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TEXT ANALYSES : EDEXCEL ENGLISH LANGUAGE B
Language
Martin Luther King standing in front of a waterfall and river.
Figure caption,
Martin Luther King's 1963 I Have a Dream speech
The purpose of Martin Luther King’s
rhetorical
speech was to end racism in America and persuade the audience that everyone should have equal rights.

How does he use language to deliver a strong message?

King uses
similes
“until justice rolls down like waters” and “righteousness like a mighty stream” to make the reader visualise “justice” and “righteousness” as rushing water – implying that they need to be forceful and unstoppable.

Exam questions may ask you to comment on how writers use language to make an impression on the reader.

You should select words and phrases for close analysis - to show that you understand how language features affect the reader.

Below are some of the features that writers select deliberately for effect:

Language features
Nouns
Naming words. They may be:

concrete – naming objects, eg table, car
abstract – naming ideas and feelings, eg adventure, pride
proper – naming people, places, days, months etc, eg Marie, Sweden, Monday (always capital letters)
Adjectives
words that describe nouns, eg green, huge, sparkly
Verbs
Words that describe actions and states of being:

action words (do/feel/be), eg run, hide, think
past tense, eg I played the recorder
present tense, eg he walks to the shops
future tense, eg she will go home later
Adverbs
words that describe verbs and adjectives, eg quickly, patiently
Pronouns
Someone or something, the subject of the sentence:

first person, eg I, we, me, my, our, us
second person, eg you, yours, yourself
third person, eg he, she, they, them, theirs
Prepositions
words used to show where something is in place or time, eg at, for, with, after, to, over, from, into
Literary language features
Terminology Definition Examples
simile A comparison using 'like' or 'as' to create a vivid image. 'As big as a whale', 'float like a butterfly, sting like a bee'
metaphor A comparison made without using 'like' or 'as'. 'Sea of troubles' and 'drowning in debt'
personification A type of imagery in which non-human objects, animals or ideas are given human characteristics. 'The jaws of the cave', 'the leaves danced in the breeze'
pathetic fallacy The environment (usually the weather) reflects the mood of the character or scene. 'The fog crept evilly through the streets as he stalked his victim.'
onomatopoeia The sounds of words to express or underline their meaning, sensory imagery. 'Crunch', 'pop', 'screech'
alliteration The repetition of the same sounds usually at the beginning of words. 'Reuse, renew, recycle'
assonance The repetition of vowel sounds in a series of words. 'Harsh bark', 'moonlit pool'
rule of three Repetition in a group of three to strengthen an idea or argument. 'Freedom, equality, and justice'
connotations Implied meanings suggested by a word rather than its literal meanings. 'Red' is a colour but can imply 'danger', 'anger' or 'stop'.
hyperbole Over-the-top exaggeration for effect. 'I have ten tonnes of homework to do.'
repetition Words, phrases or ideas that are repeated for effect. 'This is serious. Incredibly serious.'
rhetorical questions A question asked for effect with no answer expected. 'Do you think that I’m made of money?'
emotive language Words chosen to bring an emotional response. 'Defenceless', 'hard-hearted'
Also consider:

Is the text in the first person or third person? Is it personal or impersonal?
Which tense has the writer chosen, eg past or present? What effect does this have?
How sentences are structured, eg short and simple (to pack a punch) or lists (to suggest boredom or pick up the pace).
Avoid ‘feature spotting’ – you need to show that you understand the impact of writers’ language choices on the reader and not just list them.

You should always comment on the possible effects of language use on the reader – how it makes the reader respond eg, think, feel, imagine or visualise something.
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Analysing language
Exam questions ask you to comment on how writers use language to make an impression on the reader. You should use terminology to show that you understand which features the writer is using, as well as how they affect the reader.

Language analysis framework: SQuID
SQUID is an acronym for - ‘statement, quotation, inference and development'.
S – Statement – begin with identifying the language feature or type of language being used, eg 'King uses similes…'

Qu – Quote – next quote from the text the word or phrase you are analysing, eg ‘justice rolls down like waters’.

I – Infer – next work out what the words or images imply to you, eg ‘like waters’ implies something is flowing steadily.

D – Develop – finally, develop the analysis with a comment on the reader’s response, eg 'The reader will imagine justice, like water, being strong and moving forward.

Make your analysis even stronger with a focus on individual words and phrases – analyse closely what they suggest, eg ‘stony faced’ – ‘stony’ suggests the character is like a statue, hard, unfeeling and immovable.

Example
This extract is from My Family and Other Animals, a memoir by Gerald Durrell, of the five years he and his family lived on Corfu.

How does Durrell use language to describe the character of the ‘Rose-beetle Man’?

