← English Language & Literature syllabus

EnglandEnglish Language & Literature

Component 01: Exploring non-fiction and spoken texts

4 dot points across 4 inquiry questions. Click any dot point for a focused answer with worked past exam questions where available.

How do you analyse the language of non-fiction texts (speeches, journalism, letters, diaries, memoir) with the integrated method, reading rhetoric, voice and persuasion against context?

Analysing non-fiction language: reading rhetoric (ethos, pathos, logos, rhetorical patterning), voice and persona, register and lexis, and grammatical positioning across non-fiction genres, integrated with literary method and context (AO1, AO2, AO3).
How to analyse the language of non-fiction texts (speeches, journalism, letters, diaries, memoir) for OCR A-Level English Language and Literature Component 01: reading rhetoric, voice and persona, register and grammatical positioning with the integrated method, against audience, purpose and context (AO1, AO2, AO3).
14 min answer →

How do you analyse spoken and multimodal texts (transcripts, speeches, broadcast, digital) using discourse, pragmatics, prosody and graphology, and read mode as part of the meaning?

Analysing spoken and multimodal texts: reading transcripts and speech-like texts through discourse (turn-taking, adjacency pairs), pragmatics, prosody and the features of spontaneous speech, and multimodal texts through graphology, with mode read into the analysis (AO1, AO2, AO3).
How to analyse spoken and multimodal texts (transcripts, speeches, broadcast, digital) for OCR A-Level English Language and Literature Component 01: reading discourse, pragmatics, prosody and the features of spontaneous speech, plus graphology in multimodal texts, with mode read into the analysis (AO1, AO2, AO3).
14 min answer →

How do you answer the OCR Component 01 comparative question that links one anthology text with one unseen text in a single hour, and what does the mark scheme reward?

The Component 01 comparative question (H474/01): one timed comparison (1 hour, 32 marks) of a printed anthology text and an unseen non-fiction or spoken text, assessing AO1, AO2, AO3 and AO4, with idea-led comparison the key to the marks.
How to answer the OCR A-Level English Language and Literature Component 01 question (H474/01): a 1 hour, 32 mark comparison of one anthology text and one unseen non-fiction or spoken text, assessing AO1, AO2, AO3 and AO4, and why idea-led comparison with both texts live is the key to the marks.
14 min answer →

How do you approach the unseen non-fiction or spoken text in Component 01 under time pressure, working out its mode, audience and purpose fast and reading its key features for the comparison?

Approaching the unseen text (H474/01): a fast, systematic method for an unseen non-fiction or spoken text under time pressure, establishing mode, audience, purpose and genre, then finding the patterned features that bear on the question for the comparison (AO1, AO2, AO3).
How to approach the unseen non-fiction or spoken text in OCR A-Level English Language and Literature Component 01: a fast, systematic method under time pressure to establish mode, audience, purpose and genre, then find the patterned features that bear on the question for the comparison (AO1, AO2, AO3).
13 min answer →