Last-minute Learner
The top 10 things you must remember when revising…
Of Mice and Men 1 Understand and answer the question
Work out exactly what the question is asking and make sure everything you write is relevant! Failure to answer the question can cost you marks. Every time you write a point, ask yourself, ‘Is this answering the question?’ Ensure you tie all your points back to the question.
2 Know your themes!
The main themes in Of Mice and Men are Dreams; The American Dream; Loneliness; Human Fragility; Protest. Get your head round these, and you’ll be well on your way …!
3 Plan, plan, plan!
This is a key exam tip as well as a great revision exercise. Always jot down a plan before you start your answer. This gives your essay direction and ensures you’re answering the question.
4 Colloquial vs poetic language An effective response on Steinbeck’s language will highlight the contrasting colloquial dialogue with his descriptive, poetic language. Make sure you have memorised a few examples of each – relevant quotations are the best way of illustrating your point in an essay!
Prepare to Succeed!
5 Get to know the characters No matter how last minute your revision is, you must know the characters. At the very least, you’ll need to know about George, Lennie, Slim and Curley’s wife, but Crooks and Candy are great for comparisons and bringing in the themes of The American Dream, Loneliness and Human Fragility. So, get to know the characters as much as possible!
6 Time yourself Even the most last-minute of revisers has the opportunity to write a couple of timed essays. This not only lets you see what you already know, but shows you where there are gaps in your knowledge. Moreover, you are getting yourself into the habit of writing effective, precise and interesting essays under pressure.
7 Animal imagery
Steinbeck favours animal imagery when describing Lennie, for example, he walks ‘the way a bear drags his paws’. These are often short quotations, so memorise a few! This not only means you have quotations for Lennie’s character, but shows you are engaging with Steinbeck’s language!
8 Context To understand the key themes fully, you need to be familiar with the context, i.e. what was going on at this point in time. Briefly read up on The Great Depression and The American Dream in the Revise section of our online guide.
9 Proofread! Always, always, always proofread your answers – do your sentences make sense? Are you answering the question? Have you checked your grammar and punctuation? Remember to give yourself 5–10 minutes at the end of your exam or timed essay to read through your answers …
10 Keep calm and be confident The best advice in any exam setting is to keep calm. No matter how difficult the question first appears, break it down, plan an answer and do not panic. Try to be confident when approaching the question – you have the knowledge and capability to do well if you keep cool, calm and collected!
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