TWO ESSAY STYLES FOR LEVEL 2 SHORT TEXT ESSAYS – (either will serve you well)
1. Below is a frame work for the two poems per paragraph model of integrated essay style
SAMPLE QUESTION: Analyse how the language techniques evident in the poems of a poet you have
studied contribute to the poet’s purpose?
PLAN:
Intro: language techniques - important because they contribute to purpose/theme of poem, and engage the
reader on emotional/intellectual levels in order to do that. Features = conceits, emotive language, alliteration, direct
address, pronouns. Poems = ‘The Flea’, ‘The Apparition’, and ‘Holy Sonnet XIV’.
Body Idea 1 -conceits - ‘The Flea’ and ‘Sonnet XIV’.
Body Idea 2 - emotive language, direct address and pronouns – dramatic monologue in ‘Sonnet XIV’ and ‘The
Apparition’
Body Idea 3 -Alliteration in ‘Sonnet XIV’, ‘The Apparition’.
Conclusion - techniques contribute to purpose/theme.
SAMPLE INTRODUCTION USING THIS PLAN AND TOPIC:
John Donne’s powerful metaphysical poetry owes its success to the variety of language techniques he uses, and
how these affect his readers. His careful selection of challenging and intriguing extended metaphors (conceits),
strongly emotive language, personal pronouns, alliteration and direct address, works to engage the reader on
emotional and intellectual levels. Thus engaged, the themes of his poems become clear to the reader and Donne
achieves his purpose. This essay seeks to explore how these techniques function to evoke reader response, and
impart themes in ‘The Flea’, ‘The Apparition’ and Sonnet XIV.
SAMPLE ANALYTICAL BODY PARAGRAPH PLANNING GRID FOR BODY 3:
Topic: alliteration/sibilance
Example: ‘break, blowe, burne’ (XIV); 'scorn', 'murdresse', 'solicitation', 'ghost', 'scik-taper' (Apparition)
Description: (XIV): first quatrain – speaker asks God to force him to be loyal. Sound accumulates ‘br, bl, b’.
The addition of the second consonant in the first two words softens the alliterative ‘b’, adding strength to the third
word.
(The Apparition): Throughout the poem sibilance creates a malevolent tone due to the repeated ‘s’ and ‘th’ sounds.
Explanation: (XIV): Gives a sense of violence – force through the repeated explosive sound of the ‘b’.
(Apparition):Yields a sense of hatred and covert violence.
Evaluation: (XIV): Works well. Starts gently then builds to a climax, and a tonal shift to pleading in the next phrase
‘make me new’. The reader senses the violence of the speaker’s anguish. Relates to theme: God has the power to
ease anguished souls.
(Apparition): works well – creates a sinister effect. Throughout the poem the reader is horrified at the intensity of the
emotions. Relates to the theme that unrequited love causes pain and sometimes people respond to it in irrational
ways.
SAMPLE BODY 3 PARAGRAPH :
John Donne also uses alliteration to evoke an emotional response in his readers, and to help them to engage with the
theme. This is evident in his use of harsh alliterative sounds in ‘Sonnet XIV’ and softer, sinister sounds in ‘The
Apparition’. In ‘breake, blow, burne’ (Sonnet XIV) his use of alliteration is accumulative. The speaker has lost sight of
his God and is begging him to forcefully repossess him. The harsh ‘b’ suggests the violence of the speaker’s anguish,
while the secondary consonants in the first two words serve to soften the sound slightly so that it makes the final
harsh ‘b’ in ‘burn’, a climax. This allows the following phrase ‘make me new’ to take on a pleading quality, as Donne’s
theme becomes apparent: God can ease his tortured soul through the use of force. The alliteration, by building the
climax and highlighting the tonal shift, works well to make the reader empathise with the speaker and his dilemma. In
direct contrast, ‘The Apparition’ employs a softer form of alliteration, sibilance, to evoke a sense of the sinister
purpose of the speaker. Betrayed by his mistress, the speaker’s unsavoury opinion of her becomes clear in words
and phrases such as ‘scorn’, ‘solicitation’, and ‘sick taper’. The repeated ‘s’ sound emphasises his hatred and
suggests the stealth and violence of these emotions. The reader, while perhaps empathising with the speaker’s
betrayal, is also horrified at the intensity of his emotions. They are lead, through sibilance, to understand the
irrationality and cruelty with which people sometimes react to unrequited love.
2. Below is a frame work for the two paragraphs per poem model – rather than integrating the poems, this style integrates the techniques.(Internet extract from www.ncea.govt.nz)
SAMPLE QUESTION:For EACH of the texts, analyse how the writer influenced you to think differently about an important idea or issue.
