Model analysis
What does level-7 analysis look like? What does a stellar Individual Oral sound like? How does a perfect Paper 1 paragraph read? Textual analysis is the core skill of English A: Language and Literature, and this page shows you model textual analysis. The A3 posters (see button below) are examples of analysis from former students, rewritten by Mr Philpot. A selection of the analyses are featured below.
A3 posters: Model analysis
On Bo Burnham's Inside
Burnham uses camera angle and composition to depict the effects of of isolation on his mental health. By placing his camera on the floor, Burnham suggests that his mental health has hit rock bottom. Furthermore the composition of this down-to-earth frame is very cluttered with A/V equipment, reflecting the cluttered state of Bo Burnham’s mind. As a result the viewer feels the claustrophobic effects of being isolated during the global pandemic and empathises with Burnham.
On 'Invitation' by Grace Nichols
In her poem ‘Invitation’, Grace Nichols uses repetition and allusion to suggest that The Fat Black Woman is as sexy as the white movie star Mae West, who famously said “come up and see me sometime.” By repeating this line, The Fat Black Woman seduces the reader like Mae West seduced Cary Grant in 1931. As a result, the reader questions Eurocentric definitions of ‘sexy’.
On Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi
Satrapi uses heavy graphic weight to depict her identity crisis while growing up in Iran in the 1980s. The absence of greys in her graphic novel suggests that the polarising culture of Iran forced her to think in black-and-white terms about herself. As a result, the reader understands how she felt torn between the Islam, her heritage and family on one side and science, modernism and the West on the other.
Assessment
Notice how there is a causal relationship between form and meaning that is explored in each of these examples. "The medium is the message" as Marshal McLuhan once said. In other words, the writer's authorial choices are not for nothing. They reflect the writer's reasons for writing the text.
ATLs
IB teachers ensure that learning is informed by assessment. These posters of model analysis were created after listening to students deliver excellent Individual Orals. Good teaching, like good learning, is cyclical and not linear. Any time you hear or read best practice, capture it and ensure that others can benefit.
Related pages
- P1 Paragraphing (PEEL)
- 3.1 Persepolis