Year 12 — English

Term 1 and 2: Component 2 - Comparative Prose

Study of Dracula by Bram Stoker and Beloved by Toni Morrison. Students will be able to write cohesive evaluations of the methods used by the two writers to present their ideas and explore the significance of contexts.

At least one essay will be completed each fortnight. At times, these will be planned as a class, then written at home; at other times, these will be completed in examination conditions during Directed Learning. Additionally, students will sit a formal paper during assessment week in October so that initial progress can be measured (this will focus on the first part of the novel) and another during their January exams (this will focus on the whole of the novel). A full paper about both texts will be sat during Year 12 exam week.

Allegory

Allegory is a rhetorical device that creates a close, one-to-one comparison. An allegorical comparison of 21st century Britain to a hive might point out that Britain and the hive have queens, workers and soldiers.

Colloquial

Colloquial language is the informal language of conversation

Semantic

The study of how words create meaning.

Trope

Any of the devices (metaphors, similes, rhyme etc.) whereby art language differentiates itself from functional language.

Gothic

At its simplest the use of medieval and/or supernatural elements to create a horror story. Nowadays the word is often used to describe any story with antique horrors within it.

Epistolary

A novel written in the form of an exchange of letters (epistles).

Intertextuality

A term describing the many ways in which texts can be interrelated, ranging from direct quotation or echoing, to parody.

Genre

A more precise definition of the different literary forms. There are general categories, such as poetry, drama, prose. There are specific categories within these larger divisions, so a sonnet is a specific genre within the larger genre of poetry.

  • Spiritual
  • Moral
  • Social
  • Cultural

Develop the individual:

Spiritual, moral, social and cultural skills developed. Develop the individual: Students will consider a range of non-fiction literary forms. They will learn how to approach an unseen text, focusing on language, form and structure, which will in turn feed into their A level study. Students will be asked to use empathy skills in order to appreciate the context of the texts they read. Students will explore their ideas together, developing listening and appreciation skills. They will learn to share ideas and different interpretations about the texts in a safe and respectful way. Developing the community: Students will explore their ideas together, developing listening and appreciation skills. They will learn to share ideas and different interpretations about the texts in a safe and respectful way.

Create a supportive community:

Term 1 and 4: Component 3 - Contemporary Poetry - The Forward Book of Poetry

Students will study 18 poems from the Forward Book of Poetry. Students will be asked to read the poems before the lesson in Term 1 and complete some tasks based on key ideas. Lessons will be dedicated to development of these ideas, looking for alternatives to initial interpretations and solidifying ideas in annotations of the poems. Students will start to approach the poems as unseen in preparation for their final exams. Students need to learn how to write about poems at A Level Literature standard under timed conditions. Teachers will be trained in appropriate essay style and using correct terminology. The focus of study will be on analysing writer's methods, considering language, structure and form. A comprehensive and critical evaluation of the poems are needed. Comparison of poems will also be explore by theme. Additional unseen poems will be included in the SOW and students will explore how studied poems can be compared to these. Focused feedback on essays will inform future writing.

Essay analysing one studied poem in detail. Exam in January - Comparing two studied poems based on a theme - 1 hour 15 minutes. Term 4 - One comparison essay - unseen and studied poem - 1 hour 15 minutes Essays set to practice all of the above throughout the scheme.

Foreground

To emphasise or make prominent.

Empiricism

As a philosophy empiricism means basing knowledge on direct, sensory perceptions of the world. Empirical means seeking out facts established by experience not theory.

Meta

From the Greek meaning ‘above or beyond’. Metaphysics’ is ‘above’ or ‘beyond’ physics. ‘Meta’ is often used in compound words: metatext, metatheatre, etc.

Metaphor

A comparison that creates a direct correspondence ‘society is a hive’ unlike a simile

Poetic Justice

A literary version of the saying ‘hoist with his own petard’. The trapper is caught by the trap in an example of ironic but apt justice. Despite the word ‘poetic’, examples usually turn up in texts which are narrative and not necessarily poems.

Enjambment

The flowing on of a line of poetry so there is no pause at the end of the line:

Assonance

The repeating of vowel sounds for aesthetic effect: ‘low, close, clouds’.