INTRO: (obviously you will not label your paragraphs!)
“Friends come and go, but family is forever”, that saying is of relevance in the two poems “Family Group” by Lauris Edmond and “Family Reunion” by Sylvia Plath. The two poems have very different opinions on the theme of family, and caused me to think differently about the idea. In this essay I will be analysing how each poet influenced me to think about the issue differently than I once did through language techniques such as alliteration, emotive language, simile, oxymoron and personification.
BODY 1: (Poem 1 – two paragraphs – analysis (first part of the topic) followed by a separate paragraph which answers the second part of the topic ...how the poem made the student think differently...about an issue).
Lauris Edmond’s “Family Group” is a poem about the love, comfort and strength found in her family. Edmond expresses these ideas through alliteration, emotive language, simile, and oxymoron, and influenced me into having a different view about family. One of the first words is “playing”. This dennotates (should be denotes) that the family physically interacts and plays with each other, and connotates (should be connotes) feelings of happiness and togetherness toward the reader. It also sets a positive mood. “The sun is hot on the hills” is an example of Edmond’s use of alliteration, and may make the reader feel excited at this thought as they pick up on the ‘h’ of “hot” and “hills”. It represents the excitement found in Edmond’s family, and also the warmth. (the candidate has identified the technique of alliteration but has not made a strong enough connection between the technique and its purpose.) A simile “conversations bloom all about, like wild nasturtiums sewn in the wind”. This represents the family’s comfort and strength. They are so comfortable in the way that their conversations simply ‘bloom’ and are ‘sewn in the wind’. It also says that they are a beautiful and strong family, as a nasturtium is a strong wild flower, and that they too, like a nasturtium, can withstand over time and can deal with problems such as “wind”. (further development is needed: what does “wind” symbolise within the family?) Edmond also touches on the subject of death, as she mentions the suicide of her daughter, “death cannot take away”. However, that example of emotive language shows how Edmond puts an optimistic view on the subject, and that her daughter will live on in the family. Another example :mutely alive in our lives” of oxymoron also highlights the fact that they will never forget her, and that she will continue in their thoughts and memories. (311 words inclusive)
BODY 2: (see above)
This poem made me think of family as a bigger part of someone’s life than I usually did. I realised that this is where you come from, and from where you were born and belong. Friends are fun and close, but will eventually have their own lives. Your family are your true friends as you will always be a part of them. (62 words!)
The above was a High Merit essay in 2008....
1. Below is a frame work for the two poems per paragraph model of integrated essay style
SAMPLE QUESTION: Analyse how the language techniques evident in the poems of a poet you have
studied contribute to the poet’s purpose?
PLAN:
Intro: language techniques - important because they contribute to purpose/theme of poem, and engage the
reader on emotional/intellectual levels in order to do that. Features = conceits, emotive language, alliteration, direct
address, pronouns. Poems = ‘The Flea’, ‘The Apparition’, and ‘Holy Sonnet XIV’.
Body Idea 1 -conceits - ‘The Flea’ and ‘Sonnet XIV’.
Body Idea 2 - emotive language, direct address and pronouns – dramatic monologue in ‘Sonnet XIV’ and ‘The
Apparition’
Body Idea 3 -Alliteration in ‘Sonnet XIV’, ‘The Apparition’.
Conclusion - techniques contribute to purpose/theme.
SAMPLE INTRODUCTION USING THIS PLAN AND TOPIC:
John Donne’s powerful metaphysical poetry owes its success to the variety of language techniques he uses, and
how these affect his readers. His careful selection of challenging and intriguing extended metaphors (conceits),
strongly emotive language, personal pronouns, alliteration and direct address, works to engage the reader on
emotional and intellectual levels. Thus engaged, the themes of his poems become clear to the reader and Donne
achieves his purpose. This essay seeks to explore how these techniques function to evoke reader response, and
impart themes in ‘The Flea’, ‘The Apparition’ and Sonnet XIV.
SAMPLE ANALYTICAL BODY PARAGRAPH PLANNING GRID FOR BODY 3:
Topic: alliteration/sibilance
Example: ‘break, blowe, burne’ (XIV); 'scorn', 'murdresse', 'solicitation', 'ghost', 'scik-taper' (Apparition)
Description: (XIV): first quatrain – speaker asks God to force him to be loyal. Sound accumulates ‘br, bl, b’.
The addition of the second consonant in the first two words softens the alliterative ‘b’, adding strength to the third
word.
(The Apparition): Throughout the poem sibilance creates a malevolent tone due to the repeated ‘s’ and ‘th’ sounds.
Explanation: (XIV): Gives a sense of violence – force through the repeated explosive sound of the ‘b’.
(Apparition):Yields a sense of hatred and covert violence.
