Yr 9 How to Study Literature and How to Write an Essay

Yr 10 Preparing to Write a Literature Essay

Learn the tricks and itll be as easy as pulling a rabbit out of a hat.Lets recap there are FIVE main elements of a text.What do you think they are?Brainstorm

This is the events that occur and the order in which they happen. When you write an essay, please DO NOT re-tell the plot. Plot (story)

This is how the story is told.We examine structure when we look at: Exposition ForeshadowingRising actionClimaxResolution ANDType of conflict used e.g man vs man

Plot Structure

Copy these words into your book, then write down how this structure occurs in your text. Exposition ForeshadowingRising actionClimax e.g The deaths of Romeo and Juliet in the Capulet tomb Resolution Check your work: c3B4MEPlot StructureAlways consider: Where is the text set? Country? Culture? Time? Urban/rural? Influences of changes in setting?Setting

Talk to a partner:What clues about setting are given in this picture? Country? Time period ? Urban/rural? Texts give the same clues in words.Setting

SettingS

Setting: Verona 2011They are important to study in literature as:It is through them that we learn things about life.What is the term used in literature to refer to the central character (hero)?ProtagonistWho opposes the protagonist?AntagonistCharacter

Think of how these aspects combine in a main character in your textBall throw pick character answer Why is character so important?Multiple answers, for example:Characters provide the reader with experiences and lessons that readers havent had themselves. Character reveals theme so the reader learns through them.

We see the of the text through a characters and we share or her experiences. We understand what happens, howare feeling, what things look, , & feel like through what the tells us about characters.

Complete this information about character by replacing the picture with a word.12

ThemeThrough literature the author presents underlying messages and ideas. The reader learns lessons about life and about themselves.Sometimes a theme can be good advice

For example: Dont act impulsively when making important decisions.Is this theme in your text? Yes = Stand (think of an example)No = sit (think of what advice your text gives.)Sometimes a theme can be a warning

For example: Meddling in other peoples affairs often leads to heartache. The boy should marry the girl then How to write a theme statementRomeo and Juliet is a story about a boy and girl who come from feuding families, but they fall in love with each other anyway. Vote: (sentence on RHS )Front = summary sentenceBack = theme statementStep 1Ask: What idea is this text REALLY about? Lets try to write a theme statementFor example: Long term unresolved conflict between families leads to disaster.Step 2List topics, e.g. Love, Fate, ConflictPick one, write a sentence which answers the question: What is the author trying to say about that topic?

Lets try to write a theme statementThe street fight in the first act causes a riot .Tybalt wanting to fight Romeo, leads to his and Mercutios deaths.Romeos banishment for killing Tybalt leads to two suicides, a murder and a heart attack.Step 3Check your theme statement is trueAsk: What examples from the play prove the theme statement? Long term unresolved conflict between families leads to ruin.Lets try doing that together as a class!Step 1?Step 2?Step 3?

SAYMEANMATTERWhat does the text say?What does it mean?Why does it matter?Heres another strategy that will help you: question the text, search for deeper meanings, make connections between the text and your life and Create good points for your essays.SAYMEANMATTERWhat happens in the text?

What does the text say?

Quotes or paraphrasethe most important details.What does the author mean?

Read between the lines.

What do the characters words or actions make you think? How do you interpret what happens?

Why does it matter to you or others? What does the author want you (the reader/viewer) to learn? Why is this important?

What do you learn about yourself, relationships or the world from this text?If you are looking for Excellence grades write detailedMATTER responses in your essays.SAYMEANMATTERThen I defy you stars (Romeo)Romeo says this when ...Lets practice:SAYMEANMATTERThen I defy you stars (Romeo)Romeo says this when he receives the news that Juliet is dead.Romeo says he is in charge of his own life and it is pre-determined. He feels that fate (the stars) have struck him the cruellest possible blow, and he is going to defy the stars by committing suicide and joining Juliet in death.It raises the question of free will versus fate. Romeo was destined to fall in love and come to a tragic end could our lives also be mapped out for us?

Lets practice:

StyleHow a text is writtenTitleDictionLanguage features (figures of speech)Sentence structureDialoguePoint of view

How to write a literature essayEASY AS 1 2 3What do you do in a literature essay?You write about a particular aspect of a text to show your knowledge and understanding of it.Q: Whats the first step? A: Choosing your question.