Durrell familyand friends by the sea from BBC adaptation of My Family and Other Animals
Figure caption,
Durrell's family and friends from the BBC adaptation of My Family and Other Animals
For some time the Rose-beetle Man would turn up at the villa fairly regularly with some new addition to my menagerie: a frog, perhaps, or a sparrow with a broken leg. One afternoon Mother and I, in a fit of extravagant sentimentalism, bought up his entire stock of rose-beetles and, when he had left, let them all go in the garden. For days the villa was full of rose-beetles, crawling on the beds, lurking in the bathroom, banging against the lights at night, and falling like emeralds into our laps.

The last time I saw the Rose-beetle Man was one evening when I was sitting on a hill-top overlooking the road. He had obviously been to some fiesta and had been plied with much wine, for he swayed to and fro across the road, piping a melancholy tune on his flute. I shouted a greeting, and he waved extravagantly without looking back. As he rounded the corner he was silhouetted for a moment against the pale lavender evening sky. I could see his battered hat with the fluttering feathers, the bulging pockets of his coat, the bamboo cages full of sleepy pigeons on his back, and above his head, circling drowsily round and round, I could see the dim specks that were the rose-beetles. Then he rounded the curve of the road and there was only the pale sky with a new moon floating in it like a silver feather, and the soft twittering of his flute dying away in the dusk.

My Family and Other Animals, Gerald Durrell (1956)

Analysis
The choice of name “Rose-beetle Man” implies that the man is very close to nature – like roses and insects. The reader gets the impression he is mysterious - his real name is unknown.
Durrell uses
verbs
and
adverbs
“swayed to and fro” and “waved extravagantly” to show the uncontrolled way the man moves. “Extravagantly” suggests the wave was over the top. The reader imagines he is very drunk from “much wine”.

Alliteration
“fluttering feathers” also highlights the movements of the man.

Adjectives
“pale lavender evening sky” contrast the lively man to the calm surroundings. The reader can visualise his “battered hat” and “bulging pockets” implying he is scruffy against the beautiful sky.
The
simile
“the pale sky with a new moon floating in it like a silver feather” creates a gentle atmosphere along with the onomatopoeia “soft twittering” to describe the bird like sound of the man’s flute.
Durrell uses a
metaphor
“his flute dying away in the dusk”, the word “dying” makes the reader feel Durrell’s sadness, as it was “the last time” he ever saw the Rose-beetle Man.
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Structure
The structure of a text is how it is organised and how its parts fit together. Writers structure their texts deliberately to have an effect on the reader.

Exam questions ask you to comment on how writers structure their texts to interest the reader. You should use terminology and show that you understand how structural features introduce and prioritise information in a text.

Structural features
Feature Purpose Effect on the reader
openings The start of a text must interest the reader. Comment on how the writer introduces ideas and raises questions.
focus This is what the writer focuses on as the text develops. Analyse what is implied, eg a gloomy landscape implies an unhappy situation - what is causing that unhappiness? What will happen next?
shifts Changes in ideas and perspectives, eg outside to inside. Comment on how this change is effective, eg creates contrast.
contrast The differences between two things. Comment on the effect a drastic difference produces.
repetition or patterns When words, phrases or ideas are repeated for effect. Repetitive features can highlight key meanings, indicate a development or show a lack of change.
pace The feeling of speed in the writing – are events and ideas revealed to the reader slowly or quickly? Ask what effect is created by altering the pace, eg a slow pace builds tension or suggests boredom, a quicker pace may suit a piece about things happening at speed.
temporal references References to time. Comment on how time is used to speed up or slow down the pace of the text.
order of events This could be chronological or writers might choose to start at the end, in the middle, or with flashbacks / flash forwards. Comment on how the order of events introduces and prioritises key ideas – and how this engages the reader.
endings The conclusion of a text may be neat or leave us with questions. Think about how the reader feels at the end. Have their feelings changed since the opening?
withholding information Clues and hints are given without revealing everything at once. Analyse what is implied by hints – how does this build the reader’s expectations?
dialogue Conversations and speech. How does dialogue move the text forward?
headings, subheadings and questions Divides the content of texts into topics and sub topics, can signal the start of new points. How do they guide readers through a text?
bullets Bullets can summarise and simplify a range of ideas. Why does the writer summarise certain points?
sentence structures Varied types of sentences, eg simple, compound and complex. Comment on how sentence structures affect the fluency of the text, eg a sudden short sentence could reveal shocking information.
paragraph lengths These vary like sentences eg, to highlight significant points or to provide a detailed account. Comment on how paragraph lengths affect the development of the text, eg a final paragraph might summarise key points in an argument.
Structure of a non-fiction text
The structure of a non-fiction piece could be:

chronological – in date or time order
prioritised – the most important facts first (like a news article)
separated into blocks by subheadings – eg in a feature article
question and answer – eg in information leaflets
problem and solution – eg in agony aunt columns, or self-help guides
letter structure – a salutation (Dear…) and an appropriate ending (Yours sincerely…)
starting in the middle of an event, then providing further information to give several possible viewpoints
Using paragraphs to structure a text
Look at the way the key ideas in a piece are ordered. This will help you work out the structure. There is usually one important idea per paragraph, but some texts have more.

