There are THREE types of Essay question:



How to Study a Novel/Play.

• The opening page is often the most illuminating, pay close attention to it.

• What is the passage/chapter about? Write a brief summary of each.

• Search for opposition or tension and know what the point of it is.

• Analyse details (setting/ atmosphere/ body language etc)

• How does the passage/chapter relate to the novel as a whole?

• Note down anything distinctive i.e. that stands out.

• Construct a basic analysis of the book as a whole i.e. what is it about?

• Look at the style in which it is written. What is the significance?

• Look at characters and describe them in point form.

• Re-read the book…you only often “get it” after the second or third reading.

How do I write an Essay?

There are THREE types of Essay question:

     

1. Describe:

eg, ‘Describe…’

‘What were…’

‘How did….?’

The Character of…

etc

2. Analyse:

ie questions that ask you to EXPLAIN

eg ‘Why…?’

3. Weigh

ie Discussion/opinion questions

eg ‘How far…?’

‘To what extent…?’

‘How important…?’

‘Was … the main cause of…?’

‘Do you agree…?’

You can also be sure that essays will ALWAYS ask you questions on:

• Your SENSES

• What makes it MEMORABLE

• CHARACTERS (eg, what makes them important)

• EFFECT (of the title or writing style etc)

• Your THOUGHTS

• COMPARE (eg, to another poem/character)

• DRAMATIC MOMENTS (eg stating why the given passage is exciting / full of suspense etc)

remember

When you have finished each paragraph ALWAYS:

( CHECK BACK -

To make sure that you are still answering the question you have been asked (many pupils gradually drift off the question as the essay goes on).

= MISS A LINE – so the examiner can see clearly where your next point begins.

remember

the first thing to do when confronted by an Essay question is to establish:

  

WHAT KIND OF QUESTION IS IT?

Your essay will need to have a number of points in answer to the question, some facts ('evidence') which prove the point, and arguments which explain and develop how what you are saying answers the question.

Some helpful points….

1. Quality Not Quantity.

Examiners hate waffle and essays that go on and on. They are busy people and want you to give them the most information in the tidiest way possible. Do NOT be intimidated by the person you see at the next desk writing 6 sides when you've only written 3 - for all you know, most of what they're writing is irrelevant. Which brings us on to...

2. Answer The Question That's There - Not The One You Wish Was There

Look at that question. Brainstorm some thoughts. Look at it again. Make a spider diagram or flow chart of how you're going to write. Look at the question again. Start writing. Pause, look at the question again. Are you with me? It's far too easy to go off on a tangent when you're in full flow, and examiners hate this.

It's also very easy to start answering a question that you've practiced or revised for, instead of the one that's there. If the question asks you about the character of Willy, and you bang on about Biff because you know Biff better, you'll lose major marks. Keep it to relevant information only.

3. Plan Your Answer

This is easier to do for a homework essay, harder in exams. But don't be fooled, you can still do it in timed conditions. 45 minutes for an answer is a LONG time. You can afford to take 5-10 mins at the start to get your thoughts in order.

Even if it's just a few scribbles, some quotes you've remembered, or a detailed spider chart, get something down. If you then start to lose your way whilst writing, you can look back at this. Just a little 'prod' to remind yourself 'Oh yeah, I was going to comment on language next' will keep you on track.

4. Never just re-tell the story.

You will get an F grade if you just re-tell the story. An E at most. Just don't do it. Remember, the examiner/teacher has read the book or play - they know the story already! They want to see you pick out the relevant parts of the story to answer your question. You don't even have to write in order of events.

5. Avoid Slang

No, you don't have to speak like The Queen or a newsreader in your essay, but at the same time, don't let yourself down with sloppy language. Also, don't swear! An examiner will deem it ignorant and offensive and it may put them off reading the rest of your good work. If in doubt, ask yourself if you would say it to someone's grandmother. That pretty much rules out 'chav', 'bling' ,'slag', 'git' and anything ruder you care to come up with.

6. Use a Little Vocab

If you do know some smart-sounding words, chuck them in! If an examiner has read the words "Willy is a show-off" 50 times already, they'll be refreshed by the change of pace when you write "Willy has an ostentatious streak to his character". Keep a vocabulary notebook during your course. If you hear a word you're unsure of, find out what it means, and write it down.

VARY the words you use. If you get tired of saying "this shows..." when you're explaining a quote, ring the changes a little. Try "This demonstrates" or "this conveys" or "This gives the reader a sense of...". Try the thesaurus for plenty of synonyms to often used words.

7. Support, Quote and Explain

So, you're telling me that Winston in Nineteen Eighty Four, comes across as a lonely person. Great. Now tell me where on earth you're getting this from.

Unless you support your statements, your answers aren't going to get you more than an E grade - fact. You must must MUST refer to the text with appropriate quotes and examples that back up what you are saying.

8. Go Further

Marks are given for knowledge of the social, historical and cultural background to a novel or play. In short, what was going on at the time the piece was set. Knowing a bit about this will allow you to comment more on the characters and storylines.

For example - you have identified Winston is lonely, and explained and supported this with quotes. Now have a think. Why might Orwell have made him such an isolated character? What was life like for people living under communism rule in the time the book was written? Show the examiner you know the background, and that you're able to apply it to the book.

