Module One
KING LEAR - PART 1
Introduction
This module should be read in conjunction with the Programme of Study.
The Programme of Study lists the topics that are in the module and gives you the relevant page references for your textbooks. This module aims to give you more direction as you work through the various topics. It will aim to highlight the most important items in the topic, as well as areas that need particular care. It will also point you towards the resources you should be using.
Remember to double-check the syllabus to make sure you cover all the items that you need to.
Module Overview
Modules One and Two focus on your first set text for AL English Literature: King Lear by William Shakespeare. The play is a Jacobean tragedy, thought to have been written in 1605, and first performed in 1606, and it is one of Shakespeare’s most famous plays. In this first module, you will read and annotate the whole play, making detailed notes as you go along, so please ensure you allocate enough time in your study schedule to cover this. Module Two will take you slightly less time as you will be consolidating what you have read. The language of the play is richly poetic and complex, so make sure you use all of the resources provided to help you understand each scene. You may find it helpful to have your notes on Shakespeare’s language from AS to hand whilst studying this module.
We will begin by establishing an overview of Shakespeare’s life and career and the social, historical and political contexts which underpin the play. There are several excellent series of lectures on MASSOLIT about King Lear, and you will make full use of these as you study each scene and also to consolidate what you have learnt once your reading is complete. You will also examine the characters closely and begin to read critical articles about the play in preparation for Assignment One.
As you will have seen in Module Zero, at A Level, you are expected to quote from critical sources in all of your essays. Any secondary source of information about the text that you read, watch or listen to could potentially contain useful critical views, so make sure you take notes on these from the outset, jotting down those you may wish to use in your assignments and in the real exams. Use the Critical Viewpoints Grid below to record these quotations. Print out several copies of the grid so you can organise your notes effectively.
PRINT OUT - Critical Viewpoints Grid Download PRINT OUT - Critical Viewpoints Grid
Topics
Topic One (1.1): Introduction to William Shakespeare and Jacobean England – Key Contexts
Topic Two (1.2): Introduction to King Lear and Reading the Play – Act I
Topic Three (1.3): Reading the Play – Act II
Topic Four (1.4): Reading the Play – Act III
Topic Five (1.5): Reading the Play – Act IV
Topic Six (1.6): Reading the Play – Act V
Topic Seven (1.7): Shakespeare’s Language
Topic Nine (1.9): Wider Reading and Consolidation – Critical Perspectives 1
Topic Ten (1.10): Wider Reading – Critical Perspectives 2