HOW TO ANSWER QUESTIONS ON SHAKESPEARE'S PLAYS - ESSAY QUESTIONS

Examination papers on Shakespeare usually feature three kinds of questions. The first kind commonly referred to as a context question consists of a short extract from a play, usually a single speech, followed by a number of specific questions about this passage. The second kind of question presents a longer extract from a play, perhaps about 50 lines and asks you to write an essay in which you discuss this passage and relate it to the play as a whole. It is these two kinds of questions that are considered popular. The third is the traditional essay question, where you are asked to discuss a statement about a play or asked to look at a particular aspect of a play.

Whatever kind of question is set, however, its purpose is not only to test your understanding of a play and your response to it, but also to test your ability to express your response and understanding. You should always try to remember that the way in which you present your response – which covers both the overall organization of your answer and the quality of your writing – is every bit as important and the quality of your ideas. You have to see what the question is about and then write clearly and sensibly. Proper use of paragraphs and writing in grammatical sentences.

Things to bear in mind:

-         Your essay is likely to prove most effective if it has a simple overall structure, looking at a different aspect of the play in each paragraph.

-         Use the opening paragraph to set you your controlling ideas.

-         In each subsequent paragraph, focus on specific details, but interpret them in the light of your controlling ideas.

-         Don’t try to discuss too much. It is better to do justice to a couple of details in a paragraph, showing how they illustrate and bring to life the wide concerns of the play, than to list a host of details which you don’t bother to justify or to explain.

-         Remember that each paragraph is a step in an argument. As you examine each detail, you are adding to the general sense of the play that is conveyed in your essay and also adding to the sense of how the play dramatizes its issues.

The question: The basic rule of all good essay writing is answering the question set. The question will direct you towards a significant and interesting part or aspect of the play.

Understanding the question: Essay writing becomes a lot easier if you know what sort of questions are usually set. The most common kinds of essay questions on Shakespeare either about a play’s characters or about a play’s themes or technique. In every case you will be asked to analyze and discuss a specific topic or question or statement. You are being asked to present an argument.

In question about characters – you have to move beyond an analysis of the personalities of the characters to a sense of how they are being used by the dramatist and how they illuminate what the play is about and how it works. You have to focus on the characters themselves, but your answer must be informed by a sense of the broader issues inherent int eh play. You are interested in the characters because of the way in which they reflect, reveal and embody the broader concerns of the play.

Questions about themes – always ask or discuss a particular topic or in a play. Although you are asked to focus on a specific topic, your answer must be informed by a sense of the broader issues in the play. Thematic questions often consist of a statement about the play followed by the word ‘discuss’. The statement will often point to a tension in the play, but, if it does not, then you must stop and think and remind yourself that plays always deal with conflicts and problems and that any theme specified will reflect the broader conflict found in the play in some way. Concentrate on the specified topic, showing how and where in specific incidents the theme is evident. Comment on the significance of the details you look at saying how they bring this tension to life.

Questions about technique – focus on the imagery in a play and whether the play is a tragedy or not.

What the examiners want to see – a clear well set out answer which refers to the test a lot. He/she wants to see an essay with a strong, clear central argument closely illustrated. They are interested in how effectively you organize and present and argue the case you are offering.

See the problem involved int eh question.

First paragraph – In the opening paragraph identify the problem, focus on the issue at the heart of the question.

Second paragraph – write about a particular scene or speech in the play. If it is a question about character, it obviously has to be a scene which features that character. Refer to the incident, or quote part of a speech, and then begin to discuss and analyze what you can see happening in this section of the play.

Concentrate on one or two details and really work on these instead of trying to cover everything.

End paragraph with very definite conclusion

If there is more to the issue than you have discussed, you made add more paragraphs.

In the concluding paragraph discuss all the aspects together.

Key points:

The main rule of essay writing is to keep the overall structure of your essay simple.

Remember that you are always examining a problem, and your answer must therefore develop an argument.

The first paragraph should define the problem you are going to examine.

Subsequent paragraphs need to look closely at the evidence of the text, establishing an answer from specific incidents and details in the play.

An essay needs to develop an argument and each paragraph should be thought of as a step in an argument, advancing the case beyond the point reached at the end of the previous paragraph.

Each step in the argument must develop from the actual evidence of the text.