How to structure and write a literature essay

This post will give you a basic structure for a one-hour literature essay on one of your set examination texts. It is: introduction, 3 or 4 main paragraphs, conclusion.

Before you start, repeat to yourself: relevance, relevance, relevance. However brilliant an idea may be, it will gain no marks at all if it does not answer the question exactly as set.

Even if you feel pressed for time, read the question carefully and give it a few minutes' thought before writing anything. Then construct one sentence (or a couple of shorter ones) which answer it directly, You can jot this down on rough paper - if allowed - or it can be the first sentence of your essay, in the introduction.

Let us take the question: Analyse the theme of madness in King Lear. (Search for my separate post on the correct way of punctuating, although you can use quotation marks even for full titles in handwriting). Your overarching sentence for the whole essay might be:

"The theme of madness in King Lear is closely allied to that of folly and is embodied in three characters: King Lear himself, the Fool and Poor Tom. Each is different and has his own language".

You have shown that you can relate madness to other concepts but do NOT go on to write about folly except to mention it briefly. The last sentence shows that you are aware of how a writer achieves his effects. Showing how will gain you top grades. 

Fortunately, the structure of paragraphs is there: one for each character.  A paragraph must have a key sentence: "The Fool's apparent madness contains sharp wisdom about the folly of Lear's actions because he is licensed to say what others dare not". You then expand on that point with a further explanation backed by quotations or close reference, paying attention to his unique manner of expression. If you cannot remember a quotation, do not invent it. The examiner knows the text inside out! Instead quote a word or two and paraphrase. To summarise: each paragraph has a leading key sentence, expansion and examples by quotation or close reference. Do the same for the other characters.

The conclusion can be a round up of what you have said or a new perception - but still relevant. It could be that sane Edgar in the sub-plot is also Poor Tom in the main plot, with his assumed madness. A different point could be that madness is connected to the theme of insight and blindness.

Extra tips: do not use AI to help you to write your homework essays. That bland, impersonal style is instantly recognisable and you will find yourself adopting it. Use the language that you would to a respected older person, not pompous but direct. Never use "upset" or "incredibly" and there is no need to say "I think". If the question seems impossibly difficult, do what you can with it. Schools will complain and the moderators will adjust their marking. 

Good luck and may you get Top Marks!

ONLY - have fun with the Bishop and the bun

 It is vital to place the word only correctly in your sentence. That position is usually just before the word it refers to or qualifies.

To see what i mean, take this simple sentence.

The Bishop gave the baboon a bun.

Now pop the word only before each word in turn.

I know you can do it by yourself - but I want to have fun also.

Only the Bishop gave the baboon a bun.

The only Bishop gave the baboon a bun.

The Bishop only gave the baboon a bun.

It's even more fun reading the sentences aloud. The last one should have a deeply apologetic tone because clearly the baboon had suffered as a result of its treat. Now carry on by yourself.

Note to any teachers reading this: your pupils will love it.

The Great Chain of Being

The concept of a chain of all creation, firmly in place and indisputable was widely upheld in the Middle Ages and through to Shakespeare.

It maintained that there is a rightful hierarchy which must not be broken and it is the exact opposite of our modern egalitarian view of life.

At the top was God and below Him came the angels. Man was next and was considered less spiritual than those above but with a capacity for reason which kept him above the category below him, animals. Plants followed and at the bottom were minerals. 

Within these groups there was also a ladder which makes quite comical reading nowadays when we do not pay attention to the exact position of prawns in a paradigm of life.

Kennings and Homeric epithets

An Anglo-Saxon kenning is a descriptive pfrase which replaces the noun: 

The ship sailed over the whale-road.

A Homeric epithet is an adjectival phrase which adds to the noun:

The ship sailed over the wine-dark sea. It usually has two words: bright-eyed; rosy fingered.

Two words you must not use in a literary essay.

 Upset and incredibly are inappropriate in formal writing. Upset is too colloquial and bland and incredibly means the opposite of what it says. 

Verbal, oral and aural

Strictly, verbal means "in words" and refers to something written whereas oral means spoken. Aural refers to the sense of hearing.

Practical Criticism

This is a method of approaching a text, often a poem, where the reader or student is given no background information about authorship, date or background. The analysis must therefore concentrate on the words on the page and devices used. It has fallen out of fashion recently since its promotion by I. A. Richards in the 1920's but it can be a useful method of ensuring a fresh response to a work.