Critical reading

Learn about how historical, social and political contexts and life experiences can influence writers and be reflected in their writing.

Learn what a theme is, how to identify themes in a text, and the important differences between themes and motifs.

Characterisation enables writers to weave stories that are believable, purposeful, relatable and driven.

Learn how a fictional setting can help with characterisation, create atmosphere, act as a symbol, and reveal the genre of the story.

Writers also use symbols to add deeper meaning to a text, creating meanings and associations in our minds as we read.

Analysis is an important skill to learn and practise in English – it helps you to explore and understand the writer’s craft.

Learn to look at how a writer’s words create an effect, what their consequences are, and how those words influence our emotions and understanding.

Gothic literature is a genre of fiction which first became popular during the 18th Century and which evokes an atmosphere of mystery, fear or terror.

The structure of a narrative in a work of fiction, whether linear or non-linear, shapes the reader's response to it.

Metaphors, symbolism and vocabulary are all deliberate choices made by fiction writers.

When you find unfamiliar vocabulary or an unknown word, you can find many clues to its meaning right there in the text.