Verse

The word is sometimes used to refer to poetry in general as in ‘written in verse, not prose’ but can be used to mean the same as stanza.

Lyric

Most narrowly ‘lyric’ refers to words designed to be sung; more generally a ‘lyric poem’ can be one in which the song-like characteristics of poetry predominate.

Sonnet

Generally refers to a 14 line poem with a strict rhyme scheme. Petrarchan sonnets (post 1374) usually have the rhyme scheme

Elegy

A poem lamenting a dead person or persons. The term elegiac meaning ‘mournful’ or ‘conveying loss’ derives from this genre.

Trope

Any of the devices (metaphors, similes, rhyme etc.) whereby art language differentiates itself from functional language.

Valorise

To invest with value.

Pastoral

An idealised depiction of rural life, sometimes set in ‘Arcadia’; an Eden-like land. A concept strongly active in the visual arts as well.

  • Spiritual
  • Moral
  • Social
  • Cultural

Develop the individual:

Spiritual, moral, social and cultural skills developed. Develop the individual: Students will consider a range of non-fiction literary forms. They will learn how to approach an unseen text, focusing on language, form and structure, which will in turn feed into their GCSE study. Students will be asked to use empathy skills in order to appreciate the context of the texts they read.

Create a supportive community:

Spiritual, moral, social and cultural skills developed. Develop the individual: Students will consider a range of non-fiction literary forms. They will learn how to approach an unseen text, focusing on language, form and structure, which will in turn feed into their A level study. Students will be asked to use empathy skills in order to appreciate the context of the texts they read. Students will explore their ideas together, developing listening and appreciation skills. They will learn to share ideas and different interpretations about the texts in a safe and respectful way. Developing the community: Students will explore their ideas together, developing listening and appreciation skills. They will learn to share ideas and different interpretations about the texts in a safe and respectful way.

Term 5 and 6: Component 4 - Non-Examination Unit - Pink Mist by Owen Sheers

Pupils will read and study Pink Mist to support the coursework element of the course.

Non-examination unit - 20% of the overall A Level qualification. Draft deadline in November of year 13 Final deadline in January of year 13

Interpretation

The action of explaining the meaning of something through the evidence presented.

Gothic

Relating to the Goths or their extinct language, which belongs to the East Germanic branch of the Indo-European language family. It provides the earliest manuscript evidence of any Germanic language (4th–6th centuries AD).

Allegory

Allegory is a rhetorical device that creates a close, one-to-one comparison. An allegorical comparison of 21st century Britain to a hive might point out that Britain and the hive have queens, workers and soldiers.

Colloquial

Colloquial language is the informal language of conversation

Intertextuality

A term describing the many ways in which texts can be interrelated, ranging from direct quotation or echoing, to parody.

Metaphor

A comparison that creates a direct correspondence ‘society is a hive’ unlike a simile

Trope

Any of the devices (metaphors, similes, rhyme etc.) whereby art language differentiates itself from functional language.

Catharsis

Classical scholars argue about the original meaning intended by the ancient Greeks, but has come to mean an emotional release engendered by an intense experience.

Hamartia

Classical scholars argue about the shades of meaning the word has in the original Greek but has come to mean a fatal moral flaw in a protagonist of a tragedy

Hubris

Now usually used to designate overweening pride in a protagonist of a tragedy; some Classical scholars argue that the original word is more complex.

Farce

A comedy featuring exaggerated situations and physical humour, usually based around the attempt to preserve respectability. The adjective ‘farcical’ is less specific, usually referring to some event that becomes absurd.

  • Spiritual
  • Moral
  • Social
  • Cultural

Develop the individual:

Spiritual, moral, social and cultural skills developed. Develop the individual: Students will consider a range of non-fiction literary forms. They will learn how to approach an unseen text, focusing on language, form and structure, which will in turn feed into their GCSE study. Students will be asked to use empathy skills in order to appreciate the context of the texts they read.

