"You'll never achieve your dreams if they don't become goals."
Raising Achievement
Here are some practice questions which you can use as part of your revision for English Literature. The questions are designed to either bring out the ‘C’ grade candidate in you or the ‘A*’ candidate in you.
Speaking to a student today I told him that he would reach the point of ‘detail’ required for his essay once he had asked himself the following questions and answered them clearly in his essay:
Why?
What is the effect of this on the reader?
How does it elaborate/support the question?
Challenge yourself and I am sure you will be happily surprised with the end result-a great essay produced from all the hard work and effort you have put in.
How do I love thee? Now if this was about shopping, shoes and handbags I think we all know the answer to that! My profound love and passion for all things fashion is in one word ‘fierce’. Along with my deep rooted passion for education for all children, fashion is what inspires me on a regular basis-this is my form of expression. Barrett Browning is exploring the same passion however rather than her expressing her love for Mulberry handbags and fashion blogging she is expressing and exploring her declaration of love for her husband to be Robert Browning. Her love is deep, spiritual and sacred.
I will explore Sonnet 43 further but for now take a look at the attached document and explore her feelings and attitudes about love.
What are you passionate about? What inspires you? Leave me a comment and let me know how I can develop this post about love.
Enjoy
Mrs B
Praise song is a simple but incredibily effective poem in The Moon on The Tides. It provides the reader with an insight into the thought process which Grace Nichols travels through. The poem explores her emotions about her dead mother and allows the reader to see the impact her mother has had upon her. The act of discussing something so personal is generally a very private, intimate discussion which most of us share with our dearest friends and family, however Nichols shares her intimate thoughts with the reader because this is a poem of celebration, of praise, of joy in her memories of her mother.
Read between the lines and unpick Nichols’ thoughts. Find the emotions and explore the feelings she offers her readers.
When the Wright brothers worked with one another to create the greatest invention known to man there will have been some turbulent and emotional times, fundamentally they created memories, history and moment in time which will remain with us and anyone who knew the Wright Brothers.
The poem Brothers may not be on an epic scale of creating a worldwide memory, but the poem does create a snapshot which as a reader we cannot help but be drawn into.
The day I taught this lesson to Year 11 top set many of the students were absent due to other commitments. The students who remained in the class were phenomenal and I taught one of the best lessons to date with the group. Students who would normally shy away from large, boisterous group discussions became lead learners and facilitated great threads of learning. Thank you- you know who you are and I hope you got as much from the lesson as I did seeing you all come alive. Well done.
For those of you who were not in, please see below for the lesson, I hope you enjoy reading the poem as much as we did. It got me thinking about the memories which I have made with my sister and how some of the best moments of growing up were some of the simplest snapshots of time. Talking, walking and of course shopping together-simple acts nonetheless but some of the best times ever.
Enjoy Year 11 and leave me a comment about your thoughts on the poem.
Mrs B :)
Inspiration for poetry can come from many places. The two poems Ghazal and Manhunt provide two different avenues of inspiration. Take a look at this powerpoint to remind yourself about the expression of relationships and what they mean to the poets and personas.
The equation to writing an essay is simple:
Venn Diagram + Methodical ideas = Perfect essay.
Take a look at the following link to work through an essay question.
Drop me a comment to tell me what you think and what I can help with.
Fab
Mrs B :)
The question I’ve been asked is: Is Sonnet 116 just about Love? And the honest answer is yes and no. There needs to be a sense of reflection and realisation that what Shakespeare presents here is honest, faithful and refreshing considering the other poems in the Anthology. The Moon on The Tides offers the reader a plethora of relationships but the ones about relationships between lovers appear to be fixated on the troubles and turbulence that we entail whilst living in a modern day society. The longevity of relationships in Quickdraw and In Paris with You are short in comparison to the relationship in Sonnet 116. It is here that Shakespeare shares with the readers an openly honest insight into how he feels about love.
Shakespeare clearly informs the reader that ‘love is not love which alters when it alteration finds’ love cannot change and adapt when it wants to, it needs to be consistent regardless of the other anomolies that may come its way. ‘It is an ever fixed mark’ and Shakespeare’s love will remain the same, the dot that can never be removed and mark which will never fade. Shakespeare is realistic about his love and is aware of contributing factors which plague the modern day, beauty fades, eyes wander and flirtations occur but for Shakespeare love does not ‘alter’ instead it ‘bears it out even to the edge of doom’.
