Possible Presentation Topics

 

The Presentation may be based on:

You can present on anything that you are interested in as long as it is in some way related to the texts we studied, possible areas of focus might include:

·         the cultural setting of the work(s) and related issues

·         an exploration of themes, characterisation, technique or style

·         the author’s attitude to a part of the text, e.g. a particular character or set of characters

·         the interpretation of particular elements from different perspectives.

 

Suggested Ideas:

·         A critique of your own writing that has been produced in the style of one of the literary genres studied

·         The examination of a particular interpretation of a work or the comparison of two opposing readings of a work

·         The setting of a particular writer’s work against another body of material, for example, details on social background or political views

·         An exploration of the use of a particular image, motif, idea or symbol in one text or in a writer’s work

·         A performance or a pastiche of a poem / or extract from a text being studied

·         A comparison of two passages, two characters or two works

·         A detailed commentary of a 30 – 40 passage from a work studied in class, which has been prepared at home

·         An account of your developing response to a workA monologue or dialogue by a character(s) at an important point in the work / at some point in the future

·         An author’s reaction to a particular interpretation of elements of his or her work in a given context (for example, a critical defence of the work against a charge of subversion, or immorality, before a censorship board)

·         An extra scene for a novel / play in keeping with the rest of the text and an explanation of the effect you have tried to create and how your new scene is in keeping with the original text in terms of theme, characterization and style

·         A piece of artwork that is based on a text with an explanation of the effect you tried to create and of how this links back to the original text in terms of key moments, themes, characterization or style

·         Different performances of the same scene to indicate different possible interpretations

 

 

Note: in order to demonstrate your ability a good to excellent understanding of the text, which you will need to do to score highly in criterion A, ANY creative (or in any way unusual) response must end with an rationale where you clarify for the audience how your presentation was based in the text you studied.

 

Note: in any role play or discussion that requires participation from anyone other than the presenter, only the presenter will be marked. Be wary, therefore, of pair work.

 

Some Specific Examples:

·         A student explored the role of fruit and flower imagery in Szymborska’s poetry

·         A student compared Szymborska’s version of ‘Lot’s Wife’ with Akhmatova’s poem of the same title

·         A student provided a detailed analysis of Szymborska’s ‘Autotomy’ a poem not previously studied in class

·         A student compared the translated version of ‘I am too close …’ with the original (because they spoke Polish) and explored the differences

·         A student explored the importance of the motif of food in ‘Kiss of the Spider Woman.’

·         A student picked a key moment from ‘Running in the Family’ and analysed it in detail exploring how an in depth understanding of that extract could provide us with an understanding that ‘unlocked’ the whole text.

·         A student compared the poetry of Blake with his engravings and drew out common themes that ran through each

 

Creative and Dramatic Responses

·         A student produced their own scene from ‘Waiting for Godot.’ This was initially read out and then analysed to draw out the similarities with Beckett’s style in the original version

·         A student produced their own version of ‘A Modest Proposal.’ This was initially read out and then analysed to draw out the similarities with Swift’s style the original version

·         A student took the persona of a minor character in ‘The Outsider’ and created a dramatic monologue of their thoughts during the court scene and their statements in the witness box during Meursault’s trial. This was followed with an analysis which explained how the monologue revealed an understanding of Camus major themes and the characters role within the novel

·         A student wrote a monologue based on Kafka’s ‘The Trial’. He taped it, with different kinds of music accompanying different moods during the piece, and played it while he mimed the situation. He later answered questions about his character and actions.