A Level English Literature

AS Level – Specification No. 7711

Paper 1: Love through the ages: Shakespeare and poetry

Study of two texts: one Shakespeare play and one AQA Anthology of love poetry through the ages (pre-1900 or post-1900)

• The Winter’s Tale (Shakespeare)
• Anthology of love poetry through the ages: pre-1990

Paper 2: Love through the ages: Prose

Study of the following texts:

• The Great Gatsby (F. Scott Fitzgerald)
• Jane Eyre – (Charlotte Bronte)

Exam will include an unseen prose extract

Full A Level – Specification No. 7712

Paper 1: Love through the ages

Study of three texts: one poetry and one prose text, of which one must be written pre-1900, and one Shakespeare play.

• The Winter’s Tale (Shakespeare)
• Anthology of love poetry through the ages: pre-1900
• The Great Gatsby (F. Scott Fitzgerald)

Exam will include two unseen poems

Paper 2: Texts in shared contexts

Modern times: literature from 1945 to the present day

Study of three texts: one prose, one poetry, and one drama, of which one must be written post-2000

• A Streetcar Named Desire (Tennessee Williams)
• Spies (Michael Frayn)
• Birthday Letters (Ted Hughes)

Exam will include an unseen extract

Non-exam Assessment: Independent critical study: texts across time

Comparative critical study of two texts, at least one of which must have been written pre-1900.

One extended essay (2,500 words) and a bibliography

Essential Reading

To complete this course you will need to have access to the text mentioned above.