CCEA AS 1 English Literature: the study of poetry 1900-present and drama 1900-present

CCEA AS 1 is the study of poetry 1900 to present and drama 1900 to present, the larger of the two AS units. It is a two-hour written examination in two sections, and it counts for 60 percent of the AS and 24 percent of the full A-level. This overview maps the two sections, the methods each rewards, and how to revise for them.

The shape of the paper

The paper has two contrasting sections.

• Section A: Drama 1900 to present (open book). A single essay on a modern play. You may take a clean copy in, so close analysis of precise quotation is expected.
• Section B: Poetry 1900 to present (closed book). A comparison of two modern poems. You must quote from memory, and the comparison drives AO4.

The contrast matters: one section is single-text and open book, the other comparative and closed book, so they need different preparation.

The drama question

Section A rewards reading the play as performance.

• Dramatic method. Stage directions, set, lighting and sound, entrances and exits, positioning, silence, and the audience's perspective, alongside dialogue.
• A significant moment. Anchor the analysis in a key moment and quote it precisely (open book).
• The whole play. Connect the moment to the play's structure and concerns.

The classic error is treating the play as a novel, analysing dialogue but ignoring staging.

The poetry comparison

Section B rewards connecting two poems by method and effect.

• Compare by method, not by topic: form, imagery, voice, tone, sound.
• Integrate, holding both poems in each paragraph around one point of comparison.
• Precise recall. Closed book means a memorised bank of analysed quotations per poem.

The fatal error is comparing only by subject and quoting nothing exactly.

How to revise AS 1

The two sections need different drills.

1. For drama, read as performance. Annotate staging and structure, not just dialogue, and rehearse linking a moment to the whole play.
2. For poetry, memorise. Build and rehearse a small bank of quotable, method-linked phrases per poem.
3. Practise comparison. Plan integrated, point-by-point comparisons that compare by method and effect.
4. Write to time. Rehearse both answers under exam conditions.
5. Use CCEA past papers. Match your technique to CCEA mark schemes.

The unit, dot point by dot point

Each section has a dedicated dot-point page with worked questions and cross-links, plus a quiz. Browse the full set at /ccea-a-level/english-literature/syllabus.

For the official specification

CCEA publishes the full specification, set-text lists, past papers and mark schemes at ccea.org.uk. Always check the current set texts and revise from CCEA's own past papers.