Courses > Arts > English Literature
English Literature

Literature is the study of poetry, prose and plays. You will have the opportunity to read and research the context of a variety of texts over the two year course from a wide and varied topic list.

Lessons will take the form of pupil presentations, seminar style discussions and close annotation of the reading material.

AS Topics

Unit 1: Exam 2 hours 60%

Based on a chosen theme, you will study poetry and a selection of wider reading.  You will be given an unseen passage from the theme which you have to respond to in the exam.

Unit 2: Coursework 40%

A2 Topics

Unit 3: Exam 2 hours 30%

Based on the theme ‘Love through the Ages’ you will study a wide and varied Anthology of texts and extracts.  You will be asked to comment on an unseen extract on this theme.

Unit 4: Coursework 20%

Where does it lead?

A Level Literature is an excellent foundation for Literature study at University.  It is also a good basis for many professions and complements many other A Levels such as Psychology, RE and History.

Why you should study English Literature?

You should study English Literature if you have enjoyed the Literature element of your GCSE, this would have been your Shakespeare play, the modern play e.g. Educating Rita and reading ‘Of Mice & Men’ for the exam. Independent research is another large part of the course, so you should be self disciplined to complete all tasks and meet deadlines.

What skills do I need to be successful in this subject?

• To be successful you must like reading!  It is the basic requirement of the course that you read a minimum of 6 texts per year.  These texts will form the basis of your coursework and exam. 
• You must enjoy reading books from a wide range of genres and times
• You must enjoy studying Shakespeare
• You must be able to work independently
• You must like working in groups and discussing ideas
• You must like giving presentations and researching areas of interest

Assessment

AS Language is assessed through both exam and coursework units.  The exam will consist of a choice of three questions.  The coursework will ask you to create and write your own text for a specific audience and purpose.

Enrichment Activities

Theatre visits are organised for the Shakespeare study in A2 and for the play in AS.

Preparing for Study

• Read 3 texts from the wider reading list given to you on the AS induction day
• Research the chosen theme for AS study and complete the summer holiday tasks
• Prepare a power point of 8 – 10 slides on the theme including; historical context, timelines, major events, political developments and links with culture.

Other Information

Students wishing to study Literature must buy the texts required.  The cost for AS is approx. £22.00. We would also recommend that students buy a good revision guide from Longman, OUP or Philip Pullman Updates.