because you have already shown your abilities regarding that part of the novel in question 1! Therefore, you must express your knowledge of the rest of the story. This means that you must familiarise yourselves with the plot, the characters and key quotes. The Mark Scheme Notice how the mark scheme for this question uses the words "critical style". What this means is that you are being asked to give a "reasoned argument based on a range of sources". This means that you must explore the themes/characters/ideas presented in the question across the novel and give a range of ideas/quotes/references. Note: YOU ARE NOT MARKED FOR CONTEXT IN THIS PAPER. Band 1
Example Responses - Frankenstein Sadly, sample responses from Edexcel only exist for Frankenstein. However, it might help to look at a couple of responses. Candidate 1 - 8 marks Edexcel examiner response: The response is fairly narrative, but there is some clear understanding and a personal response to the theme of obsession. The candidate makes reference to ‘Walton’s obsession…to get to the North Pole’; how ‘the monster is obsessed with becoming friends with the DeLacey family’ and how these obsessions lead to violence, insanity and destruction. There are a couple of references made to the text to support points made and there is evidence of a critical style but it is not always applied securely. This paper is stuck in Band 2 due to its narrative form. It doesn't ever branch out into real critical analysis, instead relying on re-telling the story. A shame, because the bones are there. Candidate 2: 11 marks Edexcel examiner response:
The candidate makes a range of points in connection with the theme of obsession: Frankenstein’s obsession in making the monster; Walton’s obsessions with discovering new places; Elizabeth’s obsession with Victor and the obsession of the monster to seek revenge. There is a relevant personal response soundly related to the text. Focused comments are made with a number of references to the text to support ideas. The style is a little informal at times ‘’he blanked out his family’; however, the response is generally critical in style. This is a solid Band 3 response as it looks at a range of points - a huge range! However, it doesn't ever make any real cross-referenced points and all of the ideas kind of stand alone in the essay. A Band 4/5 essay would flow better and make further links between the different ideas. Planning a Response When planning your response, it's a good idea to use the box plan for this essay as it's so broad. However, you need to be quick! You can also bullet your ideas:
Let's take one of the questions from above: Explain how violence is presented... in the novel. We already know that we can't talk about what was in the extract (in this case, it was the Carew murder). Therefore, that's off the list. Let's start by thinking about the other violent acts that occur in the story:
Once you've got that, you're ready to go! You don't have a lot of time, so this is not intended to be a long essay - you just need to explore the ideas in enough detail to show you know your book. Overview Introduction Give an overview of violence in the story, but don't be formulaic. Compare: Jekyll and Hyde is a story about many violent things. Dr Jekyll is violent when he becomes Mr Hyde and he does violent things. I am going to write about how violence is explored in the novel. and This novel utilises the idea of violence to send a very clear message about the evil side of humanity. In Edward Hyde, Doctor Jekyll is able to contain all of his violent tendencies, but once Hyde is unleashed, Jekyll's violent wishes spiral out of control as he is unable to control the evil within. Try to show your understanding of the theme, rather than the plot. Writing About Events Avoid re-telling the story, and instead focus on what Stevenson is trying to prove through his use of violence. Compare: Violence is shown at the start when the little girl is trampled. This is violent because she is only a child and she gets trampled and hurt and Edward Hyde doesn't even care. It's violent because she was stamped on, which is a violent act. and Stevenson opens the novel with Enfield's recount of a violent incident where a child was trampled. He uses the word "juggernaut" to describe the perpetrator, showing the lack of care with which the child is trodden underfoot; Hyde injures the girl and moves on. When he is admonished for his actions, his lack of empathy is chilling, making the crowd (even surgeons) feel sick and Enfield's recount of him to be "like Satan" only reinforces the presence of evil and violence as underpinning the entire narrative. This is then built upon later in the novel when Carew is murdered with the same thoughtlessness and care. These events are built to shock the reader - the victims are always vulnerable and unable to fight back. Stevenson seems to be suggesting that violent people prey on the weak and needy. Concluding Try to be evaluative in your conclusion. Think about whether Stevenson has been successful in getting his message across to you. Compare: It was a good story that showed violence well. and Stevenson's close links between evil, violence and the supernatural effectively show the dark side of humanity and serve as a clear warning of what may happen if a person suppresses their dark urges. All in all, so long as you are able to clearly read the question, and have read the novel and understood it, there is no reason why you cannot achieve in this exam. TL;DR
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In a Nutshell...Mr Utterson, the lawyer, is concerned when his friend Dr Jekyll leaves everything in his will to the mysterious, and often violent, Mr Hyde. Whilst trying to uncover a suspected murder plot, he ends up finding out that the truth is actually far, far worse... ArchivesCategories
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