English Literature

General Course Description

This course allows you to explore, discuss, analyse and evaluate a range of literature of all genres.

You will be expected to read at length, bringing your own insights to modern and classic texts, as well as exploring the texts from various literary theory perspectives.

You will be preparing texts for examination and for coursework.

Further Information about our courses including results

In English Language and Literature at GCSE level, we achieved our excellent record of providing quality teaching and delivering with fantastic results, outperforming similar schools substantially for all Assessment Objectives.

As a department, we attained amazing results in A Level English Literature and English Language in 2025. Our highly experienced and skilled teachers are exam markers and have year on year proven success at getting all our students to achieve way above their target grades. The results in 2025 proved yet again that our students perform at a higher level than students in similar centres in all areas of the course.

Course Content and Teaching Units

Literary Genres: Tragedy

In this unit you study three main texts linked to the genre of tragedy: King Lear, Death of a Salesman and poetry by John Keats. You will be assessed on these texts via examination in Y13.

Texts and Genres: Political and Social Protest

In this unit you will study three main texts for assessment via examination in Y13: Songs of Innocence and Experience by William Blake, The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini and The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood. You will also be taught how to respond to a variety of unseen pieces of literature in preparation for an unseen passage in the examination.

Non-Exam Aspect

You will complete two pieces of coursework which explore potential meanings in literary texts using critical theory and ideas (e.g. Marxist criticism, feminism…). You will ned to select two text choices independently (with guidance) and research your chosen text in depth. This part of the course gives our students the chance to be really individual and give original and personal insights into fascinating texts.

Trips, visits and extra-curricular

Creative writing club on offer along with newsletter committee. Department also organise trips to plays, museums and University for subject specific lectures.

Financial Information

Students must purchase their own copies of King Lear, Death of a Salesman, The Handmaid’s Tale and The Kite Runner (copies are not bought through school; they can be new or second hand) . All other texts are provided, including copies to be used in the examinations.

Paper 1: Aspects of Tragedy (2 hour 30 minute exam - closed book) 40%

Paper 2: Texts and Genres (3 hour exam - open book) 40%

Coursework (2 essays) 20%

GCSE English Literature – Grade 5 in both Literature and Language.

As with all Arts subjects, English courses offer entry to a huge range of further course and careers. Whether you are interested in courses and careers such as teaching, law, journalism or civil service roles, or you are seeking an alternative to your other courses to provide variety to your CV, you could not select a better course than English Literature. It provides you the opportunity to develop higher level thinking, discussion and writing skills, as well as exploring a huge variety of topics, contextual settings and wider ideas.

In the past two years, students who studied our English courses have progressed to study some of the following courses in universities such as University of Sheffield, University of Birmingham, Durham University and the University of Oxford:

English Language and Literature, Law, Sociology, Criminology, Journalism, Psychology, Creative Writing, Medical Anthropology, History, Accounting and Finance and Nursing.