English Comparative

wireless101

Yes, I am aware I just made 3 topics, last one right here, I promise!

Our texts are:

Philadelphia here I Come (Brian Friel)
Cinema Paradiso
The Speckled People (Hugo Hamilton)

Basically, out teacher acknowledges that The Speckled People (TSP) does not have much in common with the other 2, and she says we need not write about it on the day of the LC, and shoukd use only the other 2. Is this actually okay to do?

And secondly, since I think its better to discuss all three, I badly need notes and information on TSP, can anybody tell me where I can find some?

Much obliged!

Fad

wireless101 wrote: »

Yes, I am aware I just made 3 topics, last one right here, I promise!

Our texts are:

Philadelphia here I Come (Brian Friel)
Cinema Paradiso
The Speckled People (Hugo Hamilton)

Basically, out teacher acknowledges that The Speckled People (TSP) does not have much in common with the other 2, and she says we need not write about it on the day of the LC, and shoukd use only the other 2. Is this actually okay to do?

And secondly, since I think its better to discuss all three, I badly need notes and information on TSP, can anybody tell me where I can find some?

Much obliged!

You can get away with it but generally it says AT LEAST two texts, so to get a particularly good mark you'd want to be trying to get the 3 in.

I havent done that text so I cant help you, kinda stupid on your teachers part for not picking 3 text that have something in common :pac:

K4t

They say 'At least' but our teacher has stressed to us that you MUST write about three texts to have any chance at gaining full marks.

You will not get 70/70 writing about just two texts.

My advice is to tell the teacher to do his/her f**king job.

or get a grind from an English teacher in your area.

Dubs

i dont think its alright just to do 2. If you look at past questions the first part can be something like "discuss one text" and then the next part of the same question would be "discuss any other 2 texts you have studied". It doesnt always happen just like that but its a bit risky if you only do 2

our 3 texts are

Jane Eyre
Philadelphia here I Come
Cinema Paradiso

implausible

At OL, you only have to discuss two, at HL some questions will require only 2, but it is safer to compare all three. Your teacher's point about TSP not having a lot in common with the other two is irrelevant. You are supposed to compare and contrast, not just list off the similarities!

It would be helpful if you said what your theme is. As for Cultural Context it's not difficult to identify the differences and similarities in time, place, wealth, religion, values etc.

SarcasticFairy

Hmmm, we were never told anything but we have to do three texts! From what othe pasters have said, I think you would be safer with 3 texts.

We didn't study TSP, so I can't advise you on it. Google summaries maybe, and then try and slot it in?
Or you could go againist your teachers suggestion of tSP, and do My Oedipus Complex by Frank O'Connor instead. It's pretty simple, and there are quite comprehensive notes (and sample answers) in New English Key Notes 2009 (or something like that, it's orangey-yellow...anyone clarify this?). DOn't know how well that would go down with your teacher, but it is your LC so...

ironictoaster

Yeah the higher level one is orange-yellow, ordinary level one is blue I think. Is that book any use? Might get it.

SarcasticFairy

creggy wrote: »

Yeah the higher level one is orange-yellow, ordinary level one is blue I think. Is that book any use? Might get it.

I kind of meant clarify the name, but thanks anyway, I didn't realise there was different books for HL & OL.

I find it good. It does Macbeth, all the poets and Philadelphia, Here I Come!, My Oedipus Complex and Cinema Paradiso for the comparative. All depends what you've chosen as your Single Text (or whatever it's called, your Macbeth equivalent) and for your comparative. We did Macbeth, but we did one different text for the comparative, but I stil found it really useful! I also cannot stand poetry at all, I have no time for it, so having proper notes explaining the poems helped loads!

Piste

If you try really hard you can link anything to anything else! Isn't there stuff about the protagonist's relationship with his father in Cinema Paradiso (or is his father dead?), so that could easily be linked to TSP and PHIC. If his father's dead you can substitute in the cinema guy and talk about the role of men and male influences under the Heading of Cultural Context. I think you can also talk about Identity, TSP is pretty obvious, in PHIC Gar is searching for individuality and though it's been a few years since I've seen Cinema Paradiso I'm sure there's something to do with identity in it...doesn't he run away to The Big City and forgets who he really is or something?

Anyway to get full marks you do really need to talk about three texts.

Alternatively, some comparative questions have an A and B part where they ask you to compare two texts in the A part and then you talk about the other text on its own in the B part, if you did a question like that you might have a better chance of getting more marks than by talking about just 2 texts.

implausible

OP, I really wouldn't recommend taking up another text at this stage-it's a lot of work for part of a question that is worth 70/400. As the poster above said, you can link any text to any other text.

You'd get more help if you said what your theme is.

ironictoaster

SarcasticFairy wrote: »

I kind of meant clarify the name, but thanks anyway, I didn't realise there was different books for HL & OL.

I find it good. It does Macbeth, all the poets and Philadelphia, Here I Come!, My Oedipus Complex and Cinema Paradiso for the comparative. All depends what you've chosen as your Single Text (or whatever it's called, your Macbeth equivalent) and for your comparative. We did Macbeth, but we did one different text for the comparative, but I stil found it really useful! I also cannot stand poetry at all, I have no time for it, so having proper notes explaining the poems helped loads!

