How do I approach an extract question?

Extract questions may seem challenging because they can require a detailed analysis of any section across an entire set text. However, despite this variability in content most of the time they can be tackled in the same sorts of ways. Firstly, it is important to consider the passage as a whole before tying to break it down too much - what underlying message is the passage conveying? What is the context of the events before and after this particular moment? Why is this scene important to the overall story? Read through the passage at least once with these questions in mind and try to stay conscious of them throughout the essay as this will help your argument stay on track. This 'big picture' view of the passage also makes for an effective introduction, allowing you to set up the extract in the context of the text and establish the main argument that your essay will put forward. Next you can begin digging a bit deeper into the passage to find specific moments, quotes and literary devices (similes, metaphors, structural devices, speech and so on) to provide evidence in support your argument. Begin thinking about how these moments work together to develop the passage, how you can combine them into a single cohesive point that helps address the task question and what other details you may have overlooked that can strengthen your discussion. For example, if a scene features a moment of tension between two characters (which might be your overall point) how does the author reflect this through the passage's pacing, figurative language, contrast, speech and so on. Sometimes it may also make sense to structure your point with evidence from across the passage, such as when illustrating how a particular theme or idea is developed. Each of these key overall points, backed up with specific evidence from the text and with continued reference to the question, should make up a distinct paragraph in your essay and together will comprise the main body of your discussion. Finally, you can move on to your conclusion, which sums up all the points you've just made and how, together, they answer the question you've been set. The conclusion is also another chance to take a 'big picture' view of the extract and how the extract contributes to the overall themes or underlying messages of the text. Thus, you can think of the introduction as setting up the major points you want to address and the context of the passage in the narrative, the main body as 'zooming in' on particular moments and techniques to support your argument and the conclusion as zooming back out to summarise your discussion and how this fits into the text as a whole.