English Help

InTheNight

Repeat student here looking to considerably improve my English grade this year.

Just wondering if anyone had any tips as to what to study (or even how to?)? Poetry has always been a tough one to study for me, the best I could do was learn off sample essays but that wasn't the best approach.

And for King Lear, is there any little tips or tricks I should know in relation to answering questions? And what type of questions are normally asked in relation to the play?

Thanks for your help

TSMGUY

Well, somebody just helped me with my maths problem, so I'm feeling altruistic tonight. I got an A1 in honours English last year so maybe I can help.

I barely studied for English, actually only started like two months before the exam, but that's because I have a propensity for the subject. If you're not so inclined, the first thing I advise you to do is expand your vocabulary. You'll be amazed how much simple verbal dexterity can impress examiners. Also, make sure you understand the fundamentals of grammar (nothing too fancy, you don't need to use semicolons!)

Once you've got that covered, you need to absolutely know your texts inside out. Draw comparisons between all of your comparative texts and know your quotes for the comparative inside out. It's worth 17.5% of the whole exam.

Then, know your King Lear well. Quotes are important, but actually understanding the themes is much more important. I knew very few quotes on the subject of women in Othello last year, but I still did well because I understood the theme and the characters of Emilia and Desdemonda.

Of course, the biggest chunk of the exam is the personal essay, which is where my first point REALLY comes into play. I didn't do a lick of work in preparation for Paper One because I knew I had the eloquence and erudition to "wing it". The 100 marker is a test of how well you can write. If you follow my first step and build up an expansive vocabulary and master grammar/punctuation, then you will get a high mark in the 100 mark section.

Last and certainly least, poetry. I find everyone places so much emphasis on a part of the exam that yields such few marks. All I can tell you is know 4-5 poets well. It helps if your favourite poet comes up on the day but if he/she doesn't you best be prepared! Fortunately for me Montague, my favourite poet, came up.

One last thing, it might be worth you getting a tutor/grind. Because I was an external candidate last year I got a grind just before the exams (about April). I only saw her about 7 or 8 times but she was insanely efficient and her handouts were invaluable for self study. Also, if you can, try to have fun studying English. It really is a fascinating subject. Good luck, bro!

InTheNight

TSMGUY wrote: »

Well, somebody just helped me with my maths problem, so I'm feeling altruistic tonight. I got an A1 in honours English last year so maybe I can help.

I barely studied for English, actually only started like two months before the exam, but that's because I have a propensity for the subject. If you're not so inclined, the first thing I advise you to do is expand your vocabulary. You'll be amazed how much simple verbal dexterity can impress examiners. Also, make sure you understand the fundamentals of grammar (nothing too fancy, you don't need to use semicolons!)

Once you've got that covered, you need to absolutely know your texts inside out. Draw comparisons between all of your comparative texts and know your quotes for the comparative inside out. It's worth 17.5% of the whole exam.

Then, know your King Lear well. Quotes are important, but actually understanding the themes is much more important. I knew very few quotes on the subject of women in Othello last year, but I still did well because I understood the theme and the characters of Emilia and Desdemonda.

Of course, the biggest chunk of the exam is the personal essay, which is where my first point REALLY comes into play. I didn't do a lick of work in preparation for Paper One because I knew I had the eloquence and erudition to "wing it". The 100 marker is a test of how well you can write. If you follow my first step and build up an expansive vocabulary and master grammar/punctuation, then you will get a high mark in the 100 mark section.

Last and certainly least, poetry. I find everyone places so much emphasis on a part of the exam that yields such few marks. All I can tell you is know 4-5 poets well. It helps if your favourite poet comes up on the day but if he/she doesn't you best be prepared! Fortunately for me Montague, my favourite poet, came up.

One last thing, it might be worth you getting a tutor/grind. Because I was an external candidate last year I got a grind just before the exams (about April). I only saw her about 7 or 8 times but she was insanely efficient and her handouts were invaluable for self study. Also, if you can, try to have fun studying English. It really is a fascinating subject. Good luck, bro!

Thank you very, very much!

corroonb

Read some novels and poetry. An outrageous suggestion perhaps but it worked for me. I don't mean Harry Potter, Game of Thrones or the Hunger Games either. Dickens, Cormac McCarthy, Margaret Atwood, Kazuo Ishiguro or most authors that aren't available in Tesco. The easiest way to expand your vocabulary is with a book and a dictionary. eBooks have built-in dictionary and most books are cheap. The classics like Dickens, Conrad, DH Lawrence, George Eliot etc. are all available free. Buy a cheap Kindle and get some books. Most of the better poets will be available cheap. Wordsworth, Keats, Shelley, Byron, Blake, Hopkins, Hardy and Lawrence should all be free. A poetry anthology might be a good idea as it will expose you to more styles and diversity.

Thankfully there's no trick to doing well in English exams. You're either good with the language or you're not. Generally you'll never expand your vocabulary without reading. It might be a bit late at this stage but there's no harm in trying. An impressive vocabulary opens many doors and some pits unfortunately: magniloquence, pomposity, bombast, sophism and pretension among other character flaws.

I hope I don't come across as an arrogant, condescending neophyte; I'm just trying to help.

corroonb

TSMGUY wrote: »

Well, somebody just helped me with my maths problem, so I'm feeling altruistic tonight. I got an A1 in honours English last year so maybe I can help.

