YEAR 12 FINAL ADVICE...

So...we have the exam on Friday. Here are some last minute tips:

• Don't forget that each question has a different assessment focus. Make sure you are aware of the appropriate assessment objective/s.
• Yesterday we were discussing Section A and I advised students to write about poetry. I think it is easier to write about VOICE and STRUCTURE if you are exploring the work of Auden or Coleridge. It might be best to save Gatsby for Section B.
• The first Section A question needs to consider how VOICE is used to shape meaning therefore students need to be aware of how the different voices in TROTAM are used by Coleridge. Here is a potential essay structure for 'How does Coleridge tell the story in the opening section of the poem?'

.........Begin with an exploration of how the VOICES of the omniscient narrator and the Wedding Guest are used to amplify the supernatural nature of the Mariner. The comment of the Wedding Guest at the conclusion of the section is significant. This will allow students to discuss STRUCTURE. Why does Coleridge use the voice of the Wedding Guest to interject in the final stanza? Why is this significant?

.........The next paragraph could discuss how Coleridge uses FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE to present the power and majesty of nature...or the supernatural character of the Mariner. Focus upon simile/metaphor/symbolism and explain how this use of language allows Coleridge to shape meaning.

.........The third paragraph could explore the significance of the ballad form and why Coleridge experiments with the traditional and regular form of the ballad. Why does Coleridge present a warped and distorted version of the ballad form? Keep your argument brief and detailed. Examiners often comment that student writing can be poor when writing about form. BE CAREFUL. 

.........The conclusion is really important as students need to explore the significance of the first section in the context of the whole poem. The opening section introduces location, character, theme and genre. It is incredibly significant.

• The second question in Section A will demand that you use the opinion of critics.
• Section B requires three paragraphs that do not have to be linked. In our texts, SYMBOLISM is used by each author to shape meaning so make sure you are aware of how each author uses symbolism. Don't lose sight of the 'ASPECTS OF NARRATIVE'. How is the story being shaped by the author and why???

GOOD LUCK FOLKS. Send me an email if you want me to mark some work...even if it is only a paragraph.

MLR.