What does it mean to revise: Characterisation?

Revision for subjects like History and Biology seems pretty straightforward; if you get your head around some significant facts and marshall your evidence, you are likely to do well. But how on earth do you prepare for A Level Eng. Lit?

Welcome to the first in a short series about how to revise English successfully.

It is very likely that at least one of the questions you will face in the exam will focus on characterisation (how an author presents a character). How can you prepare for that?

There are basic areas to cover, regardless of the text. For each of the following:

• Try and make condensed notes / a mind map / list headwords
• Learn a quotation or specific example to illustrate

Selected character:

1) The character’s narrative arc:

• How s/he is introduced
• His/her story/development through the novel
• The character’s own new perspectives by the end (what s/he has learnt)

2) His/her physical appearance and the language s/he uses (register, syntax)

3) His/her relationships with others in the text

4) The imagery associated with him/her.

Author:

1) The author’s attitude to the character – discerned through

• 2 and 4 above
• Differences in perspective
• Tone used describing that character and direct/indirect judgements on him/her (authorial intrusion?)
  

2) Changes in attitude / sympathy – ultimate assessment of character.

Reader:

1) Be aware of your personal response to the character – have you found the hero / heroine attractive – annoying - funny?

2) Are you satisfied with how the author created the character

• Are they believable (2D or fully rounded) – or more significant for the role they play in the text’s ‘meaning’?
• Do you have other criticisms about the characterisation?
  

Always keep in mind that every character is simply a literary construct, created by an author for the purposes of the text.