The Critical Essay Structure How will my essay

The Critical Essay Structure

How will my essay be structured? 1. Introduction 2. Main Body- usually 3 or 4 paragraphs. 3. Conclusion

We are Learning. . . How to write an effective introduction.

Use this method: 1. Give the name of the text, the name of the author and mention words from Part One of the essay question. 2: Briefly summarise what the text is about (adapt according to the essay question). 3: Mention what you will be writing about in your essay and refer to Part Two of the essay question. Try to refer to theme(s).

Example Introduction Text: “Glasgow 5 March 1971” by Edwin Morgan Essay Question: Choose a poem in which setting is a significant feature. Explain briefly what the setting is and then go on to describe the importance of the setting to the poem’s central concerns.

Example introduction A poem in which setting is a significant feature is “Glasgow 5 March 1971” by Edwin Morgan. The poem is set in Sauchiehall Street in Glasgow and describes a violent assault that is committed on an innocent young couple by two criminals during a robbery, causing them severe injuries. This essay will discuss the different techniques that Morgan uses so effectively to convey this horrific assault, such as metaphor and onomatopoeia, and how the poem portrays the violence of Scottish society.

Example Text: “Shooting Stars” by Carol Ann Duffy Essay Question: Choose a poem in which setting is a significant feature. Explain briefly what the setting is and then go on to describe the importance of the setting to the poem’s central concerns.

Example introduction A poem in which setting is a significant feature is “Shooting Stars” by Carol Ann Duffy. The poem is set in a Nazi Concentration Camp during the Holocaust and, through the voice of the speaker, we are told of the atrocities that took place and of the torture and murder the prisoners inside were forced to endure. This essay will discuss how Duffy effectively evokes the Concentration Camp through her use of techniques such as imagery, emotive language and word choice and how, in doing so, she is able to explore themes of human suffering and the inhumanity of mankind.

We are Learning. . . How to write paragraphs using P. Q. E

The main body of your essay is where you develop your essay and go into detail with your Understanding, Analysis and Evaluation. All the paragraphs in the main body of your essay should be written using P. Q. E. This will help to ensure that your paragraphs have a good structure, and your essay is well organised.

Point Quote Explain Quote Again Explain Again

Point (topic sentence) You write one sentence and you do 3 things: • Make a point about the text which indicates what you will be focusing on in your paragraph. • Refer to the essay question (try to paraphrase). • Refer to theme of the text (directly or indirectly).

Quote Write one sentence: • Provide a quote from the text that supports your Point (remember your inverted commas!) • Put your quote in context (so that it can be clearly understood). (Remember: you usually do this twice in each paragraph)

Explain Write 3 or 4 detailed sentences: • Analyse and evaluate the techniques that have been used, using critical terminology. • Refer to the essay question. • Refer to theme (s) of the text (directly or indirectly) (Remember: you do this twice in each paragraph)

Example paragraph Text: “Glasgow 5 March 1971” by Edwin Morgan Essay Question: Choose a poem which describes a scene or incident vividly. Explain briefly what happens and then show the poetic techniques used make the description vivid.

Morgan vividly conveys the violence of the attack on the young couple and, in doing so, helps the reader to understand that we live in a violent society. He describes how “the young man’s face/is bristling with fragments of glass” after he is attacked and pushed into the shop window. This metaphor clearly illustrates how the broken glass has embedded itself into the man’s face, covering it like a beard. We can imagine the pain and suffering that the man would have experienced as the tiny fragments of glass would be cutting into his flesh, covering him with blood and horribly disfiguring him with scars.

. . . Morgan also explains that, after she is pushed through the window, “the girl’s leg. . . spurts arterial blood”. The onomatopoeia in the word “spurts” enables the reader to almost hear the sound of the blood gushing out of the possibly fatal wound in the young lady’s leg. The blood is escaping her body uncontrollably as the broken glass has viciously torn open an artery and the girl would undoubtedly be in both terror and agony as her life drains away due to this unprovoked attack on a busy street in Glasgow.

Example paragraph Text: “Shooting Stars” by Carol Ann Duffy Essay Question: Choose a poem in which the creation of mood or atmosphere is an important feature. Show the poet creates the mood or atmosphere and explain how it helps to convey the poem’s main themes.

The atmosphere of death that permeates the poem is made apparent to the reader through Duffy’s depiction of the pain and suffering that the Jews were forced to endure as a result of the inhumanity of their Nazi captors. The speaker would have been constantly reminded of her imminent death as she informs us that she was forced to live “beneath the gaze of men with guns”. Duffy’s use of emotive language with “guns” clearly demonstrates the persistent threat of violence and aggression that the Nazi soldiers represented. These men were able to maintain control and dominance over their prisoners through terror as they were in possession of weapons which could end the Jews’ lives at any moment. Duffy’s use of word choice with “beneath” also effectively conveys the extent to which the Jews were perceived to be inferior and less than human by the Nazi soldiers who kept them imprisoned, and that the soldiers firmly believed that they had not only the power but also the right to murder them without fear of reprisal.

. . . This atmosphere of death is further conveyed by Duffy when the speaker reveals that “strong men wept” due to the suffering, torture and murder being inflicted upon the innocent people inside the camp. Duffy effectively illustrates the emotional turmoil that the Jews endured in the knowledge that their lives, and the lives of those that they love, were soon to reach an unjust and premature end due to the Nazis’ genocide. Her contrast of the words “strong” and “wept” makes the reader understand that these men who are usually brave, stoic and resilient could no longer cope and were engulfed by overwhelming sorrow, despair and anguish due to the death and horror that was surrounding them every moment in the camp.

We are learning. . . How to write an effective conclusion

Your concluding paragraph should include the following, in any order: • Use the words in the question to make a statement of conclusion. • Sum up your main arguments. • Refer to theme(s) and techniques you have discussed.

Example conclusion Text: “Glasgow 5 March 1971” by Edwin Morgan Essay Question: Choose a poem in which setting is a significant feature. Explain briefly what the setting is and then go on to describe the importance of the setting to the poem’s central concerns.

Throughout the poem, “Glasgow 5 March 1971”, Edwin Morgan uses a variety of effective techniques to successfully convey the horrific attack that took place on an innocent young couple in Glasgow. The poem is dramatic from the opening, and it goes on to illustrate the sheer violence and cruelty of the assault which changed the lives of two innocent people forever. Through his description of the life-threatening injuries the couple received and his portrayal of the wilful blindness and self-obsessed nature of the public, Morgan makes a powerful statement to the reader about the violence and cruelty of Scottish society.

Example conclusion Text: “Shooting Stars” by Carol Ann Duffy Essay Question: Choose a poem in which the creation of mood or atmosphere is an important feature. Show the poet creates the mood or atmosphere and explain how it helps to convey the poem’s main themes.

Throughout the poem “Shooting Stars” by Carol Ann Duffy, the poet effectively evokes a powerful atmosphere of death through her skilful use of techniques such as simile, word choice and onomatopoeia and, in doing so, she makes a powerful statement about the inhumanity of mankind and the human suffering it causes. Duffy vividly depicts the horrific conditions inside the concentration camp and the cruel and barbaric acts of the Nazi soldiers. She also effectively conveys the main message of the poem- that we must never forget the horrors of the Holocaust or allow this type of tragedy to happen again.