Evaluation: (XIV): Works well. Starts gently then builds to a climax, and a tonal shift to pleading in the next phrase
‘make me new’. The reader senses the violence of the speaker’s anguish. Relates to theme: God has the power to
ease anguished souls.
(Apparition): works well – creates a sinister effect. Throughout the poem the reader is horrified at the intensity of the
emotions. Relates to the theme that unrequited love causes pain and sometimes people respond to it in irrational
ways.
SAMPLE BODY 3 PARAGRAPH :
John Donne also uses alliteration to evoke an emotional response in his readers, and to help them to engage with the
theme. This is evident in his use of harsh alliterative sounds in ‘Sonnet XIV’ and softer, sinister sounds in ‘The
Apparition’. In ‘breake, blow, burne’ (Sonnet XIV) his use of alliteration is accumulative. The speaker has lost sight of
his God and is begging him to forcefully repossess him. The harsh ‘b’ suggests the violence of the speaker’s anguish,
while the secondary consonants in the first two words serve to soften the sound slightly so that it makes the final
harsh ‘b’ in ‘burn’, a climax. This allows the following phrase ‘make me new’ to take on a pleading quality, as Donne’s
theme becomes apparent: God can ease his tortured soul through the use of force. The alliteration, by building the
climax and highlighting the tonal shift, works well to make the reader empathise with the speaker and his dilemma. In
direct contrast, ‘The Apparition’ employs a softer form of alliteration, sibilance, to evoke a sense of the sinister
purpose of the speaker. Betrayed by his mistress, the speaker’s unsavoury opinion of her becomes clear in words
and phrases such as ‘scorn’, ‘solicitation’, and ‘sick taper’. The repeated ‘s’ sound emphasises his hatred and
suggests the stealth and violence of these emotions. The reader, while perhaps empathising with the speaker’s
betrayal, is also horrified at the intensity of his emotions. They are lead, through sibilance, to understand the
irrationality and cruelty with which people sometimes react to unrequited love.
2. Below is a frame work for the two paragraphs per poem model – rather than integrating the poems, this style integrates the techniques.(Internet extract from www.ncea.govt.nz)
SAMPLE QUESTION:For EACH of the texts, analyse how the writer influenced you to think differently about an important idea or issue.
INTRO: (obviously you will not label your paragraphs!)
“Friends come and go, but family is forever”, that saying is of relevance in the two poems “Family Group” by Lauris Edmond and “Family Reunion” by Sylvia Plath. The two poems have very different opinions on the theme of family, and caused me to think differently about the idea. In this essay I will be analysing how each poet influenced me to think about the issue differently than I once did through language techniques such as alliteration, emotive language, simile, oxymoron and personification.
BODY 1: (Poem 1 – two paragraphs – analysis (first part of the topic) followed by a separate paragraph which answers the second part of the topic ...how the poem made the student think differently...about an issue).
Lauris Edmond’s “Family Group” is a poem about the love, comfort and strength found in her family. Edmond expresses these ideas through alliteration, emotive language, simile, and oxymoron, and influenced me into having a different view about family. One of the first words is “playing”. This dennotates (should be denotes) that the family physically interacts and plays with each other, and connotates (should be connotes) feelings of happiness and togetherness toward the reader. It also sets a positive mood. “The sun is hot on the hills” is an example of Edmond’s use of alliteration, and may make the reader feel excited at this thought as they pick up on the ‘h’ of “hot” and “hills”. It represents the excitement found in Edmond’s family, and also the warmth. (the candidate has identified the technique of alliteration but has not made a strong enough connection between the technique and its purpose.) A simile “conversations bloom all about, like wild nasturtiums sewn in the wind”. This represents the family’s comfort and strength. They are so comfortable in the way that their conversations simply ‘bloom’ and are ‘sewn in the wind’. It also says that they are a beautiful and strong family, as a nasturtium is a strong wild flower, and that they too, like a nasturtium, can withstand over time and can deal with problems such as “wind”. (further development is needed: what does “wind” symbolise within the family?) Edmond also touches on the subject of death, as she mentions the suicide of her daughter, “death cannot take away”. However, that example of emotive language shows how Edmond puts an optimistic view on the subject, and that her daughter will live on in the family. Another example :mutely alive in our lives” of oxymoron also highlights the fact that they will never forget her, and that she will continue in their thoughts and memories. (311 words inclusive)
BODY 2: (see above)
This poem made me think of family as a bigger part of someone’s life than I usually did. I realised that this is where you come from, and from where you were born and belong. Friends are fun and close, but will eventually have their own lives. Your family are your true friends as you will always be a part of them. (62 words!)
The above was a High Merit essay in 2008....