Welcome to the A Level  English Literature Page! Click on the buttons below to access materials to support your revision and study.

If you have any questions, please contact: lroutledge@rodingvalley.net OR tdilio@rodingvalley.net

The English A Level Literature Course Overview: 

Course Description:

English Literature A’s historicist approach to the study of literature rests upon reading texts within a

shared context. Working from the belief that no text exists in isolation but is the product of the time

in which it was produced, English Literature A encourages students to explore the relationships

that exist between texts and the contexts within which they are written, received and understood.

Studying texts within a shared context enables students to investigate and connect them, drawing

out patterns of similarity and difference using a variety of reading strategies and perspectives.

English Literature A privileges the process of making autonomous meaning, encouraging students

to debate and challenge the interpretations of other readers as they develop their own informed

personal responses.

Exams

Paper 1: Love through the Ages

Section A - Shakespeare: (Othello)

·         One passage-based question with linked essay     (25 marks)

Section B - Unseen poetry:  

·         Compulsory essay question on two unseen poems (25 marks)

Section C - Comparing texts: (compare The Great Gatsby and a bank of poems in AQA Anthology)

·         One essay question linking two texts                      (25 marks)   

  3-hour exam open book                                                                             Total 75 marks

Paper 2a: Texts in Shared Context

Section A:  Set texts (Regeneration by Pat Barker, Up the Line to Death ed. Brian Gardner, and The Wipers Times by Ian Hislop and Nick Newman)

·         One essay question on set text (25 marks)

Section B: Contextual linking

·         One compulsory question on an unseen extract  (25 marks)

·         One essay question linking two texts                       (25 marks)

2 hours 30 minutes exam open book                                                         Total 75 marks

Non-Examined Assessment (NEA)

·         Comparative critical study of two texts - at least one of which must have been written pre-1900

·         One extended essay (2500 words) and a bibliography assessed                    (50 marks)

Assessment Objectives:

·         AO1 Articulate informed, personal and creative responses to literary texts, using associated concepts and terminology, and coherent, accurate written expression. (28%)

·         AO2 Analyse ways in which meanings are shaped in literary texts. (24%)

·         AO3 Demonstrate understanding of the significance and influence of the contexts in which literary texts are written and received. (24%)

·         AO4 Explore connections across literary texts. (12%)

·         AO5 Explore literary texts informed by different interpretations. (12%)

The English A Level Recommended Reading list:

Examples of Excellent Student Work: