GCSE AQA English Literature 2022 Paper 2: Shakespeare and Unseen Poetry

Pro tip: Choose your Shakespeare question quickly and stick with it - don't waste precious minutes reading through all the extracts!

Remember: Pick the Shakespeare text you know best, not necessarily the extract that looks easiest at first glance!

Analysis focus: Look at how Shakespeare uses imagery of barrenness and futility to show Macbeth's growing desperation.

Key technique: Notice how Shakespeare uses dramatic irony - Romeo doesn't know Juliet can't hear him, making his honest emotions even more powerful.

Consider this: Is Prospero's forgiveness genuine compassion or just another form of showing his power over others?

Important context: Remember that Elizabethan audiences would have had very different attitudes toward Shylock than modern readers do.

Character insight: Notice how Claudio seeks Benedick's approval for his feelings, suggesting he's not entirely confident in his own emotions.

Political strategy: Watch how Antony uses emotion and rhetoric to achieve his goals while appearing to be simply a grieving friend.