English literature A2 AQA

How do you even go about choosing key quotes for the exam? I'm doing elements of the gothic, so my books are Frankenstein, The Bloody Chamber and Dr Faustus - but I don't even know how to choose what key quotes to learn because there just seems like so much to try and prepare for any possible essay... is anyone doing/has done these books and can help? D:

Hey! I'm doing Macbeth, Wuthering Heights and Dr Faustus.
I think if you know your texts really well, you'll be able to pick out key quotes easily. You can also just look on sparknotes and other sites for specific quotes you should be learning. Personally, what I'm doing is looking at past papers and looking at what themes come up a lot. So for faustus you'll have to have quotes on bad/evil, religion etc. Obviously you have to find quotes on the Gothic, as that is the genre of all the books

Pick quotes that cover all themes and that span the whole breadth of the novel. At the same time, don't memorise tons, because realistically, you're not going to use tons in the exam itself.
Its all about priotising, and getting the most out of those quotes.

I'm only doing Frankenstein so I won't be much help on the other two, but for key quotes I'm choosing ones that can be interpreted for several different Gothic elements. For example:

"I was often tempted, when all was at peace around me, and I the only unquiet thing that wandered restless in a scene so beautiful and heavenly...often, I say, I was tempted to plunge into the silent lake, that the waters might close over me and my calamities forever."

"when all was at peace around me, and I the only unquiet thing" can be interpreted as natural vs unnatural. Victor is surrounded by nature, but it suggests he is disturbing it and is out of place, much like his creation of the monster, disturbing the natural order of things.

"only unquiet thing" suggests isolation, both physically and mentally. Victor is always alone, more often than not it is self-imposed physical isolation, but he also mentally isolated, confined by his own guilt-ridden mind- hence unquiet could refer to his mental stability.

"plunge into the silent lake" can be used for religion as it could suggest Victor wants to commit suicide and this was considered a sin to the Romantic era, which can be used in questions about transgression and the like. Alternatively, it suggests Victor wishes to be baptised, effectively cleaned of his sins, thus suggesting Victor desires redemption.

"close over me and my calamities forever" implies the element of concealment is at play here. Victor wants the waters to hide his misdeeds, and his troubles. He wants to hide from the guilt and the world, rather than face up to the consequences.

Hope this helps, didn't mean to go on as much as I did aha