Within each paragraph, ideas can be structured in different ways. A common approach is to start with a topic sentence – the big idea – and then develop it with details or examples. Paragraphs often end with a hook to make you consider the ideas included in the paragraph that you have just read, or a link to the next paragraph.

The number and order of paragraphs, the order of the ideas, and how each paragraph is constructed are all features you can comment on. Why has the writer chosen to structure their paragraphs in specific ways?

Additionally, a shortened paragraph that stands out to the reader can sometimes indicate a change in viewpoint or significant point in the text that the writer may offer a counter argument.

Example
This extract describes the events leading up to the 1666 ‘Great Fire of London’.

How does the writer structure the text to interest the reader?

September 2, 1666

It was a small mistake, but with great consequences. On September 2, 1666, Thomas Farrinor, baker to King Charles II of England, failed, in effect, to turn off his oven. He thought the fire was out, but apparently the smouldering embers ignited some nearby firewood and by one o'clock in the morning, three hours after Farrinor went to bed, his house in Pudding Lane was in flames. Farrinor, along with his wife and daughter, and one servant, escaped from the burning building through an upstairs window, but the baker's maid was not so fortunate, becoming the Great Fire's first victim. Did these cakes set fire to London?

The fire then leapt across Fish Street Hill and engulfed the Star Inn. The London of 1666 was a city of half-timbered, pitch-covered medieval buildings and sheds that ignited at the touch of a spark--and a strong wind on that September morning ensured that sparks flew everywhere. From the Inn, the fire spread into Thames Street, where riverfront warehouses were bursting with oil, tallow, and other combustible goods. By now the fire had grown too fierce to combat with the crude firefighting methods of the day, which consisted of little more than bucket brigades armed with wooden pails of water. The usual solution during a fire of such size was to demolish every building in the path of the flames in order to deprive the fire of fuel, but the city's mayor hesitated, fearing the high cost of rebuilding. Meanwhile, the fire spread out of control, doing far more damage than anyone could possibly have managed.

Extract taken from the diary of Samuel Pepys

Analysis
The writer:

opens with a
contrast
“small mistake” and “great consequences”, raising the question of how something small grew so big
the focus then shifts to Thomas Farrinor, a baker, thinking his “fire was out” – this detail
foreshadows
the start of the Great Fire, building tension
a temporal reference “three hours after Farrinor went to bed” implies how control was lost in a short space of time as by then his house “was in flames” and there is the “first victim” – implying there will be many more victims
the question “Did these cakes set fire to London?” suggest that the idea is hard for the reader to believe – and intrigues them to discover how this was possible
the focus then shifts to the growing fire “leapt” and “engulfed”, the wooden structure of London and the “strong wind” – together these elements suggest the fire will take over quickly, creating a quicker pace
contrast is used to show how useless the “bucket brigades armed with wooden pails” are as “the fire spread out of control”
the extract ends leaving the reader thinking about the vast “damage” the fire caused, and that no one “could possibly have managed” it
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Annotating for language and structure
Always spend a few minutes considering the question and then quickly annotating the extract to highlight useful evidence – ready to use in your answer.

A text is annotated to show text, structural devices and individual words.
Figure caption,
An example of how you could annotate a text using an extract from An Essay by George Orwell
Annotating language
Don't highlight all the language features you spot – you’ll end up highlighting the whole text. Pick out examples of striking word choices or
literary devices
They might be interesting because they’re unusual, or because they’re doing a particularly good job of creating an effect linked to purpose or audience.

Do pick out individual words which you can explore closely – ones with particular
connotations
, for example, or ones which seem especially significant. These are usually adjectives, or phrases that have used particular techniques to conjure up a specific image.

Think about how each word or phrase will support your answer.

Annotating structure
Look at the overall text to begin your annotation. Can you spot patterns in the structure? How has the writer chosen to organise the text? How do they order ideas and information?

Look out for:

effective openings
headings and subheadings
focus and focus shifts
contrast and pace
time and place
repetition and patterns
paragraph and sentence lengths
effective conclusions
Highlight or label structural features of a text – it is useful to look at the opening, middle and ending. Briefly note the effect of that feature on the reader – what is the writer prioritising or emphasising through their use of structure?

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