GCSEGeniusEnglish Literature

AQA · 8702

AQA GCSE English Literature

360 questions on the set texts most schools choose, with AQA's essay questions.

The papers

  • Paper 1: Shakespeare and the 19th-century novel 64 marks, 105 minutes.
  • Paper 2: Modern texts and poetry 96 marks, 135 minutes.

Set texts in this course

  • Shakespeare Macbeth, Romeo and Juliet, The Merchant of Venice, Much Ado About NothingPractise
  • The 19th-century novel A Christmas Carol, Jekyll and Hyde, Frankenstein, Pride and Prejudice, The Sign of Four, Great Expectations, Jane EyrePractise
  • Modern texts An Inspector Calls, Blood Brothers, Animal Farm, Lord of the FliesPractise

The modern texts are in copyright, so we write about them in our own words and quote nothing from them. The poetry anthologies are not covered; unseen poetry practice uses public-domain poems. Texts not listed are not in this course yet.

Skills: methods, essays and unseen poetry

AQA Papers 1 and 2

  • Writers' methods and the terms to name themAQA Papers 1 and 2
    • Name language, form and structure methods precisely: metaphor, soliloquy, dramatic irony, foreshadowing and more
    • Explain the effect of a method on a reader or audience, not just spot it
    • Embed short quotations and analyse single words
    LessonPractice
  • Literature essays: the question, the whole text and contextAQA Papers 1 and 2
    • Know what each board's questions ask and how the assessment objectives are weighted
    • Build a thesis and paragraphs that answer the question across the whole text
    • Use context to explain the writer's purpose, not as a bolted-on history lesson
    LessonPractice
  • Unseen poetry: reading and comparing poemsAQA Papers 1 and 2
    • Read an unseen poem for its ideas, voice, imagery, form and structure
    • Write about the effect of a poet's choices with short quotations
    • Compare two poems' methods as well as their ideas
    LessonPractice

Shakespeare

AQA 3.1.1, Paper 1, Section A

  • Macbeth, Acts 1 and 2: prophecy, ambition and murderAQA Paper 1, Section A
    • Know the plot of Acts 1 and 2 and the roles of the witches, Lady Macbeth and Banquo
    • Analyse how Shakespeare presents ambition, the supernatural and the murder of Duncan
    • Use Jacobean context: King James, the divine right of kings and witchcraft
    LessonPractice
  • Macbeth, Acts 3 to 5: tyranny, guilt and downfallAQA Paper 1, Section A
    • Know the plot of Acts 3 to 5: Banquo's murder, the banquet, Macduff and the ending
    • Analyse how guilt, madness and tyranny are presented through imagery and soliloquy
    • Judge how far Macbeth and Lady Macbeth change across the play
    LessonPractice
  • Romeo and Juliet, Acts 1 to 3: love and conflictAQA Paper 1, Section A
    • Know the plot from the Prologue to the deaths of Mercutio and Tybalt
    • Analyse how Shakespeare presents love, hate and fate in the sonnet, the balcony scene and the fights
    • Use Elizabethan context: family honour, marriage and patriarchy
    LessonPractice
  • Romeo and Juliet, Acts 3 to 5: fate, family and tragedyAQA Paper 1, Section A
    • Know the plot from Romeo's banishment to the deaths in the tomb
    • Analyse how time, haste and fate drive the tragedy
    • Analyse Capulet, the Nurse and Friar Lawrence as adults who fail the lovers
    LessonPractice
  • The Merchant of VeniceAQA Paper 1, Section A
    • Know the plot: the bond, the caskets, the trial and Belmont
    • Analyse how Shakespeare presents Shylock, prejudice, justice and mercy
    • Use context: attitudes to Jews and to money-lending in Elizabethan England, and how audiences now respond
    LessonPractice
  • Much Ado About NothingAQA Paper 1, Section A
    • Know the plot: the two couples, the deceptions and Don John's plot
    • Analyse how Shakespeare presents love, honour, deception and wit
    • Use context: female honour, marriage and comedy conventions
    LessonPractice

