Topic One (0.1): Introduction to AS English Literature – Examinations and Course Structure

Introduction

For CAIE AS English Literature, you will take two exam papers:

Paper 1: Drama and Poetry

Worth 50% of the AS grade and 25% of the full A Level
Length 2 hours
Section A: Measure for Measure by William Shakespeare
Section B: Songs of Innocence and of Experience by William Blake

Paper 2: Prose and Unseen

Worth 50% of the AS grade and 25% of the full A Level
Length 2 hours
Section A: A Handful of Dust by Evelyn Waugh
Section B: Unseen Texts

A more detailed overview of the format of each exam paper is available on pages 7 to 9 of the CAIE Learner Guide for 2021 onwards. This is a very useful document and you may wish to refer to it frequently as you work through the course.

PRINT OUT & READ – CAIE Learner Guide Download PRINT OUT & READ – CAIE Learner Guide

Top Tip

English Literature is very much an applied subject, and you will be working on the same core skills all the way through the AS course, but you will be applying them to different texts each time. If you follow the tips and guidance provided in this module, you should see a consistent improvement in your marks as you work through the assignments.

Course Structure

Please note that we have structured this course so that you study the simpler texts first and move onto the most complex one – Shakespeare – at the end, when your analytical skills will be most developed. This means beginning with Paper 2 and finishing with Paper 1.

For each type of text that you study (prose, poetry and drama) you will begin with an unseen text module that introduces you to key analytical skills for that kind of text first. You will then move on to apply these skills to a set text in the following module, so that you build up strong analytical skills across the course and get to practise analysing unseen texts regularly.

The order of the modules is therefore as follows:

Module Zero: Introductory Skills Module
Module One: Unseen Prose Texts
Module Two: A Handful of Dust – Part 1
Module Three: A Handful of Dust – Part 2
Module Four: Unseen Poetry Texts
Module Five: Songs of Innocence and of Experience – Part 1
Module Six: Songs of Innocence and of Experience – Part 2
Module Seven: Unseen Drama Texts
Module Eight: Measure for Measure – Part 1
Module Nine: Measure for Measure – Part 2
Module Ten: Measure for Measure – Part 3
Module Eleven: Revision and Exam Practice for Paper 1 – Drama and Poetry
Module Twelve: Revision and Exam Practice for Paper 2 – Prose and Unseen

Your Programme of Study gives a more detailed overview of all the modules and the topics within them.

Read and Make Notes

Before you begin reading through the resources in the next few topics, you will find some helpful general advice on the core study skills needed for this course in the introduction to Mastering English Literature.
Read pages xxv to xxxvii and make brief notes.