Year 11 English Language and Literature Enrichment Activities
You need to buy paperback copies and pre-read the set texts (e-texts are not suitable as they do not allow for detailed annotations):
- The Handmaid’s Tale by Margret Atwood. Vintage Classics, published 1996. ISBN: 9780099740919
- Othello by Shakespeare. Cambridge University Press, 3rd edn., published 2014. ASIN: B00NBDI046
- The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald. Worldsworth Editions, published 1992. ISBN: 9781853260414
(Or any cheaper paperback copies that allow you the space to annotate the texts – however, you will then often struggle during the lessons to find the right page.)
Once you have completed reading the set texts you can do some additional research around the texts. If not already done so, we advise NOT to watch the TV series of The Handmaid’s Tale. (The focus of the unit is on the construct of the written narrative and deliberate authorial methods of creating narrative gaps). The dramatisation is different to the written text and you will have to ‘unlearn’ what you know and only focus on the written narrative. Instead, you can study and work through this site.
We advise that you DO watch the The Great Gatsby film. Also have a look at this. The focus of the exam question is on re-casting a scene and writing a commentary. This requires an in-depth understanding of the opulence and sheer luxury of Gatsby’s parties and high society’s lifestyle. You will benefit from the visual stimulus.
You can watch the play Othello. The RSC are showing Shakespeare plays, through the BBC, including Othello. There are also some clips of previous Othello actors discussing the play here.
