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Is this a* analysis?

image.jpgHi,I know it's a lot to ask but I've got my Aqa english GCSE on Monday and my teacher hates me! She's handed out examples where I made the exact same points as and more yet she says they get a* and I get c?
I've done this analysis for a quote in Lord of the flies, so if I linked it to the question I was given in the exam, what sort of grade would I be looking at? I got a* in my coursework. Thanks guys, and good luck. Let's hope the grade boundaries aren't as high as Aqa were when they wrote the biology paper!
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Reeceburk
This is E grade
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edday578
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Original post by Reeceburk
This is E grade


For real? I'm only talking about that one quote, say I talk about 4 quotes relevant to the question, develop them with that amount of detail then link them to the question?
Points and evidence are one thing, it's the analysis of the quote and explanation of the point that get you the A*.You need to dig deeper into the quote, what is the author saying? How is the way it is written effective? How does it make us feel about the character, as readers? Do we empathise with them? Compare the A* example with your own. What did they say ABOUT the points?
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edday578
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Original post by WhatIsSleep
Points and evidence are one thing, it's the analysis of the quote and explanation of the point that get you the A*.You need to dig deeper into the quote, what is the author saying? How is the way it is written effective? How does it make us feel about the character, as readers? Do we empathise with them? Compare the A* example with your own. What did they say ABOUT the points?


So I need to link more to the effect on the reader? Thanks for the constructive criticism, much more helpful than my teacher :smile:
Would you say its around a B at the moment?
Original post by edday578
So I need to link more to the effect on the reader? Thanks for the constructive criticism, much more helpful than my teacher :smile:
Would you say its around a B at the moment?


B-C I guess.
It just needs to be more in-depth. Really take the quote apart and explore it i.e. "The mask was a thing of its own" makes the mask sound like it's alive, like it has a personality which is different from Jack's. You embedded quotes well, but I feel like you'd need a few more.
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fatiana
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as far as i know, you need to identify language devices and alternative analysis. without alternative analysis there's no way you can get an A* as far as i was told
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edday578
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Thanks so much guys, love the tips. I really like that idea about the mask being a thing of its own, I guess I havent been looking at the deeper meaning of the quote. Really appreciate the help :smile:
For analysis, just remember PEEL (this is how I did it and got an A* at GCSE)

P- Point. One sentence at the start of the paragraph. 2 if it's a really juicy point. Link it to the question.
E- Evidence. These will be quotes which are embedded in..
E- Explanation. Explain the impact of the quote, the word choice, the author, the story etc. Just explain your point.
L- Link. Link the explanation to the point. As the point is linked to the question, you have a nice, structured answer. It wouldn't hurt to re-enforce the link by stating the link to the question again, using different words.

For my exam, I aimed for 4?? good points (I don't remember, it was last year) + a good intro (6 ish lines) and conclusion (8 ish lines). Each point should take around 1/2 - 3/4 of a page. That's how much you should expand on them.
Original post by animeamanda1412
as far as i know, you need to identify language devices and alternative analysis. without alternative analysis there's no way you can get an A* as far as i was told


Yes this!! I almost forgot about it. Also context.. sometimes you need a little background info (like did the author's upbringing parallel some themes in the book? things like that. Not too much of this though. You can find some context on the internet, do a little research).
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edday578
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apparently for the aqa literature exam there are no marks for context, that was only in the coursework :smile:
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edday578
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Original post by edday578
apparently for the aqa literature exam there are no marks for context, that was only in the coursework :smile:


edit: context for of mice and men, not for lord of the flies
Original post by WhatIsSleep
Yes this!! I almost forgot about it. Also context.. sometimes you need a little background info (like did the author's upbringing parallel some themes in the book? things like that. Not too much of this though. You can find some context on the internet, do a little research).


what the dude said :tongue:
Reply 13
Avatar for edday578
edday578
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Original post by WhatIsSleep
For analysis, just remember PEEL (this is how I did it and got an A* at GCSE)

P- Point. One sentence at the start of the paragraph. 2 if it's a really juicy point. Link it to the question.
E- Evidence. These will be quotes which are embedded in..
E- Explanation. Explain the impact of the quote, the word choice, the author, the story etc. Just explain your point.
L- Link. Link the explanation to the point. As the point is linked to the question, you have a nice, structured answer. It wouldn't hurt to re-enforce the link by stating the link to the question again, using different words.

For my exam, I aimed for 4?? good points (I don't remember, it was last year) + a good intro (6 ish lines) and conclusion (8 ish lines). Each point should take around 1/2 - 3/4 of a page. That's how much you should expand on them.


Thanks a lot :biggrin: Some people in my class write 6 pages but it seems a bit excessive to me. 3and a half to 4 should be enough
Original post by edday578
Thanks a lot :biggrin: Some people in my class write 6 pages but it seems a bit excessive to me. 3and a half to 4 should be enough


Indeed, remember quality is better than quantity, and you also have to take size of handwriting into account :P
Original post by edday578
apparently for the aqa literature exam there are no marks for context, that was only in the coursework :smile:


Oh, it may have changed? I did AQA Eng Lit, Purple Hibiscus for the exam (obscure one, I know), but our teacher told us to link it back to Nigeria. :/ Probably not, check the mark schemes.
The ideas are beautiful, but you haven't explored the quote itself.
I do that all the time don't worry, sometimes I explore with crap ideas and other times I have great ideas but don't explore.

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