Create a supportive community:

Spiritual, moral, social and cultural skills developed. Develop the individual: Students will consider a range of non-fiction literary forms. They will learn how to approach an unseen text, focusing on language, form and structure, which will in turn feed into their A level study. Students will be asked to use empathy skills in order to appreciate the context of the texts they read. Students will explore their ideas together, developing listening and appreciation skills. They will learn to share ideas and different interpretations about the texts in a safe and respectful way. Developing the community: Students will explore their ideas together, developing listening and appreciation skills. They will learn to share ideas and different interpretations about the texts in a safe and respectful way.

Term 2 and 3: Component 1 - Drama - Streetcar Named Desire

Students will study Tennessee Williams' exciting and iconic play 'A Streetcar Named Desire'. Students will be guided through reading the play by the teacher setting sections to read at home and in lessons. Contextual elements of Williams' life and New Orleans in the 1940s will play a focal role in understanding the complex characters of the play. At the heart of all study are Williams' methods and the themes that drive the plot. Additional works from Williams and prompts from critical responses will also inform teaching. Students will work independently and in small group situations to develop a range of ideas and interpretations.

Essay on theme considering the play as studied so far - 45 minutes Term 3 - Essay on the whole text based on a key theme - 45 minutes Essays set on analysis and focused on methods and ideas throughout the scheme.

Absurdist theatre

A genre of plays in which apparently impossible or ridiculous events make a statement about the strangeness and irrationality of existence. The term is used to classify the plays of writers like Albee, Beckett and Ionesco.

Farce

A comedy featuring exaggerated situations and physical humour, usually based around the attempt to preserve respectability. The adjective ‘farcical’ is less specific, usually referring to some event that becomes absurd.

Realistic drama

a An attempt to represent life on stage with the minimum interference from convention. The defining metaphor is that viewing a realistic play should be like looking into a room with one wall missing.

Shakespearean drama

The name conveniently given to British drama of the Elizabethan and Jacobean period that ignored the rules of classical drama to use large time-spans, sub-plots and many scenes.

Catharsis

Classical scholars argue about the original meaning intended by the ancient Greeks, but has come to mean an emotional release engendered by an intense experience.

Hamartia

Classical scholars argue about the shades of meaning the word has in the original Greek but has come to mean a fatal moral flaw in a protagonist of a tragedy

Aside

A remark to the audience which other characters on stage do not hear. In effect a device used to make a character’s inner feelings evident.

Exeunt

Used to indicate several people leave the stage.

Exit

Used to indicate one person leaves the stage

Monologue

A play that consists of the speech of one character with no other cast. Alan Bennett has written many monologues interpreted by famous actors such as ‘A Cream Cracker Under the Settee’ (1988) for Thora Hird.

Verfremdungseffekt

Original German term for ‘alienation effect’.

Hubris

Now usually used to designate overweening pride in a protagonist of a tragedy; some Classical scholars argue that the original word is more complex.

Farce

A comedy featuring exaggerated situations and physical humour, usually based around the attempt to preserve respectability. The adjective ‘farcical’ is less specific, usually referring to some event that becomes absurd.

  • Spiritual
  • Moral
  • Social
  • Cultural

Develop the individual:

Spiritual, moral, social and cultural skills developed. Develop the individual: Students will consider a range of non-fiction literary forms. They will learn how to approach an unseen text, focusing on language, form and structure, which will in turn feed into their A level study. Students will be asked to use empathy skills in order to appreciate the context of the texts they read. Students will explore their ideas together, developing listening and appreciation skills. They will learn to share ideas and different interpretations about the texts in a safe and respectful way. Developing the community: Students will explore their ideas together, developing listening and appreciation skills. They will learn to share ideas and different interpretations about the texts in a safe and respectful way.

Create a supportive community:

Spiritual, moral, social and cultural skills developed. Develop the individual: Students will consider a range of non-fiction literary forms. They will learn how to approach an unseen text, focusing on language, form and structure, which will in turn feed into their A level study. Students will be asked to use empathy skills in order to appreciate the context of the texts they read. Students will explore their ideas together, developing listening and appreciation skills. They will learn to share ideas and different interpretations about the texts in a safe and respectful way. Developing the community: Students will explore their ideas together, developing listening and appreciation skills. They will learn to share ideas and different interpretations about the texts in a safe and respectful way.