Advanced Higher English



Advanced Higher English

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Specialist Study

A guide to the dissertation

Specialist Study: An extended essay (between 3500 and 4500 words

Dissertation. in length) on an aspect of literature, produced ‘under supervision’ and assessed externally.

Specialist Study – Dissertation SQA Candidate Advice

1. ITS VALUE

The dissertation is worth 40% of your overall award—so it’s important to take it very seriously.

2. EXCLUSIONS

Authors, texts and topics that are central to your work in one component of course assessment (for example, Literary Study) may not be used in any other component of course assessment (for example, your Specialist Study Dissertation). You will be required to record your Specialist Study Dissertation texts and topic on your answer booklet.

3. WHAT YOU HAVE TO DO

You have to make an independent study of and produce a dissertation on an aspect or aspects of language or literature or media or some combination of these.

4. SELECTING TEXTS AND TOPICS

The first stage in the process is the selection of texts or topics and the formulation of a brief descriptive statement of what you propose to study. This proposal must be approved by your teacher or lecturer in order to ensure that the materials are appropriate to an English course and worthy of study at this level and that the study itself is manageable. Your study should explore a limited area and examine it in detail with lots of appropriate supporting evidence.

It should be noted that texts and topics:

* must be personally selected by you (under the guidance of your teacher or lecturer)

* must be accepted by your centre as suitable choices

* must not be the subject of teaching in this unit

* must not be the subject of teaching or assessment in other units of the Advanced Higher English course or in the units of other courses.

You should select a topic that will enable you to offer a full exposition and discussion of a particular aspect your chosen field of study. For example, a literary theme might be pursued through the works of a single author, or works of several authors, or over a historical period; a language topic might focus on language acquisition, the dialect of a specific locality, the language of specialist groups; a media topic might be related to the study of language or of literature.

Studies of the works of a single author or single works by two or more authors should avoid a serial treatment in which each work is left isolated from the other(s). Studies that involve the collection and analysis of data and information should be presented in discursive form.

5. THE PRODUCTION OF THE DISSERTATION

You should:

* write, type or word-process the dissertation on one side of A4 paper only

* use italics or underlining to indicate titles of texts

* set in from the margin all quotations of more than one line so that they are clearly distinguishable from the text of the dissertation

* use footnotes and page references where appropriate to identify quotations from and references to primary sources

* use footnotes and page references at all times to identify and acknowledge quotations from, references to and information/ideas gleaned from secondary sources

* provide an accurate bibliography

* give footnote and bibliography references in the following form:

D.Gifford and D. McMillan, A History of Scottish Women’s Writing, EUP, 1997.

Style

If word-processed, your dissertation should observe the following conventions:

* each page should be numbered, including the title page and the bibliography

* each page should be single-sided

* each page should be typed in single line spacing

* the font used should be Times New Roman

* the font size should be 12 point

* your text should be left-justified

* titles of texts - novels, plays, poems, critical or reference works - should be in italics, without quotation marks

* quotations, unless only a few words long (when quotation marks should be used), should be preceded and followed by a double line space.

6. LENGTH

The dissertation you produce must be between 3500 and 4500 words in length, including quotations but excluding footnotes and bibliography. You should note that, in order to achieve consistency in this area, any dissertation that falls outwith these limits of length will not be accepted. You must indicate on the dissertation flyleaf the actual number of words used.

7. PLAGIARISM

While you should of course consult secondary sources, you must be careful not to rely on them excessively and you must never copy them without acknowledgement. Always remember that to plagiarise is to cheat—and this could lead to your disqualification from any award. Markers are instructed to report all instances where plagiarism is suspected for further investigation (so be warned!).

Title page

Your title page should include:

• your centre name

• your centre number

• your name

• your candidate number

• your title/topic/texts.

Style

If word-processed, your dissertation should observe the following conventions:

• each page should be numbered, including the title page and the bibliography

• each page should be single-sided

• each page should be typed in single line spacing

• the font used should be Times New Roman

• the font size should be 12 point

• your text should be left-justified

• titles of texts - novels, plays, poems, critical or reference works - should be in italics, without quotation marks

• quotations, unless only a few words long (when quotation marks should be used), should be preceded and followed by a double line space.

Citing references in the body of your dissertation

Footnotes should be kept to a minimum and numbered sequentially from the beginning to the end of your dissertation.

• The first reference to a text cited or quoted from should be given in full as follows:

• Bennett, Joan, Four Metaphysical Poets, (London, 1953), p23.

• The normal convention for subsequent references is: Bennett, p47.

• It is acceptable to abbreviate lengthy titles in footnotes or textual references. For example: All's Well That Ends Well can become AWTEW.

