Below is a list of general points I've discovered while marking your draft essays.
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20 Remember that especially for the novel and the play - these texts work on two different levels. Firstly they are domestic dramas, concerned with the drama of ordinary and everyday little lives. However both texts can be read on at a broader level inwhich we see these little texts can be projected onto a political or universal level. In this we can see characters representing specific concepts or ideals.
19 Weave into your essay references to the different genres you are writing on. For example one way to make it clear you are writing about poetry is to refer to poetic techniques such as phonetic/sound patterns, such as alliteration, rhyme, rhythm, assonance, onomatopoeia, sibilance; and of course writing about the form of the poem is a straightforward way to write about the genre of poetry. A really significant technique to refer to when writing about Death of a Salesman is to refer to dramatic techniques like stage directions. Another way is to write about expressionistic techniques – Ben and Charlie talking to Willy at the same time, the woman’s laugh, walls that are solid and not solid. These all help create a sense of dream. We see things from Willy’s perspective.
20 Remember that especially for the novel and the play - these texts work on two different levels. Firstly they are domestic dramas, concerned with the drama of ordinary and everyday little lives. However both texts can be read on at a broader level inwhich we see these little texts can be projected onto a political or universal level. In this we can see characters representing specific concepts or ideals.
19 Weave into your essay references to the different genres you are writing on. For example one way to make it clear you are writing about poetry is to refer to poetic techniques such as phonetic/sound patterns, such as alliteration, rhyme, rhythm, assonance, onomatopoeia, sibilance; and of course writing about the form of the poem is a straightforward way to write about the genre of poetry. A really significant technique to refer to when writing about Death of a Salesman is to refer to dramatic techniques like stage directions. Another way is to write about expressionistic techniques – Ben and Charlie talking to Willy at the same time, the woman’s laugh, walls that are solid and not solid. These all help create a sense of dream. We see things from Willy’s perspective.
18 In your essay you should focus your attention on the key character of each text.
For example consider Leo and Willy as outsiders. We know there are
other outsiders in these texts however you do not have enough time or
word count to really explore them.
17 Alienation - is a key concept
that you may find helpful in your essay. If you are writing about
'outsiders' you should consider this term carefully.
Alienation is
1. a turning away; estrangement
2. the state of being an outsider or the feeling of being isolated, as from society
3. (Psychiatry) Psychiatry a state in which a person's feelings are inhibited so that eventually both the self and the external world seem unreal
18 In your essay you should focus your attention on the key character of each text.
For example consider Leo and Willy as outsiders. We know there are
other outsiders in these texts however you do not have enough time or
word count to really explore them.
16 It's really important to be specific and detailed rather than general and vague.
What I suggest is you should identify specific episodes from the poem,
novel and play and refer to them directly. I think it's good to write a lot about a little rather than a little about a lot. Be confident about writing specific and detailed episodes. Build your essay on sound textual analysis.
15 As you work on your essay consider whether your sentences are too long.
Often long sentences can be confusing and too complicated. If a
sentence contains a complex idea it will be better to break the idea
down into smaller sentences. I suggest you write shorter sentences of no
more than a line and a half, like the sentences in this point.
14 Love -
Maybe another useful concept to consider when planning or writing the
essay. Consider three different types of human love we find in all three
texts.
- Devotional love - worship and adoration - often associated with religious or spiritual love. We can see this clearly in Betjeman, Miller and Hartley. Larkin presents us with the opposite of this kind of love.
- Physical love - sexual - associated with physical pleasure, a momentary, passing experience of pleasure. Sexual pleasure can make us believe the relationship is exclusive, lifelong and permanent.
- Conventional love - social love, marriage, courtship. Consider the relationship between Trimmingham and Marian or Willy and Linda. This love is public, respectable adheres to specific rules or conventions. It is bound up with respect, status and reputation.
Try and apply these concepts to the three texts. Are there clear comparative observations that you can make?
Another
way of thinking about love is to consider the love of a thing or a
concept. And another vital aspect of love touched on with these writers
is family love. In Miller we have fathers and sons. In Hartly we have
mother daughter and mother son. Betjeman refers to his father in
'Norfolk'. There is family mentioned in 'St Saviour's...', 'Indoor
Games...'.
13 Appearance and reality - I
think another useful concept - linked to conflict. I think it may be
useful to consider the texts in the light of this concept. Consider Leo
and Willy - they have hopes and expectations about the society/community
they are connected to. Their lives appear to them to be one thing.
However the progress of the play and the novel reveals a different
reality or truth. And again linked to appearance and reality are the
concepts of truth and lies or reality and fantasy.
12 Conflict
- I think that whatever essay title you are researching you should
consider conflict. It may be relevant and a helpful way of approaching
the texts. This may be specifically relevant to those of you writing
about painful realities. Here are a number of definitions.
Conflict is:
1. A state of open, often prolonged fighting; a battle or war.
2. A state of disharmony between incompatible or antithetical persons, ideas, or interests; a clash.
3. Psychology
A psychic struggle, often unconscious, resulting from the opposition or
simultaneous functioning of mutually exclusive impulses, desires, or
tendencies.
4.
Opposition between characters or forces in a work of drama or fiction,
especially opposition that motivates or shapes the action of the plot.
Try and apply these concepts to the three texts.
Try and apply these concepts to the three texts.
11 Make sure you refer to context and other voices in your essay.
The essay should not be dominated by these two features but should make
selective, concise and relevant references woven into the essay. See
other posts for a definition of context and other voices. Always make
sure that if you are quoting other sources or using ideas from other
texts you must record author, text, title, publisher, place and date of
publication
10 Use a formal academic register in your essay writing - no slang, no clichés, no poetic language
9 Use the post on the blog comparing the three poems on horses as a model for your own introduction
8 Use the post on the blog comparing the three poems on horses as a model for your own comparative paragraphs
7 Analyse the quotations used refer to technical terms and there effect on an audience
6 There are no marks for descriptive writing and retelling the story. Although you should introduce each quote you use and put it in context; you must avoid chunks of description or narrative.
5 Summarise briefly the plot of the play, novel and poems used.
Put these in the introduction. This will help you later in the essay
and may stop you from becoming descriptive and re-telling the plot.
4 Make sure your essay is always relevant to the essay title. Each point you make must link back to the main theme you have outlined in your introduction.
3 Fully define key words and concepts mentioned in the title
and refer to them in detail in your introduction. Jot down synonyms;
look up key words in a dictionary and thesaurus. From these definitions
build up relevant new points for the essay. Also you should consider
what you think is the meaning of the key words and phrases. Be broad,
creative and expansive in your thinking. Note everything down. Exclude
what is irrelevant later.
2 Generally more points are needed in the essays. Reflect on the main points you want to make. Can you break these points down into smaller points?
