"When words are scarce they are seldom spent in vain” William Shakespeare
English Literature
At Plume College, we teach the AQA Specification B. At AS Level, you will study the way narrative works in texts and make connections across a range of texts, exploring their narratives as well as notions of genre through the study of drama. You will sit one exam in May which has two sections. The first section will require students to closely analyse the narrative method in one text and in the second section, you will compare an aspect of narrative across three other texts. The texts you will study are: Ian McEwan’s Enduring Love, F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby and a selection of poems by W. H Auden and Christina Rossetti. For coursework, you will produce two essays, one on a study of an aspect of the dramatic/comic genre with regard to Shakespeare’s play Much Ado about Nothing (1200-1500 words); the other is a study of an aspect of the dramatic/comic genre with regard to Oscar Wilde’s Importance of Being Earnest (1200-1500 words).
At A2 Level, you will develop your ideas on the significance of genre which currently is the gothic genre although this genre is likely to change in 2013. Students currently study at least three texts, Emily Bronte’s Wuthering Heights, Christopher Marlowe’s play Dr Faustus and Angela Carter’s short stories The Bloody Chamber. The assessment is in the form of a 2 hour exam in which you are not permitted to take in your texts. Like the AS exam, there will be 2 sections. The first Section A will have one question on each of the set texts and you will answer one question on one text. In Section B, you will have a choice of three questions for which you will compare aspects of (currently) the gothic genre chosen topic across at least three texts that you study. The coursework portfolio will consist of 2 essays the first being a comparative study of an aspect of two texts of your choice. The second piece is an application of critical ideas – feminist, Marxist, psychoanalytical etc – taken from a pre-released anthology to a text or texts of your own choice.
Over the course of 2 years, you will engage creatively with at least 12 texts of different genres and from different eras, developing your skills and knowledge of literary analysis, whilst exploring the contexts of the texts and debating and evaluating others’ interpretations of them.
So if you have a passion for reading and enjoy studying literature of different genres from different eras then this is the course for you! All we ask is that you achieve a grade B or above in your English and English Literature GCSE.
Miss Knight & the English Faculty
The AS English Literature course overview:
|
Unit 1 Aspects of Narrative: Examination 2hrs (open book) |
Weighting: |
|
Answer ONE question in each section Section A: Close analysis of narrative method in one text [42 marks] You get a choice of questions on the texts you have studied (Auden or Rossetti’s poetry, Enduring Love or The Great Gatsby) and answer BOTH parts of the question
Section B: Comparing an aspect of narrative across three other texts [42 marks] You get a choice of 2 questions and you compare aspects of narrative across three texts (excluding the text you have used in Section A)
N.B. You are permitted to take your texts into the exam but they MUST be FREE FROM ANNOTATION!
|
60% of the total AS marks
Examination in May
|
|
Unit 2 Dramatic Genres: Coursework |
Weighting: |
|
This will take the form of TWO pieces of coursework • a study of an aspect of the dramatic/comic genre with regard to a Shakespeare play Much Ado about Nothing (1200-1500 words) • a study of an aspect of the dramatic/comic genre with regard to another play Oscar Wilde’s Importance of Being Ernest (1200-1500 words)
2500-3000 words in total |
40% of the total AS marks
Deadline for both is 11 Jan |
You will be assessed on your ability to:
|
AO1
|
Articulate creative, informed and relevant responses to literary texts, using appropriate terminology and concepts, and coherent, accurate written expression
|
|
AO2
|
Demonstrate detailed critical understanding in analysing the ways in which structure, form and language shape meanings in literary texts.
|
|
AO3
|
Explore connections and comparisons between different literary texts, informed by interpretations of other readers
|
|
AO4 |
Demonstrate understanding of the significance and influence of the contexts (historical, cultural, social and literary) in which literary texts were written and received.
|
Further Information
Please see the menu below for information related to this page.
AQA Literature B ROADMAP.pdf