9. Quote Elegantly

Here's an example of how to include a quote, in a manner that would be acceptable to the examiner:

1) "Eddie is concerned about Catherine's growing sexuality. This is shown by the quote "You're walking wavy."

Here's an example of how to include a quote, in a much slicker and more impressive way.

2) "Eddie is concerned about Catherine's growing sexuality, as we see from his complaint that she is "walking wavy".

Example 1) works fine, but is awkward in the way that the writer stops to present the quote separately. Example 2) sounds much better as the quote is worked into the writer's sentence. Where possible, try to work quotes into your writing like example 2).

10. Don't Waste Words, and Don't State the Obvious

It's a good idea to have an introductory and concluding sentence or paragraph. In a homework/coursework essay, you can spend more time on these. However, in an exam they need to be brief. In both cases, avoid intros such as "Of Mice and Men is a book by John Steinbeck". The examiner knows this already, and will already be starting to think "timewaster/waffler" as they mark the rest of your work.

Go straight into answering the question. If the question is about the importance of Alfieri in A View From The Bridge, your first sentence could be "Alfieri is important in AVFTB in many different ways, due to his constantly changing role and significant relationships with the other characters. In this essay I will examine how he...etc". A sentence like this takes the reader straight in to what you're going to talk about, and gets them interested.

Ditto the conclusion - keep it short and sweet. A sentence that speaks generally about what you have just said will do fine - "In conclusion, Alfieri's importance cannot be understated, as a key confidante for all the characters, as a narrator and as the man who has the true 'View From The Bridge'."

11. SPAG, or QWC as they call it these days.

There are marks for Spelling, Punctuation and Grammar, or Quality of Written Communication as it's now known. They're not the most significant marks, but that's no reason to throw them away. If you know you have trouble with certain words, practice. I've seen 18 year olds writing JELOUS and SERTAIN and it's pretty depressing to mark such work. Remember your basics. Capital letters, full stops, quote marks, commas, and apostrophes. They all matter.

1) Purpose. There are two closely related purposes of writing essays about literature. Instructors have you write them to make you examine literary works more closely. These works deserve your attention. They have moved people to tears and express the greatest thoughts and feelings of humanity in the best-known writing. As a student, the purpose of writing such an essay is to demonstrate that you understand this work fully and deeply.

2) Understanding. But how do you get that understanding? You get it by reviewing the work closely and repeatedly, and by looking at content, form, and function. You might think of the process as taking an engine apart and putting it back together. In the process, you should come to understand this particular "engine" (literary work) well. To do so, examine each choice made by the author until you can explain how it relates to the whole. Slow down, and take all elements of the work into account: sound, shape on the page, structure (chapter length, number of chapters, etc.), point of view, and so on. Assemble a list and move through it, always keeping the larger purposes of the essay in mind.

3) English. Don't take the term "English" for granted. It's been the subject of a lot of debate over the centuries, and you want to know how you're using it. Research the work's historical period and the author, and take what you learn to define your use of "English." Where is the author from? How did that location define itself during this period in relation to England—and how does it show up in the work?

4) Focus. As you write a literary essay, you argue for a specific interpretation of the work. The essential focus of your essay should be expressed in the opening statement. Though there are many ways to phrase an introductory statement, you should always be able to translate it to a statement basically similar this: "In this essay, I will prove ___ about this work." Your focus must relate to the purposes of literary essays. You should always be proving that you understand this work on a profound level, but also that you understand the larger meaning of this literary form, this period of English literature, writing, and humanity. Focusing well requires a lot of reflection.

5) Write the essay. This is where most people start. Don't. If you start here, you're likely to find the process hard and the result mediocre. Instead, do the other steps first. Come to the writing stage with a pile of notes and a clear sense of your focus regarding the work. Then start your essay with a clearly defined introduction that hooks your readers' interest and ends with a clearly stated thesis. Write three or more body paragraphs, each of which makes points that support your thesis, points that you illustrate with specific evidence from the work itself and your outside research. Provide transitions between each paragraph that guide your readers to a conclusion that sums up the essay, expresses what you learned by writing the essay, and, in the best possible world, rewards readers for reading your essay by teaching them something new. However, before you give the essay to them, review it. Make sure it completes its functions. Then proofread it until the work is error-free. You want every line of your essay to quietly declare, "You can trust me. I understand this work."

Importantly, you need to set an authoritative tone early on in the essay. This will help to convince your teacher that you know what you are talking about. Confidence creates marks!

Notice how you are constantly seeking to avoid waffle and generalised comment; instead, you need to keep all you write tightly focused on the needs of the essay title or question.

CONCLUDING PARAGRAPH

This is where you simply restate, in a different form, your opening argument and give a brief list of the major points you have made along with a comment about the wider implications and relevance of what you have found.

The STRUCTURE of your essay should look something like this (THE BOXES ARE PARAGRAPHS!! DO NOT FORGET TO PARAGRAPH!!):

[pic]

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POINT TWO

INTRODUCTION

POINT ONE

POINT THREE

POINT FOUR

CONCLUSION

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