I barely studied for English, actually only started like two months before the exam, but that's because I have a propensity for the subject. If you're not so inclined, the first thing I advise you to do is expand your vocabulary. You'll be amazed how much simple verbal dexterity can impress examiners. Also, make sure you understand the fundamentals of grammar (nothing too fancy, you don't need to use semicolons!)

Once you've got that covered, you need to absolutely know your texts inside out. Draw comparisons between all of your comparative texts and know your quotes for the comparative inside out. It's worth 17.5% of the whole exam.

Then, know your King Lear well. Quotes are important, but actually understanding the themes is much more important. I knew very few quotes on the subject of women in Othello last year, but I still did well because I understood the theme and the characters of Emilia and Desdemonda.

Of course, the biggest chunk of the exam is the personal essay, which is where my first point REALLY comes into play. I didn't do a lick of work in preparation for Paper One because I knew I had the eloquence and erudition to "wing it". The 100 marker is a test of how well you can write. If you follow my first step and build up an expansive vocabulary and master grammar/punctuation, then you will get a high mark in the 100 mark section.

Last and certainly least, poetry. I find everyone places so much emphasis on a part of the exam that yields such few marks. All I can tell you is know 4-5 poets well. It helps if your favourite poet comes up on the day but if he/she doesn't you best be prepared! Fortunately for me Montague, my favourite poet, came up.

One last thing, it might be worth you getting a tutor/grind. Because I was an external candidate last year I got a grind just before the exams (about April). I only saw her about 7 or 8 times but she was insanely efficient and her handouts were invaluable for self study. Also, if you can, try to have fun studying English. It really is a fascinating subject. Good luck, bro!

You might want to revise punctuation especially the comma. You're misusing it with alarming regualrity for someone who has a "propensity" for the language. Also never, ever start a sentence with because.

You barely studied but you got a tutor seven or eight times? No pointers on basic punctuation were provided I assume.

Your arrogance is entirely unwonted and unearned. I'm also feeling altruistic so I thought I would correct some of your more egregious errors before you do yourself, others or the English language any more harm than is absolutely necessary. You may be eloquent but you lack erudition. Read more books.

spurious

corroonb wrote:

Read more books.

This. A thousand times this.

I know I'm speaking of 'the old days' and thus probably switching hundreds of forum members off, but 'in my day' when we were doing the Leaving, not only did we read the prescribed books, but most of us also read two or three library books every two weeks. It was just how it was, in a pre-Internet age.

I know of English teachers who do not read books for pleasure. It saddens me.

KatieHennessy

spurious wrote: »

This. A thousand times this.

I know I'm speaking of 'the old days' and thus probably switching hundreds of forum members off, but 'in my day' when we were doing the Leaving, not only did we read the prescribed books, but most of us also read two or three library books every two weeks. It was just how it was, in a pre-Internet age.

I know of English teachers who do not read books for pleasure. It saddens me.

I did the leaving cert last year and I know for a fact that reading more books definitely helped. Plus it's a great way to escape reality for even just a small bit! Well worth it.

Boaty

Quotes for comparative? Do you mean the similarities and contrasting words?

emersyn

Boaty wrote: »

Quotes for comparative? Do you mean the similarities and contrasting words?

You should be using quotes from all of your texts to back up your points in the same way as in the single text and the studied poetry (or so my teacher says)

TSMGUY

corroonb wrote: »

You might want to revise punctuation especially the comma. You're misusing it with alarming regualrity for someone who has a "propensity" for the language. Also never, ever start a sentence with because.

You barely studied but you got a tutor seven or eight times? No pointers on basic punctuation were provided I assume.

Your arrogance is entirely unwonted and unearned. I'm also feeling altruistic so I thought I would correct some of your more egregious errors before you do yourself, others or the English language any more harm than is absolutely necessary. You may be eloquent but you lack erudition. Read more books.

Jesus Christ, I thought fastidious pseudo intellectual jerks like you were confined to The Student Room. Evidently I was wrong. I was well aware of my grammatical "mistakes" but as it was a stream of consciousness rant written at 1 AM after doing eight hours of strenuous algebra, I thought it'd be cool to leave them as they were.

"You might want to revise punctuation especially the comma." LOL! The sentence in which you admonish me for improper use of commas is, ironically enough, lacking a comma where there should be one. Your use of the word "unwonted" shows your tenuous grasp of the ten dollar words you use to try impress us. It just barely makes sense in that context and there are far more appropriate (and simple) synonyms that you could have used. Considering only 1 in 32 students attain an A1 in honours English, I'd say my confidence (not arrogance) has been earned. The fact that my self-belief causes you to be so righteously indignant leads me to believe you either got a lower score or have some deep-seated insecurities about your own aptitudes. Don't lash out on me for trying to help the OP out.

"You barely studied but got a tutor 7 or 8 times?" Are you dense? I was an external candidate which means I had no teacher. I only saw the tutor for an hour every week for 7 or 8 weeks. I didn't know 8 hours of tutelage in a year somehow negated my claim that I barely studied, which was merely an incidental comment, not bragging.

Finally, you tell me I should read more. The last book I read was Lolita, which is funny because your writing reads like a sophomoric and very poor imitation of Nakabov's writing. Don't try so hard to sound smarter than you are and try harder to be a nice person. You might just become a bearable poster.