[Unseen Texts] Consider how the writers use language, structure, and style to produce effects.

'Language, structure, and style' is such a broad statement that it can be quite difficult to know what can be categorised under these titles, especially when writing about unseen texts under timed conditions in an exam. However, questions which focus on linguistic analysis are opportunities to show off your knowledge and score highly, if you keep the following guidelines in mind. Start by reading and annotating the text(s), and then make a plan. In your annotations, you should begin with the most basic elements of the text(s) and build up to more detailed analyses, always bearing in mind the main points of your argument in response to the specific task at hand. In your plan, it is advisable to structure your essay according to themes. For example, if the question asks you to consider how the writers use language to create effects in two poems about father-son relationships, you might wish to structure the essay according to ‘childhood memories’, ‘fragmented relationships’, and ‘love’, and use these thematic points to structure your response to the poems’ linguistic, structural, and stylistic elements. When analysing the language of a passage, you should comment on word choices, syntax (sentence structure and word order), sentence lengths, imagery, literary devices (such as similes, metaphors, personification, enjambment, caesura, chiasmic phrases, onomatopoeia etc) and the title, if the text is a complete poem, short story, or non-fiction piece. Structure encompasses paragraphs or stanzas (how long are they? regular or irregular?), rhyme scheme (regular or irregular?), metre (regular or irregular?), and rhythm. Style includes tone, register, purpose, the imagined or intended audience/reader, and any allusions or paratextual references that the passage might be making. When you have identified examples of all, or most, of these elements, think about why the writer chose to use these techniques. What response, emotional or otherwise, were they aiming to produce in the reader? Finally, ask yourself: was this response successfully produced by the text, and if not, why do you think that is? If you discuss most of these techniques and ask yourself all of these questions when annotating and planning your responses to unseen texts, you should find yourself with plenty to say, and produce a really thorough and text-focused essay.