English Literature

Course summary

Reading great books forces us to address important issues. At Bancroft's we hope to teach not only a detailed understanding of particular texts, exploring ways in which writers shape our views of the world, but also to foster an intellectual and imaginative interest in a wide variety of social and philosophical topics, helping students to read everything with greater insight and more profound pleasure. The study of literature leads us to a greater understanding of ourselves and those around us; this emotional intelligence enhances performance in any job and, even more importantly, our ability to negotiate a path through the many human issues of living in a family and wider society. The works we study invite us to explore social and philosophical questions which might not otherwise occur to us, and students become increasingly confident in shaping those thoughts into cogent arguments. Discussions during English lessons are thought-provoking and wide in scope. Every class is taught by two teachers so that a variety of views and approaches may be experienced. The importance of a personal response to the material means that there is room to pursue individual interests. The course is organised around the principal literary forms - prose, poetry and drama. The components are: • Two novels, at least one of which must have been published before 1900 • One Shakespeare play supported by an anthology of extracts from critical essays • One non-Shakespearean play • A selection of poetry by one writer or from one literary period • A selection of twenty-first-century poetry • Two coursework texts chosen by the set teacher