A2 Eng Lit Oedipus and Lear Course Outline
Aims and Objectives
1. Prepare to take LT4 Exam in January – Section B, Drama, WJEC exam board.
2. Meet current updated syllabus: http://a2englishlearningcommunity2010.wikispaces.com/ plus directly from the exam board at http://www.wjec.co.uk/index.php?subject=53&level=21 – e-spec (see examples of marked exam scripts Band 1-4), LT4 Guidance, LT4 Specimen Paper and Examiners’ Reports.
3. Understand main exam requirements from the start:
· One exam, two sections: A Poetry 40 marks and B Drama 40 marks = 80 marks total.
· Section B choice of two questions on Lear + Oedipus = one 40 mark essay.
· Total time = 2 ½ hours, split equally, so drama essay = 1 hour 15 mins.
· All four AOs assessed equally, plus synoptic knowledge and understanding i.e. put it all together in the Big Pic (across texts, styles, theories and time) to give your own truly well informed response.
· Core = Lear, partner = Oed. Develop big ideas by comparing Lear with Oed, show by detailed critical ref to Lear. 70/30 mix, most quotes + tech lang and dramatic analysis from Lear.
4. Discover and learn how both texts represent and develop common elements of their dramatic genres, themes and contextual issues (including over time), by high level run-through of Oedipus, as “background”, then detailed work on Lear as the “foreground”, focussing on skills of analysing:
· Context influences (on writers and audiences) at the time written up to now = history that helps (e.g. Ancient Greek democracy and theatre, King James and Rennaisance theatre), plus sources.
· Critical and performance interpretations of these texts over time – builds on context.
· Technical construction of plot and dramatic structure – sense of theatre!
· Main and minor characters’ characteristics and dramatic function – sense of theatre!
· Themes and imagery patterns – concepts and imagination.
· Shakespeare’s language – sense of rhetoric and poetry!
5. Have an enjoyable, enlightening, genuine engagement and journey of discovery through these texts.
6. See ourselves growing real skills as we study to meet the assessment objectives on time and on target:
· AO1 needs a hypothesis you make to answer the question first, then a logical structure setting out each step of your argument, with reference to the text and technical terms, driving to a conclusion.
· AO2 requires that you actually use dramatic, literary and poetic terms as tools to analyse the texts in detail to get better and deeper ideas as well as to explain your dissection of those bits of text.
· AO3 wants you to use Oedipus to understand Lear better and to use the ideas that other readers have had over time to help you understand and come to your own informed conclusions.
· AO4 wants you to use history to help understand these stories, the ways they were written, the genre and its use or development, the ways audiences might have reacted then and now, to “get” it!
7. Become good at producing successful timed exam essays before revision, including being aware of the new types of question and doing relevant practice (see over) in time to get feedback and try again!
A2 Drama Essays
See advice at Exam Syllabus page http://a2englishlearningcommunity2010.wikispaces.com/Exam+Syllabus and especially make sure you read the actual marked exam scripts to see what Bands 1-4 look like.
Types of Question: will be set by 1 of 4 command words: Explore, Examine, Evaluate, Discuss, e.g.
1. Explore the presentation of the theme of blindness in KL in the light of your reading of OR.
2. "Blindness in KL is not simply a physical issue." Examine this remark with comparative ref to OR.
3. Evaluate the dramatic importance of the theme of blindness in KL. Show how your response has been influenced by your reading of OR.
4. Through detailed analysis of KL and comparative reference to OR, discuss the significance of blindness in the plays.
Type of Response: Each command word wants a slightly different way of thinking and type of response:
1. Exploring perhaps being more personal, about discovery and meandering along (you are a tour guide?);
2. Examining being very precise and technical (doctor doing a post-mortem? Yuk);
3. Evaluating being about weighing up and judging (being a lawyer or artistic judge of some kind?); and
4. Discussing again requiring looking at more than one side of something, as if having a conversation with an expert about something you’re really well informed on and interested in (being a guest TV news expert?).
Essay Structure for Everything: whichever task, they all MUST MUST be formed the following way:
· Think up hypotheses to answer the question in the first para.
· Plan and outline the logical links of points to prove the hypothesis – argument’s bones.
· Find enlightening words/quotes/action/structures (lightbulb in your head = good evidence):
Ø Which ones are the crossroads to many different ideas?
Ø Which ones form patterns of ideas across the plays?
· Layer up evidence inside each para to back up each new argument step - muscle on the bones.
· Plan for plenty technical terms per para - dissect that muscle and show you know how it works.
· ONLY THEN write, allowing new ideas/links, but keep your argument going forwards by referring back to the key words as you go and taking new steps each para instead of repeating.
The questions will be different every time so you must get good at making a fresh, logical response, not twisting existing notes to new questions.
You need a bank of quotations, and given the twisting problem, it’s better to get the juicy, lightbulb, crossroads type which you can use for lots of different topics. STICK THEM ALL OVER THE HOUSE.
Ways to practice instead of just whole essays, try doing lots of:
Ø essay question unpackings / make up your own questions / change the command word,
Ø first paragraph hypotheses,
Ø flow charts of the argument’s bones,
Ø individual detailed, layered paragraphs with enough technical terms – see terms toolkit on old wiki.
DO THE WORST FIRST AND MOST!
Resources/Self-study Activities
What is compulsory? As you are almost at Uni yet still need school structure, everything I physically give out, or red stuff, is compulsory, but on top of that, lessons are starters for your own extension work.
