What is Context & Why is it Important?
CPD: You Can't Revise for GCSE English! (by Mark Roberts), topic 1.1.1
What is Context?
Throughout literature exams, students will be expected to consider context in their answers. The way context is applied varies by exam board but regardless - context is important.
What is context?
- Context is the background to the text that a student is studying.
- When discussing context we tend to consider:
- When the text was written and what society was like at that time.
- The importance of the setting.
- The writer's background and influences.
- How other writers in the same genre may have influenced the writing of the text.
- The significance of the writer's other works.
- For plays, how different versions have been performed.
Coping with context
- Students often struggle to apply context, especially when older texts are considered.
- Shakespeare lived over 400 years ago, and there are many different interpretations about what was going on at the time, and what Shakespeare was trying to say.
- Students are often unsure as to what to include and how they should include it.
Moving on
- This section will focus on how students can use context appropriately, effectively, and communicate it in a way that is clear, thoughtful, and relevant to the question.
Test yourself on What is Context & Why is it Important?
Why do students struggle with context?
What information contributes to context?
What information contributes to context?