QuestionsDescribe an important character in a text you have studied. Explain why you thought they were an important character. Describe a character that has some good or bad qualities. Explain whether overall you think they are a hero (good) or a villain (evil). Support your answer with evidence from the text.

How do we begin? All essays start with an introduction and a tako

How do we begin? T.A.K.O. Use this acronym to remember to include the necessary information in the introduction: Title (MUST be underlined), Author, Key words from question, Outline of essays main points

TAKOAll essays start with an introduction and a tako but the best essays have a hook and a T.A.K.O.

Question: Describe a challenge faced by a main character in the text. Explain how the challenge helped you to understand an idea in the text.Which paragraph has hook and T.A.K.O. ?

Friends are our worst enemies. In Shakespeares Romeo and Juliet, Romeos friend, Friar Lawrence assists the protaganist to overcome the challenge of being in love with a loathed enemy. By examining this challenge, Ive understood how OR

A challenge faced by main character Juliet in Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare is being with Romeo because her family would not allow it. This challenge helped me to understand the idea of the strength of love.Introduction Hook

The HookThe opening of an essay is crucial. Grab the readers attention with the opening sentence, make them want to continue reading. The hook should let the reader know something about where the essay is going, while piquing his curiosity about how it will get there. Match types of hooks to examples in the handout.

Getting started on the O of TAKO: for a theme question, outline a thematic statement

Essay QuestionDescribe at least one idea that you found interesting in the text.Explain why the idea was interesting in the text as a whole.

Look at the Lit Essay practice handout. Top half of page, pick a stance, justify it.Here is a sample introductory paragraph. Wheres the hook? The T and A? K? response to second part of question? O ? 3 supporting points for O statement? (Describe at least one idea that you found interesting in the text. Explain why the idea was interesting in the text as a whole.)

"For never was a story of more woe, / Than this of Juliet and her Romeo" . William Shakespeare closes his play Romeo and Juliet with these lines. An idea that I found interesting is why this play is considered such a tragic story it is heart-breaking because Shakespeare presents the idea that Romeo and Juliet did not have to die. While Romeo and Juliet can be faulted for their youthful impetuousness, they are not ultimately to blame for what happens to them. Shakespeare's young lovers are, indeed, "star-crossed" victims of circumstances beyond their control. Romeo and Juliet were not responsible for their families' feud, they suffered from having parents who were uninvolved in their lives, and they received advice from the Friar which wasn't right for their situation.Write an introductory paragraph

Yay! Im starting to write my essay.

I hope she remembers that English essays are about opinions more than facts.WARNING!3 SEXY BODIES on the NEXTSLIDE!Minimum: 3 Body ParagraphsMy EssayTAKO IntroductionSEXY Body Para (1)SEXY Body Para (2)SEXY Body Para (3) 5. Conclusion

S.E.X.Y ? S: Statement or Topic Sentence starts the paragraph, tells the audience what point or idea the paragraph will make. E: Example, e.g quote, detail from the text to support your statement X: eXplain what the quote means, how it supports the statement, how it is relevant to the text and/or question.Y: whY this matters to you, what you might learn about yourself or the world from this text, links that can be made

Form an opinion about your characterLit Essay practice handout. Bottom half of page.What opinion of Romeo does the writer have? Justify (Give reasons for ) why you say that.

Romeos a moron.Describe one or more positive or negative experience(s) that happened to a character or individual in the text. Explain how the writer used the experience(s) to help you understand the character or individual.

Write a Body Paragraph

Look at the Lit Essay practice handout. Bottom half of page, write a paragraph.Read the exemplar essays provided and follow the instructions that accompany them. Analyse Body Paragraphs

Conclude the essay by writing about why you care about the topic. Why does it matter in your life?

DO NOT INTRODUCE ANY NEW INFORMATION INTO THE CONCLUSION.

Use this sentence as a starter in your conclusion if you are stuck. An examination of xyz is important because .(state why you think it is important).

Conclusion

Now its your turn.

Write an essay using the structure you have been given. Choose one of the questions you have been provided with. Write at least 350 words.