How should I think of myself as a learner? Become a well informed participant in the Big Conversation. Think expert explorer/discoverer 1) look at texts through binoculars far away at first (one eye context, the other critical interps); 2) look along the whole thing nearer, take video/photos to focus on and piece together more closely; 3) microscope and tools out to zoom in, dig in and analyse the most puzzling/interesting bits. 4) Choose if your essay is more of a technical case report back at the end of that, testing out your own theory (EXAMINE), a weighing up and working out of other people’s theories (EVALUATE), or more like a running discussion with other experts as you go along (EXPLORE / DISCUSS). Talk their talk.
My Learning Expedition
Ø Use context lessons, pack info (see following) and own research to find Helpful History – get one eye of my binoculars focussed so I can see the plays as their writers and original audiences might have done.
Ø Use critical interps lessons, pack info and own research to get my other eye focussed through what other people have seen in the play in the past, so that I get reliable critical ideas to ground my own on.
Ø Collect quotes as we go in lessons/homeworks/your reading and learn them – will you group by character/theme/imagery or in some other way?
Ø Make and organise class notes, including reflecting after lessons – you can do this in the form of diagrams/flowcharts/journals as long as you try to be conceptual, detailed, technical and logical.
Ø Mini- essay practice (see A2 Essays) – get familiar with types of questions plus argument structures and fix what you are bad at by at least one mini-practice a fortnight to hand in every Fridays wk 1.
Ø Language analysis practice – treat key passages/quotes of Lear as unseen poem, use Section A poetry skills to analyse language in technical detail. At least one passage per scene. See example chart.
Ø Read all of at least one copy of each text:
· Short version of Oedipus – use Ms W’s performance script to see the dramatic twists/patterns in the structure and understand the role of the chorus better.
· Penguin long version – what is the Priest doing there etc compare with shorter version.
· Text of Oedipus online – search for key words to find patterns e.g. pain, grief, eyes, gods, Oedipus!
· Wiki and online version of Lear, plus read extensive notes at that website, at http://a2englishlearningcommunity2010.wikispaces.com/Summer+Homework (you can try reading and watching together online there, using the embedded clips - short or long “tour” version – ACE!).
· Searching for patterns in Lear online.
· School edition of Lear in chunks to read before classes (set for homeworks), in and after classes.
· Introduction to your school editions of both plays.
Ø Listen to Ian Mckellen’s interview about the staging and character of Lear at the same site.
Ø Watch a range of DVD interpretations, starting with the Trevor Nunn/Ian Mckellen Lear DVD version from Ms W for the brilliant context interview with the Director, or any one of the other three that she has, plus the Oedipus opera, or find your own and let us know. Why did each director do it that way?
Ø Reading Around suggestions on the wiki, but two excellent books to buy, look at in a bookshop or borrow from Ms W include Shakespeare: The Basics, by Sean McEvoy, which will help you get to grips with the intricacies of WS’ language and Jacobean Drama (Readers' Guides to Essential Criticism), by Dr Pascale Aebischer will give you University level critical interpretations in addition to this pack.
Class Activities and Topics
Time: 34 single lessons. Term may end a week early. Fridays wk 1 booked in R23 for ICT.
General Plan:
Tues 13 Sept Tragedy! Intro to the concept through homework research, piecing together Ancient Greek recipe, adding in photocopied notes (lend Aristotle to those who want A grades) and revising Context presentations from A2 Induction last term. Then “read” Oedipus by performing short version (read for 14th Sept) (exploring dramatic technique, function and structure as well as applying context to understand theme), one ICT lesson tracing language patterns in the play (5 lessons up to 24 Sept).
Individual mini-essay practice for 24th Sept on Oedipus (or both if feel able/want to).
Plus two lessons for group work investigating and group teaching themes/structure and at least one lesson applying existing critical interpretations (provided in advance in homework reading?) (3 lessons up to 30 Sept) Hopefully also watching two versions at National Theatre Archive in this time.
Individual mini-essay practice for 8th Oct on Oedipus but agreeing/disagreeing with critical interpretation.
Homework reading to prep Lear – revise tragedy changes and watch again but in short version with clips.
Fri 1st Oct Link to Lear - What’s New? - Revise changes in conceptions of tragedy between Sophocles and the Rennaisance. Discuss Sh’s contemporaries and the missing link of Latin Drama (Seneca). Give necessary info. Move on to Lear with quick one lesson run through – Drama Whoosh! Exercise - and setting up methods of taking notes/wiki pages. Gather initial similarities and differences to Oedipus. Homework 1) type up observations on similarities/differences on wiki, 2) watch Lear again for Fri 8th Oct -week’s gap 3) bring useful context info that helps us understand the play – provide some?
Individual mini-essay practice for XXX on both Oed and Lear – genre of tragedy.
Fri 8th Oct Shakespeare Starter Context lesson(s) – try for only one lesson and split class to teach each other 1) history, 2) sources, 3) Trevor Nunn:
Ø Helpful History - Use homework to find/review extracts of information to the play – what is most useful to help us decide why Sh wrote it that way and what audiences might have thought of it?
Ø Source with that? – Explore Sh’s literary sources for the play and changes he made, including Quarto and Folio versions.
Ø Nunn of That! - Watch DVD interview with Trevor Nunn about context/vol does this and presents
Ø Make up essay questions as a result of injection of context knowledge.
Ø As You Like It - Divide up DVDs to watch and research different perfs over time HALF TERM 22 OCT-1 NOV WK 1 SO DUE FRI 5TH NOV? Set up discussion from presentation of each one because such a long gap.
Tues 12th Oct Lear Starter Interpretations lesson (keep to just one!):
Ø Introduce the time-line of interpretation – extracts to put in order and vote what we like now.
Ø Try out some flow chart hypotheses for/against some interpretations with current knowledge of Lear.
Ø Invent some exam questions about both Lear and Oedipus, from this knowledge.