English Literature

Course summary

The approved specification for English Literature was new for first teaching in September 2015. The A course is comprised of a unit of ‘Love through the Ages’ (including responding to Shakespeare, unseen poetry and a comparison task), ‘Texts in Shared Contexts’ (with a choice of WW1 and its aftermath or modern literature from 1945 to the present day), referring to prose, poetry and drama. A third coursework component is entitled ‘Texts across time’. At A Level, ‘Love through the Ages’ is assessed in Paper 1 - a three hour exam - covering poetry, prose and Shakespeare. Paper 2 explores ‘Texts in Shared Contexts’ with a 2 ½ hour exam in which students must respond to poetry, prose and drama. The coursework makes up 20% of the A Level, involving a comparative critical study (2500 words) of two texts, at least one of which must have been written pre -1900.