Sweet, I'll have to pick it up so! I'm also doing MacBeth as the single text.

aine-maire

I'm doing PHIC, Cinema Paradiso and My Oedipus Complex as my comparative, and our comparative theme is father-son relationship...it's fairly ok, and I think that there's notes on it in some book or other..

Can anyone tell me whether it would suffice to just cover Theme and Cultural Context? Or would I need General Vision and Viewpoint as well?
Could I get away with just 2...maybe...??

-Aviron-

Don't worry if there aren't many similarities it's often easier to write about differences..
BTW is anyone else out there doing Samuel Beckett's Waiting for Godot as one of their comparative texts... because it's seriously uplifting :P

Piste

aine-maire wrote: »

I'm doing PHIC, Cinema Paradiso and My Oedipus Complex as my comparative, and our comparative theme is father-son relationship...it's fairly ok, and I think that there's notes on it in some book or other..

Can anyone tell me whether it would suffice to just cover Theme and Cultural Context? Or would I need General Vision and Viewpoint as well?
Could I get away with just 2...maybe...??

Yeah you can get away with doing just 2. One of them is guaranteed to come up anyway.

macroman

Doing the Third Man, My Oedipus Complex and the Plough & The Stars on the theme of war and the social effects (children). Quite easy to compare - I just forgot to link them in the Christmas exams though

dermo1990

Doing Inside I'm Dancing,
A portrait of the Aritist as a Young Man
The Crucible.
Is anyone aside from terenure doing this. Its so difficult

WolfForager

Our teacher corrects the papers and she says that 2 texts are fine. So i'm gonna trust her

bythewoods

Yep, I know someone who corrects the papers and she told me last year it's perfectly alright to just use 2 texts. And it's possible to get full marks.
Unless it ever specifies to use 3 texts- which I'm pretty sure it never has as of yet anyway.

Aisling(",)

-Aviron- wrote: »

Don't worry if there aren't many similarities it's often easier to write about differences..
BTW is anyone else out there doing Samuel Beckett's Waiting for Godot as one of their comparative texts... because it's seriously uplifting :P

no but i did scenes from that play before.
oh god its the most boring thing ive ever done!

manutd4life

my class are doing
circle of friends - maeve binchy
cinema paradiso
the crucible - arthur miller

Gloom

We're doing:

PHIC! (Did it last year and it's still "Meh")
My Oedipus Complex (Has grown on me, I like some of the stories)
Strictly Ballroom (Did it last year and I like it)

Not that bad, we have Cultural Context done so far and we're probably going to do theme (father/son relationships) aswell. 2/3 should do.

Organisation is my problem.

implausible

I correct LC papers.

This:

bythewoods wrote: »

Unless it ever specifies to use 3 texts- which I'm pretty sure it never has as of yet anyway.

is rubbbish.

Every year there are questions that specifically ask you to write on three texts. By doing 2 texts, you are seriously cutting down your options and making yourself do a 2-part question which is often more difficult and is way more difficult for candidates to get full marks in. One of the reasons it's easier to get the marks in the 70 mark question is you have the essay prepared beforehand, providing you change it to answer the question.

My advice?

Know your 3 texts well, study and prepare 2 of the modes.

K4t

Gloom wrote: »

PHIC! (Did it last year and it's still "Meh")

Great play.

Gloom

K4t wrote: »

Great play.

What?!

I want to smack some of the characters in it. The only characters that are decent are Madge and Kate. Although, I suppose I hate most of the characters because they were written that way.

Jammyc

Were doing

1. The Truman Show
2. The Crucible
3. Jane Eyre

Im so unprepared for the Comparative question.
I know The Truman Show inside out cos its one of my favourite films, but as for the other two, well, I barely know the plotlines, nevermind general vision and viewpoint!
Not looking for full marks on this q. (Id settle for a C2 at worst) so I think Ill be just doing 2 texts So I can concentrate on areas where Im worse!

K4t

Gloom wrote: »

What?!

I want to smack some of the characters in it. The only characters that are decent are Madge and Kate. Although, I suppose I hate most of the characters because they were written that way.

Aunt Lizzie is an annoying bitch alright but Private's dialogue is genius imo! The same applies to the 'boys'

Piste

The Lads are pretty hilarious, and I loved Aunt Lizzie! Didn't like the play all that much though, didn't find it very interesting.

K4t

Piste wrote: »

The Lads are pretty hilarious, and I loved Aunt Lizzie! Didn't like the play all that much though, didn't find it very interesting.

Ah, you can't not like the relationship between Gar and S.B, especially with Private's narration.

Maybe it was just the actress playing her in the version we saw. She shrieked non-stop and it was impossible to understand what she was saying (with the books in front of us)!

xOxSinéadxOx

I know it's called the comparative but you can contrast things can't you? I know I should already know that...

I hate Philadelphia too, I think it's awful!

PurpleFistMixer

Compare means point out things that are similar AND different.

cautioner

Did anybody else go see PHIC! on stage in Ennis? Brilliant production, Private's all well and good written down but he's only really effective when seen