English Literature

Course summary

English Literature A Level is split into three components that you will study across the two years of the course. Component 01 focuses on 'Drama and Poetry Pre-1900' and involves the in-depth study of a Shakespeare play (for example, Hamlet or Twelfth Night), as well as the study of an additional pre-1900 drama text (such as Webster’s The Duchess of Malfi or Ibsen’s A Doll’s House) and pre-1900 poetry (for example, a selection of poems by Christina Rossetti or Samuel Taylor Coleridge). Component 02 is focused on 'Comparative and Contextual Study', which will involve the detailed study of a literary tradition or genre (for example, American Literature 1880- 1940 or The Gothic Tradition or Dystopian writing). You will study two set texts (for example, if investigating Gothic, you would study Dracula by Bram Stoker and The Bloody Chamber by Angela Carter) in addition to completing independent wider reading and research to support your understanding of the genre or literary movement as a whole. Component 03, Literature Post-1900, is a coursework unit and involves the study of three texts (one novel, one drama and one poetry) linked by a theme (for example the theme of Storytelling could involve exploring links between The World’s Wife by Carol Ann Duffy, The History Boys by Alan Bennett and Atonement by Ian McEwan).