To answer the question directly, Sonnet 116 is about Love and the way that we should view love. We should appreciate the ‘tempests’ that arise when we are in love but we should also never lost sight of ‘the star’ which will guide us back to answer the question of why we were in love in the first place. However, there is a much deeper level that we need to be aware of, Sonnet 116 is not just about ‘Love’ it is about how we perceive ‘love’ and the value ‘whose worth’s unknown’ that we place upon that one word.
The i-pad generation of the 21st Century may throw the word ‘love’ about without recognising and considering the ‘height’ and depth of the meaning. It is Shakespeare who reminds us to take note and appreciate what the one word means.
How do I write my essay? What formula do I need to follow to get an A*?
Two big questions which have instigated today’s post.
Year 11, the idea that there is not one winning formula to get you an A* in English Literature will either fill you with joy or fill you with dread. I’m happy to say that English Literature provides students with the capacity to highlight and demonstrate their personality. This is not a test where one size fits all, this is about your deeper levels of interpretation and understanding of a subject. What are your interpretations, deductions and astute thoughts about the poems?
As an examiner, I love nothing more than to read a piece of work where a student has supported, argued and flourished under timed conditions. You need to have some self belief that your opinion is worth reading and your ideas are worth supporting.
Remember:
Infer and deduce
Support
Explore
Explain
Analyse
The Moon on the Tides Aqa Anthology has a number of poems that are made for comparison yet the age old question of how to write a comparative essay haunts the best of us. Here are a few tips to help you succeed-and you will achieve the success that you deserve.
Leave me a comment to inspire my future posts.
How to write a comparative essay for AQA’s Anthology The Moon on the Tides
- Work out the focus of the question. Is it to discuss the relationships? Language? Feelings expressed? Thoughts about love? etc
- Create your Venn diagram: this will inform your entire essay
- Now this is where it becomes a personal essay. You can either:
- Discuss one poem completely highlighting the focus (types of relationships, types of language, the different feelings expressed etc. You then use comparative words to discuss the second poem and conclude with a summary answering the question directly and concisely
OR
- Discuss similarities in the poems and then the differences ensuring that you consistently and constantly use comparative language to demonstrate that you are not just offering an analysis of the poems but an apt and thoughtful response to the question.
The rules stay the same with a conclusion:
- Never introduce new information
- Remain concise
- Answer the question: If it asks you to discuss the poets thoughts and feelings about love-tell the examiner what the thoughts and feelings are about love in both poems and how they are expressed in both poems.
- Never use quotations-you are not discussing your interpretations here-you are summarising the essay.
The winning formula will evolve from the practice essays you complete.
Good Luck year 11. You are destined for success.
Marmite. That is what Shakespeare is. You will either love him or hate him but unfortunately for most year 11 students that I know a budding friendship will need to grow over the next few months. Shakespeare is part of The Moon on The Tides AQA Anthology and appears in the ‘Relationships’ section. My advice to you is don’t justlisten but really hear what Shakespeare has to say, allow yourself to be drawn into the lyrics he writes and read between the lines for what he is ‘really’ saying.
For me my relationship with Shakespeare took a turn for the worst when I was at school and I felt that I couldn’t access or understand what he was saying. In fact, I went as far as switching off and losing interest but for you it doesn’t need to be like that. Not only are you part of a great school but you have the best teachers in your English department bringing English Literature alive for you.
If Kayne, Jay-Z or Drake were the rappers behind the sonnets written by Shakespeare what would you say then? Remember, Shakespeare dropped beats way before hiphop and rap were born. Shakespeare was the original rapper. Show ‘Da Bard’ some respect and take your time to unpick his lyrics and appreciate the metaphors he creates and the messages he spreads.
My new found respect for Shakespeare came when I went to university and met a teacher who bought Shakespeare alive like no other person I met. Suddenly, I realised that I simply hadn’t been listening and had created a barrier myself with my learning. Do yourself a favour and give yourself a chance to succeed. Drop the barrier, “fix up” and “look smart” (Dizzy Rascal).
Take a look at the following prezi, I hope it helps with your understanding for Sonnet 116. If there is anything that I can help with leave a comment and I will get back to you.
Thanks for reading.
Mrs B :)
Unseen poetry will be something you will excel at but you need some serious skills to analyse and explain your ideas concisely and fully.
Take a look at the next few posts about unseen poetry and see if any of these help. Leave a comment or a question so that I can help. I will also be posting a few tips to help you through the exam. Enjoy!
Mrs B :)
http://prezi.com/n2quoo0tzjsx/unseen-poetry/?auth_key=b946b5b5030840ec94fb5e148b2913a48e2e6149