The 19th-century novel

AQA 3.1.2, Paper 1, Section B

  • A Christmas Carol, Staves 1 and 2: Scrooge and the pastAQA Paper 1, Section B
    • Know Stave 1 and 2: Scrooge, Marley, Fred, the charity collectors and the Ghost of Christmas Past
    • Analyse how Dickens presents Scrooge's coldness and the first signs of change
    • Use context: the Poor Law, workhouses and Malthus
    LessonPractice
  • A Christmas Carol, Staves 3 to 5: the Cratchits and redemptionAQA Paper 1, Section B
    • Know Staves 3 to 5: the Cratchits, Ignorance and Want, the future and Scrooge's change
    • Analyse how Dickens presents family, poverty, responsibility and redemption
    • Judge Dickens's purpose: a social message in a ghost story
    LessonPractice
  • Jekyll and Hyde, Chapters 1 to 5: the mysteryAQA Paper 1, Section B
    • Know the events from the Story of the Door to the Incident of the Letter
    • Analyse how Stevenson presents Hyde, Utterson and the setting of London
    • Use context: Victorian respectability and secrecy
    LessonPractice
  • Jekyll and Hyde, Chapters 6 to 10: duality revealedAQA Paper 1, Section B
    • Know the events from Lanyon's shock to Jekyll's full statement
    • Analyse how the structure withholds and then reveals the truth
    • Use context: duality, science, Darwin and degeneration
    LessonPractice
  • FrankensteinAQA Paper 1, Section B
    • Know the frame narrative and the main events of Victor's and the creature's stories
    • Analyse how Shelley presents ambition, responsibility, isolation and nature
    • Use context: Romanticism, science and the Gothic
    LessonPractice
  • Pride and PrejudiceAQA Paper 1, Section B
    • Know the main events and the five Bennet sisters' stories
    • Analyse how Austen presents pride, prejudice, marriage and class through irony
    • Use context: inheritance, entail and women's choices in the Regency
    LessonPractice
  • The Sign of FourAQA Paper 1, Section B
    • Know the main events from Mary Morstan's visit to the story of the treasure
    • Analyse how Conan Doyle presents Holmes, Watson, crime and empire
    • Use context: London, empire and the detective genre
    LessonPractice
  • Great ExpectationsAQA Paper 1, Section B
    • Know the main events of Pip's three stages
    • Analyse how Dickens presents ambition, class, guilt and loyalty
    • Use context: class mobility and the Victorian gentleman
    LessonPractice
  • Jane EyreAQA Paper 1, Section B
    • Know the main events from Gateshead to Ferndean
    • Analyse how Brontë presents Jane's independence, love, religion and class
    • Use context: governesses, women's position and the Gothic
    LessonPractice

Modern texts

AQA 3.2.1, Paper 2, Section A

  • An Inspector Calls: the Birlings and the Inspector's questionsAQA Paper 2, Section A
    • Know the events of Act One and the start of Act Two in our own words
    • Explain how Priestley presents Mr and Mrs Birling, Sheila, Gerald and the Inspector
    • Use context: 1912, 1945 and Priestley's socialism
    LessonPractice
  • An Inspector Calls: responsibility, the twist and the messageAQA Paper 2, Section A
    • Know the events of Acts Two and Three and the ending in our own words
    • Explain how Priestley presents responsibility, class, gender and age
    • Explain the dramatic devices: dramatic irony, the Inspector's exits and the final phone call
    LessonPractice
  • Blood BrothersAQA Paper 2, Section A
    • Know the plot of the twins' lives in our own words
    • Explain how Russell presents class, fate and superstition, and the role of the Narrator
    • Use context: Liverpool in the 1960s to 1980s and unemployment
    LessonPractice
  • Animal FarmAQA Paper 2, Section A
    • Know the plot of the rebellion and its betrayal in our own words
    • Explain how Orwell presents power, propaganda and inequality
    • Use context: the Russian Revolution and Stalin's rule as Orwell saw them
    LessonPractice
  • Lord of the FliesAQA Paper 2, Section A
    • Know the plot from the crash to the rescue in our own words
    • Explain how Golding presents civilisation, savagery and leadership through Ralph, Jack, Piggy and Simon
    • Use context: the Second World War, the atomic age and Golding's view of human nature
    LessonPractice

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Independent practice for AQA GCSE English Literature (8702) and Pearson Edexcel GCSE English Literature (1ET0). Not affiliated with or endorsed by AQA or Pearson.

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