English Literature

‘Reading literature increases knowledge in an active, intellectually challenging way that other more passive activities cannot do’.

Course Overview

A thorough grounding in literature automatically provides knowledge of our literary heritage while at the same time increasing the student’s awareness of cultural values, history, sociology, psychology, and almost every branch of human knowledge.

Literary study expands our capacity to sympathise with other human beings, enhances our ability to see and imagine human complexity, and broadens our intellectual horizons by enlarging our power to experience life vicariously.

Studying English Literature at A Level allows students to explore texts in more depth than at GCSE. You will be with like-minded students, people who have chosen to do the subject because they enjoy it, which makes the level of debate more intense.

Skills Required

You need to have an interest in words, an enquiring mind, and be prepared to share your thoughts with others in the class. An enjoyment of reading is obviously going to be an advantage. You will learn more about texts within genres and cultural contexts.

Methods of Assessment

At King Edward’s we take the AQA Literature B Specification.

Paper 1 Literary Genres

2 hours 30 minutes closed book 40% of A Level 75 marks

Aspects of tragedy (from Othello, King Lear, Tess of the D’Urbervilles, The Monk’s Tale, poetry of John Keats, The Great Gatsby, Death of a Salesman, Richard II)

Section A: One passage-based question on set Shakespeare text.

Section B: One essay question on set Shakespeare text.

Section C: One essay question linking two texts.

Paper 2 Texts & Genres

3 hours open book 75 marks 40% of A Level

Study of 3 texts. Exam will include an unseen passage.

Elements of crime writing (from Ian McEwan, Graham Greene, Charles Dickens, George Browning, Agatha Christie, Samuel Taylor Coleridge).

Coursework: Theory and Independence

50 marks 20% of A Level

Study of two texts: one poetry and one prose text, informed by study of the Critical Anthology (students have a free choice of one poetry and one prose text).

Two essays of 1250 -1500 words.