English Language and Literature

Course summary

This course focuses on the similarities and differences between language as it is used in everyday life and as it is used in fictional texts, between how people speak in reality and how characters speak on the page or stage. Studying English Language and Literature together is a great combination and one which will equip you with a variety of transferable skills such as writing, analysis, applying context and reading for meaning. The course provides the opportunity to understand the flexibility and power of language in both fictional and non-fictional texts. Year 1 In the first year, you will examine a set of texts related to the history and culture of Paris as a means of exploring the diversity of language in everyday contexts. You will also study a novel (The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood) and selected poems by Carol Ann Duffy. Year 2 You will complete a coursework project based on your independent research and will engage with two further genres: biographical writing (Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer) and drama (All My Sons By Arthur Miller). This syllabus supports the development of a range of skills, including the technical analysis of language, creative writing, essay writing and independent research in the form of a coursework project on literary and non-literary texts of your choice.