• Simple references, such as line numbers or page references of quotations from a book or a play or a poem already cited in full, can usually be incorporated in the text, normally in parentheses after quotations.

• Internet sources should be referred to thus:

• Crowley, J, New York Times (1985), Review of Lanark. Available:

Listing sources in your bibilography

You should take a fresh page for your bibliography.

• Make separate lists of primary texts (those chosen for study) and secondary sources (critical or reference works, periodicals, Web documents).

• List sources in alphabetical order, according to the author's surname.

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Using Secondary Sources A Guide for Dissertations

Most well known authors have been studied and written about. It is more difficult to find works of criticism about less well-known writers and contemporary writers. You should look for sources in the following places:

-Local Library

-Amazon

-University Websites

-Author Interviews (through websites)

-Reviews of the work (in newspapers and magazines)

The following sources are not academic and should not be used in a dissertation:

- Student essays

- Wikipedia

- Blogs

The purpose of Secondary Criticism:

- To develop your knowledge and understanding of a text

- To develop your argument for an essay

- By reading these works and expressing them in your own words you will develop your general reading skills.

Using Quotations

Only quote a critic if they have expressed an idea in an original way. These types of quotations should only be used to state a point which you will then discuss.

Format:

1) Karen Ford (1997) defines Plath’s poem as ‘as a poem about poetic language’.

2) Critics such as Ford (1997) share this view and suggest that ‘the role of autocrat is not one she relishes’.

3) Secondly, an even stronger argument for this case is given by Ford (1997). This is that ‘The allusion to Daphne in this poem is not merely an image for the speaker’s isolated problem; rather it represents other women as well.’

All quotations must be footnoted in the following format:

• The first reference to a text cited or quoted from should be given in full as follows:

• Bennett, Joan, Four Metaphysical Poets, (London, 1953), p23.

• The normal convention for subsequent references is: Bennett, p47.

• It is acceptable to abbreviate lengthy titles in footnotes or textual references. For example: All's Well That Ends Well can become AWTEW.

• Simple references, such as line numbers or page references of quotations from a book or a play or a poem already cited in full, can usually be incorporated in the text, normally in parentheses after quotations.

• Internet sources should be referred to thus:

• Crowley, J, New York Times (1985), Review of Lanark. Available:

Paraphrasing

Paraphrase a writer’s argument in your own words only if it supports a point you are making. Use your own words and remember to put the name of the critic and the year in parentheisis after the point and footnote accordingly.

Make sure the paraphrase supports the point you are making.

Write from your notes and reflection – rather than ‘translating’ from the readings.

Use your own words and writing style.

REMEMBER PARAPHRASING WITHOUT REFERENCING IS

PLAGIARISM

Advanced Higher – Essay Writing Skills

1) ANSWER THE QUESTION.

The question set will point towards a significant area of interest, and, however well you write, you will gain no credit at all unless you actually discuss the specific issue. This may mean discarding your best ideas; the defence of this is that it is testing your flexibility and ability to consider the text from a new or unexpected angle.

2) KNOW THE QUESTION TYPES

You may have already noticed how in English there are only a handful of possible questions. They may be phrased in an obscure way or use an erudite quotation but the underlying question is likely to be fairly familiar and predictable. These are the set types:

i) A question about character or persona: discuss main character/persona, or compare characters or about author’s conception and presentation of character.

ii) A question about the society of the text – the world the writer presents, the values of a society, the divisions and differences in a society, how the character/persona and the society relate to each other.

iii) A question about the author’s attitude/values/morality/view of life: which asks what view of life the text reveals, what the writer values or what they condemn.

iv) A question about style or method: asking you why the writer chooses to write in the way he or she does. Sometimes you will be asked more specific questions about say imagery, for example.

v) An evaluative question: they will find some quotation by a critic and ask you to discuss it. The best way is to defend the author, explaining why their way of writing is appropriate for what they want to achieve.

3) HAVE A STRONG, CLEAR ARGUMENT CLOSELY ILLUSTRATED FROM THE RELEVANT TEXT.

You should be able to sum up in a few words what you feel the main outline of your essay should be (overarching conceptual proposition). It is better to start from a simple idea and then make it more complex rather than produce a confused answer that does not bring anything into focus. Your idea does not have to be original and can come from secondary reading – it is how you use the details of the texts and weave them together which will make your argument cohesive. [1]

4) THE BASIC STRUCTURE

If you follow a basic structure you can work on the quality of your content from there.

i) Introductory Paragraph

ii) Six paragraphs of text/analysis/conclusion

iii) A concluding paragraph

5) THE INTRODUCTION SHOULD BE BRIEF

Introduce the problem and give a brief outline of the case you are going to present. Refer directly to the question and be specific to the texts you are going to use. Cut through to the essentials and forget about irrelevant details.

