Structure and Narration in "The Great Gatsby"

This is good stuff! The webpage deals with the novel's structural devices. (AO2).

It is also an example of a structural approach (AO3) to reading the text. (Under other readers/readings).

http://www.skyminds.net/american-literature/structure-and-narration-in-the-great-gatsby/

And, "The Ordering of Events" ( more on structure - again, excellent work from this French source.)

http://www.skyminds.net/american-literature/the-ordering-of-events-in-the-great-gatsby/

New assessment objectives for "Captain Corelli's Mandolin"

Remember that the  asssessment objectives for the new English Literature course have changed. The material on this blog relates to the old assessment criteria. That does not mean that much of the material is no longer relevant - you just need to be aware that there are now FOUR assessment objectives rather than Five as before 2008.


Simply adapt the new AO as you read as follows:

AO1 is for your written response and for using appropriate literary terms. ( the same as before 2008) 10 marks.

AO2 is for analysing language form and structure (again the same as before 2008) 10 marks.

AO3 is for exploring connections and comparisons between texts, informed by interpretation by other readers. 20 marks. ( This has changed but you still need to focus on specific passages which can be compared between the texts you studied and then consider how your connections and comparisons might be interpreted by you and other readers, such a feminists, gay, marxist, genre, pyschoanalytical, etc.)

AO4 is about showing your understanding of the significance and influence of the contexts (times) in which your texts were written and received. 20 marks. ( The Great Gatsby was written in 1924 and published in 1925 and Captain Corelli's Mandolin was written around 1993 and  published in 1994. What was happening in the USA when the first text was written and published  and how does this relate to this text, particularly in the passages or chapter(s) that you are writing about? What was happening in Europe and the Balkans when CCM was published? How does this relate to the chapter or passage your are exploring for your question? How was each text received when it was published and by what types of readers? How do readers receive each text today?

Tie these points to the chapters or passages that you select to help you answer the question.

Liz Lewis on "Shakespeare's Women"

Coursework students might focus on comments on female characters for the plays they studied.
Shakespeare's Women by Liz Lewis

Primary sources for researching the context of Shakespeare's plays

The Folger Library has always been one of the best institutions for all things Shakespeare. Why not make your AO4 comments on the social and historical context in your essays STAND OUT from others by doing a little research on some texts associated with your plays. There may be a slight problem undestanding some of the lettering in Elizabethan fonts. An example is 'V' which is often represented as a 'U'. By reading entire sentences and paragraphs it is relatively easy to work out the older uses of letters that we no longer use.

Folger's Primary Sources Links

Here's another interesting link. You could check out other interesting "ideas" in their "ideas link".
University of Victoria in Canada's page on the sexes in Shakespeare's time

Need a guide for revising your texts?

This is a great port of call for this stage of your studies. Whether you are writing an essay or revising for the exams this website has a fairly wide coverage of literary texts. Remember to credit them in bibliographies.
http://www.gradesaver.com/

A "Lies of Silence" review

For a thoughtful and detailed review Click Here . But read it only after you have finished reading the text.

Lies of Silence - reading prompts for notes for Chapters 6-7

Lies of Silence: reading focuses for Chapter 6
This post is for my AS class who are comparing this text with Graham Greene's Brighton Rock; anyone else who might find these pointers helpful are welcome to use them, too. I'll post the image, theme and narrative technique tracker sheets that the class already has, next week.

Write notes on the following as you notice them so you can later discuss  and write about them in class. Add other points on narrative technique, themes, imagery, etc. that you think are significant for comparing both texts.


What is Michael Dillon paranoid about?  (Mostly in the early part of the chapter and towards its end.).

How does his paranoia compare with Pinkie’s from Brighton Rock?

The Oxford English Dictionary's definition of paranoia
1. a mental condition in which a person thinks that they are being persecuted.
2. a person thinks that they are important.
3. unjustified suspicion and the mistrust of others.

Analyse the theme of deception in this Chapter
(The theme of deception is also significant in earlier in the novel.)

How does the deception practised by Michael on Moira compare with Pinkie's on Rose? (AO2)

What does the imagery in this chapter suggest about the characters?
How does the imagery of war, weapons, etc. add to readers' understanding of characters and the situations that they face? (AO2)

Lies of Silence: reading focuses for Chapter 7

Focus on: -

Michael Dillon’s paranoia – and the theme of appearance and reality.

Moira poses as “a witness” on TV.

Compare Moira with Rose as "a witness" from Brighton Rock?
How does Michael and Pinkie react to the threat that each female character poses?
(Think about loyalty to Michael; her own sense of power - Moira seems to be growing stronger as Michael becomes weaker; her perception of their marriage; her confidence to speak because of her education and class, etc.)

Narrative technique:
What is the effect on Michael Dillon and the readers as he and they gradually find out about what Moira said in the her BBC TV interview?

The theme of choice
Moira asks Michael whether he would have told the police about the bomb if Andrea was held hostage instead of her. Do you think he would have telephoned the police given how he feels about Andrea? What are the choices Michael made here?

What are the choices that Pinkie makes by marrying Rose? Compare Michael and Pinkies' choices as dilemmas.

What choices do other significan characters make in each text? 
(For instance, consider the choices that Ida, Dallow, Cubitt and Prewitt make in Brighton Rock. What is moral about the choices that Moira and Andrea make in Lies of Silence?)