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WalesEnglish LiteratureQuick questions
Literary Analysis Skills
Quick questions on Using literary context (AO3) - WJEC A-Level English Literature
6short Q&A pairs drawn directly from our worked dot-point answer. For full context and worked exam questions, read the parent dot-point page.
What is choosing the right context?Show answer
Context is selective. Not every kind is relevant to every task, and reciting everything you know about a period buries the point. Choose the context that genuinely bears on the question and the moment you are analysing, and use it to make an AO2 reading deeper and more precise rather than to display knowledge.
What is context dump?Show answer
Reciting everything known about a period buries the point; select only what bears on the question.
What is biography overreach?Show answer
Reading a text only as a record of the writer's life is risky and often reductive; use biographical context sparingly and where it illuminates.
What is q1?Show answer
What does AO3 actually reward - knowledge of history, or something else? [2 marks]
What is q2?Show answer
Name three kinds of context that can count for AO3. [3 marks]
What is q3?Show answer
Explain how to use context to deepen a reading, contrasting integrated context with bolted-on background. [20 marks]
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