6) WORK FROM THE EVIDENCE OF THE TEXT

You need to show your reading of the text and the only way to do this is to ‘show your working’. Proceed in a linear fashion but without being mechanical. Use the evidence from the text to make your points rather than the text being secondary. Outline a scene/image, including the details that will help you to make a point relevant to the question.

7) ANALYSE WHAT YOU QUOTE

You must not refer to the text or quote the text without directly analysing the evidence and outlining clearly how it supports your argument.

8) CONCLUDE YOUR PARAGRAPHS

Every paragraph should have a conclusion to ensure your essay has a sense of direction and to review your argument. This should then allow you to make a direct link to your next point in the new paragraph.

9) BE EMBARRASSED TO WRITE YOUR CONCLUSION

You should have illustrated and established everything so conscientiously along the way that the final paragraph will be no more than a reiteration of a case already thoroughly made. Do not be afraid of contradicting statements you made in the opening parts of your essay – if you feel you have made a case for the text being more complex than you first thought. As long as you show your thinking and prove your argument then you will have done well.

10) USE SECONDARY READING BUT ONLY IF YOU KNOW HOW

Do not get bogged down in other people’s ideas before you have your own. This can be especially problematic in an exam situation. Before attempting to use secondary criticism in your dissertation please read the information sheet. Any mistakes made in this area may be seen as plagiarism. They should just be used as a supplementary idea or to give support to an idea of your own.

COMMON MISTAKES YOU WILL NOT MAKE

1) LACK OF THINKING

This does not necessarily mean using a plan, although a few ideas noted down at the start would help. All you have to do is think about what the question is asking, what you want to say and what parts of the text you want to use.

2) FORMLESSNESS

These are essays that ramble without any clear sense of purpose. Students have not thought about what they want to say. It is better to over-simplify than to lose your chain of thought entirely. The temptation is to just tell the story of a text which leads to questions not being answered. Follow the basic structure, selecting a handful of images/incidents which are representative of the whole of the text.

3) IRRELEVANCE

This is often illustrated by too many general points about the text. This shows lack of planning. You will get little credit for saying a certain image/character illustrates a certain point. You will get a great deal of credit for discussing in detail a scene/line, showing how the text establishes the point you want to make. It is essential you turn to the text, drawing the conclusion out of the evidence you examine rather than just stating a point and using the text as an afterthought.

4) RELYING ON INSPIRATION RATHER THAN PREPARATION

Perhaps you believe yourself to be a genius. Some people can get away with little preparation at Higher. However people who get ‘A’s at Higher often fail Advanced Higher. ‘Failures’ are people who write confused essays, which do not reference the text. Never make the mistake that inspiration will strike you on the day. Fail to prepare, prepare to fail. Know what extracts you want to use, but in the exam be flexible, adjusting your prepared material to answer the specific questions set.

Adapted from ‘How to Study a Novel’ by John Peck

Advanced Higher Dissertation

Constructing a basic analysis

In order to write a successful dissertation it is important that you select and analyse passages from the work. This should be done on a general level first:

Step 1 – Take a look at the opening of the text.

Step 2 – Select and analyse a second passage

Step 3 – Select and analyse a third passage

Step 4 – Have I achieved a sufficiently complex sense of the text?

In each passage analysis you should:

a) State what the passage is about

b) Search for opposition or tension in the passage

c) Analyse the details of the passage, relating them to the tension/opposition.

d) How does the passage relate to the play as a whole?

Further Analysis

Then repeat the same exercise, this time focus your choice of passages on the topic you have decided upon.

Step 1 - Select a passage from each of your texts. Complete the above analysis.

Step 2 – Select and analyse a second set of passages.

Step 3 – Select and analyse a third set of passages.

Step 4 – Have I achieved a sufficiently complex sense of how the work explores this topic?

Once you have completed your analysis you should then be able to write your outline plan.

Writing An Outline Plan

Once you have chosen your topic you should then complete an outline plan. This plan will help you to focus your research.

In note form your outline plan should:

i) State what points you intend to make

ii) State how you will support these points with reference to particular techniques and concepts used by the author.

iii) Refer to details of the texts you will use to support your argument.

This does not have to be a paragraph-by-paragraph plan. Instead you can organise your plan into sections:

Example Section

Discussion of the impact of narrative style in the opening of novels 1, 2 & 3.

Points: the third person narrative is used in all three novels to present a detached, omniscient narrator who comments both on the individual characters and society. The opening of all three Dickens’ novels introduces us to this style by focussing on description of place.

Techniques: language used to evoke place, link to theme and characterisation.

Details of the texts: Bleak House description of London (QUOTE and comment)

Your ‘points’ section should note the way in which you intend to compare the works you have chosen (if possible clearly stating the links between the texts).

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