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Essay Writing Techniques

Always do extract questions because:- The quotes you need are there- It is possible to give a more comprehensive analysis- General essays usually cause omissions of important areas of the text

Essays on English Literature need to deal very specifically on three aspects:- Character psychological motivations and maturation- Authors intention and manipulation of audience- Audience response

A very good grasp of these three aspects will allow an essay to be fully developed and offer an insightful analysis of

the extract/ general.

For extractsYou MUST- Always refer back to style and language => linked to entire book and themes

Aside from dealing with the three main aspects, some very fundamental things you must address are:- Awareness of genre define characteristics as applicable to thesis- Concise, debatable thesis- Placing extract into context its role in the text as a whole- Knowledge of preceding/ following events which relate to the extract- How the extract foreshadows what comes after immediately, what comes later, and what happens at the

end

- Strong analysis of language techniques contribution to the tone/atmosphere/implications- Further analysis of specific words in quotations to further argument- Metaphorical analysis symbolism, imagery, physical manifestation, embodiment- Historical awareness (social, political, theological, philosophical)- Integrated critical theory analysis typically Marxist/ Freudian- Pack multiple ideas within sentences using linking words- For plays asking for dramatic effects, see from audiences perspective e.g. set, direction, movement,

dialogue, props, silence

- Analysis of humour + irony (especially for Pinter)Other technical aspects of essays:

- Interwoven quotes- Third person- No generalisations, hyperboles or definitive suggestions (words like obviously/ clearly)- Chronological evidence- Meaningfully ordered and linked paragraphs to give flow- Do NOT describe the events, or examine what is happening on the surface long plot summaries is a definite

no; placing extract in context is necessary

Suggested approach- Identify terms of task in introduction- Plan your essay by ideas and identifying which part of extract relates to which idea- Mould pre-memorized key ideas into the extract along with the use of specific related words which can

structure your essay

Introduction- Thesis Use key words from the question to answer the question and be specific, but not limit the scope of

the text- Title, author, plot overview context of extract, social context, genre

Topic Statements- Should provide a direct answer to the question and address key words

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- Be thematic in nature, NOT plot- All topic statements read together should form a flowing, coherent argument in effect summarising your

essay

Substantiation- Explain the topic statement in theory- Integrated into argument- Change tense and pronoun as appropriate e.g. [he] walk[s]- Be brief select only key words- Analyse to answer question- Use the so what premise to further your argument e.g. Shelley uses the form of a sonnet to present this

poem. So what? Since a sonnet is usually associated with love and worship, the use of this form to write

about the forgotten and no longer respected Ozymandias is ironic. So what? etc

- continue asking yourself How?, So what? to fully develop the idea/argument

Conclusion- No extra evidence- Go back to question, but also go forward, or refer to context

Analysis of language and style involves:- Relationship dynamics/ character revelations- Register- Connotations- Pronouns- Patterns- Syntax- Imagery- Allusions intratextual or intertextual- Structure- Stage directions- Patterns of dialogue pauses/absence- Irony- Setting- Ellipses- Pauses- Idiomatic language- Colloquialism

How do these reinforce theme and echo or contrast, thematically or stylistically with other sections of the text?

How to study for English- Familiarize every point in this guide to understand essay structure- Read good essays from previous essay writers or from current top in class students- Generate list of general essay words- Take down words and phrases that are succinct and important to the text- Formulate three key thematic opinions the text conveys- Categorize the words and phrases accumulated into the key themes- In the exam: write your essay based on the key thematic opinions built on the strong essay vocabulary and

structure