Gerard Manley Hopkins, selected poems Contents
- As Kingfishers Catch Fire
- Binsey Poplars
- The Blessed Virgin Mary Compared to the Air We Breathe
- Carrion Comfort
- Duns Scotus' Oxford
- God's Grandeur
- Harry Ploughman
- Henry Purcell
- Hurrahing in Harvest
- Inversnaid
- I Wake and Feel the Fell of Dark
- Synopsis of I Wake and Feel the Fell of Dark
- Commentary on I Wake and Feel the Fell of Dark
- Language and tone in I Wake and Feel the Fell of Dark
- Structure and versification in I Wake and Feel the Fell of Dark
- Imagery and symbolism in I Wake and Feel the Fell of Dark
- Themes in I Wake and Feel the Fell of Dark
- The Leaden Echo and the Golden Echo
- Synopsis of The Leaden Echo and the Golden Echo
- Commentary on The Leaden Echo and the Golden Echo
- Language and tone in The Leaden Echo and the Golden Echo
- Structure and versification in The Leaden Echo and the Golden Echo
- Imagery and symbolism in The Leaden Echo and the Golden Echo
- Themes in The Leaden Echo and the Golden Echo
- The May Magnificat
- My Own Heart, Let Me Have More Pity On
- Synopsis of My Own Heart, Let Me Have More Pity On
- Commentary on My Own Heart, Let Me Have More Pity On
- Language and tone in My Own Heart, Let Me Have More Pity On
- Structure and versification in My Own Heart, Let Me Have More Pity On
- Imagery and symbolism in My Own Heart, Let Me Have More Pity On
- Themes in My Own Heart, Let Me Have More Pity On
- No Worst, There is None
- Patience, Hard Thing!
- Pied Beauty
- The Sea and the Skylark
- Spelt from Sibyl's Leaves
- Spring
- Spring and Fall
- St. Alphonsus Rodriguez
- The Starlight Night
- That Nature is a Heraclitean Fire and of the Comfort of the Resurrection
- Synopsis of That Nature is a Heraclitean Fire
- Commentary on That Nature is a Heraclitean Fire
- Language and tone in That Nature is a Heraclitean Fire
- Structure and versification in That Nature is a Heraclitean Fire
- Imagery and symbolism in That Nature is a Heraclitean Fire
- Themes in That Nature is a Heraclitean Fire
- Thou Art Indeed Just, Lord
- Tom's Garland
- To Seem the Stranger
- To What Serves Mortal Beauty
- The Windhover
- The Wreck of the Deutschland
- Beauty and its purpose
- The beauty, variety and uniqueness of nature
- Christ's beauty
- Conservation and renewal of nature
- God's sovereignty
- The grace of ordinary life
- Mary as a channel of grace
- Nature as God's book
- Night, the dark night of the soul
- Serving God
- Suffering and faith
- The temptation to despair
- The ugliness of modern life
- Understanding evil in a world God has made
Focus on the question
What are the terms of the question?
Decide what the key words of the question are, and underline them:
- ensure that you have defined them at least in your own mind – if you think they are problematic, define them at the beginning of your essay
- make sure your definition is sound; do not try to stretch the meaning of words too far, but do not just jump at the first possible idea.
What has been asked?
Answer the question asked – not the one you would like to have been asked:
- avoid being irrelevant
- be sure that you show explicitly enough how your ideas relate to the question.
Close Analysis
If you are asked to analyse an extract:
- look closely at it, considering the writer's choice of language
- do not generalise and do not waffle
- keep your eye on the given passage.
Wake Up the Examiner!
Be willing to think
- do not just go for the first possible approach
- try to range widely, covering a good number of ideas, as long as you stay within the terms of the question
- be willing to dispute the terms of the question if you are given the opportunity (e.g questions which ask: ‘how far…', ‘to what extent…', ‘do you think…').
Create a strong opening and closing
A reader of an essay – usually a teacher or examiner - is going to be marking many similar essays. To send the reader to sleep at once:
- just repeat the words of the question (‘This essay asks about.. and I am going to …')
- or give the hackneyed dictionary definition.
Instead, try to start in a way which wakes him or her up. Try:
- a short, controversial statement
- a relevant quotation
- a relevant piece of evidence.
The main thing is that you show you have thought about it, and have realised that a strong opening is very helpful.
A strong ending is important since it is what the reader comes to last in your answer and so helps to create the final impression:
- save a new, controversial (but relevant) point to the end
- or have a useful quotation to end with.
Illustrate amply with relevant material
- do not try to get by on ignorance and waffle!
- Use a good number of brief but totally appropriate quotations from the text to prove each point you are making
- You need to know your text well to do this!
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