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Drama and Literature Resources

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I'm a university lecturer of Drama and English Literature. On this page you'll find loads of powerpoint presentations filled with useful resources for teachers and students interested in English Literature, Drama, Art History, and Academic English / Research. Useful for all levels.

I'm a university lecturer of Drama and English Literature. On this page you'll find loads of powerpoint presentations filled with useful resources for teachers and students interested in English Literature, Drama, Art History, and Academic English / Research. Useful for all levels.
'Frankenstein' - close analysis
DrLucyJefferyDrLucyJeffery

'Frankenstein' - close analysis

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This resource is designed to help students write a close analysis essay on Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, focusing on Victor Frankenstein. The extract and question have been taken from a recent A Level English Literature past paper. The resource goes through the extract line-by-line to explore the themes of **suffering, ambition, responsibility, isolation, Gothic literature, and the Romantic Sublime **in the novel, Frankenstein. The text has been annotated with helpful advice, literary criticism, context, and quotes. It also includes a full sample answer. This resource will be useful for students who need to practice close textual analysis, and/or are working on Frankenstein: The Modern Prometheus.
Improve your academic writing
DrLucyJefferyDrLucyJeffery

Improve your academic writing

4 Resources
This bundle contains 4 resources on academic writing & English skills, focusing on: Essay writing for cause & effect Researching tips and source integration for academic essays Annotated biblographies & referencing Writing & structuring an essay - a step-by-step guide **The bundle covers the basics of essay writing, researching, and referencing. It is a perfect tool for teachers who want to teach academic / essay writing and critical thinking skills. **
Shakespeare's 'Hamlet'
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Shakespeare's 'Hamlet'

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This presentation on Shakespeare’s Hamlet explores the main themes - revenge, death, madness, power, corruption - of this play. It refers to Aristotle’s writings on tragedy to explore what makes the play a revenge tragedy. It then explores Ophelia’s madness and death in detail, referring to scholarship and close scene analysis. This powerpoint is useful for GCSE, A Level, and undergraduate university students focusing on Shakespeare’s Hamlet.
Jhumpa Lahiri's 'The Namesake'
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Jhumpa Lahiri's 'The Namesake'

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This package includes a PowerPoint presentation and detailed handout on **Jhumpa Lahiri’s The Namesake ** It is ideal for university and A Level students looking to write essays on Lahiri’s work and get a better understanding of ideas behind postcolonial studies. The work package includes: Carefully selected extracts from The Namesake to encourage discussion and analysis An explanation of Homi K. Bhabha’s theories of hybridity, liminal spaces, and the Third Space Comments made by Jhumpa Lahiri on her creative process when writing The Namesake Questions to encourage analytical thinking Scholarly engagements with Lahiri’s work
'Hard Times' by Charles Dickens
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'Hard Times' by Charles Dickens

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This presentation is on Hard Times by Charles Dickens. It is aimed at ALevel and undergraduate level university students exploring the work of Charles Dickens, the Industrial Revolution, and/or Victorian literature. The slides focus on how Dickens explores issues surrounding the Industrial Revolution in Hard Times. With particular focus on Dickens’s views on the rights of workers during Victorian Britain, this presentation draws on literary criticism to debate the two philosophies of that time: Utilitarianism (John Stuart Mill) and Political Economy (Adam Smith). The is resource also contains: key quotations, discussion points, and quotes from literary critics (including Mikhail Bakhtin). Perfect for preparing an essay on themes surrounding Dickens’s representation of the lower-class workforce in his novels, especially Hard Times.
Milton's Paradise Lost
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Milton's Paradise Lost

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This presentation explores John Milton’s Paradise Lost. It discusses Milton’s poetic form (blank verse), as well as issues regarding gender, free will, and religion. Sandra Gilbert’s discussion of Eve’s fall is outlined for some useful secondary criticism. There are also extracts (from Books 9 and 10 of Paradise Lost) with helpful pointers for close textual analysis and ideas that will prompt further discussion and exploration. The final slides recommend further reading, offer later poetic responses to Eve’s plight, and also encourage critical engagement with early scholarship on Milton’s epic poem. A great resource for A Level students and undergraduates.
Public Speaking
DrLucyJefferyDrLucyJeffery

Public Speaking

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In A Guide to Public Speaking, you will learn how to successfully present your research / topic in front of an audience. The PowerPoint consists of over 50 slides of useful tips to presenting your knowledge / subject. It goes through the fundamentals of public speaking: Overcoming fear and anxiety about giving a speech Nonverbal communication skills Developing a speech Vocal aspects of public speaking Making PowerPoint slides Keeping your audience engaged through audience analysis This is a great resource for students and teachers. There are also practice exercises and further reading suggestions that will make you a great public speaker! Enjoy and good luck!
Thinking Skills Assessment (TSA)
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Thinking Skills Assessment (TSA)

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This **Thinking Skills Assessment guide **answers all of your TSA questions. It tells you about the TSA, what to expect in both Section 1 and Section 2 papers, and how to prepare and improve your problem solving & critical thinking skills. It also provides you with lots of sample questions taken from past papers (with answers), and gives guidance on how to get the best result. At the end of this document, you’ll find a list of helpful further reading resources. Essential document for teachers, tutors, and students preparing for the TSA. Suitable for Oxford University, Cambridge University, and UCL admissions TSA exams. For Section 1, there are 18 past paper questions with answers For Section 2, there are 16 past paper questions and an additional 2 questions with ‘thinking steps’ and essay writing tips. **This document also provides a breakdown of verbal and numerical reasoning skills. **
Shakespeare's 'The Merchant of Venice'
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Shakespeare's 'The Merchant of Venice'

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This presentation explores Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice. With clear character discussions, analysis of themes, quotes, and contextual information, it is an ideal teaching and study resource for anyone studying The Merchant of Venice. It contains: a plot summary; contextual information about Shakespeare’s decision to set the play in Venice; a discussion of racial prejudice (especially from Antonio towards Shylock); character studies of Shylock, Jessica, and Portia; a discussion on the idea of value, and details from three notable performances of the play. The last slide contains a quiz with 10 questions focused on details from the play.
Shakespeare's King Lear
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Shakespeare's King Lear

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This PowerPoint presentation on **Shakespeare’s King Lear **is a great introductory lesson that includes: A brief plot summary Historical context (referring to James I of England) Why Shakespeare is relevant today (drawing on Coleridge) A close textual analysis of Lear’s reconciliation with Cordelia King Lear’s **‘madness / enlightenment’ ** Scholarship on major concepts in King Lear: religion and psychoanalysis Actors’ commentary on playing King Lear and Edmund *** Essay questions ** ‘Thinking Further’ activities that focus on Lear’s famous quote: ‘nothing will come of nothing’ **Fact File ** Quick Quotes Recommended Research References This research is great for exam revision. It also provides useful context for writing an essay on Shakespeare’s King Lear.
F. Scott Fitzgerald's 'The Great Gatsby'
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F. Scott Fitzgerald's 'The Great Gatsby'

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This presentation explores F. Scott Fitzgerald’s famous novel, The Great Gatsby. The slides outline its publication, reputation as ‘The Great American Novel’, and themes such as corruption, the American Dream, class, nostalgia, and love. An in-depth character outline depicts all of the major characters with reference to the themes associated with their actions/role in the novel. Three slides are dedicated to close textual analysis of important moments/themes in the novel. The scholarship of Sarah Churchwell is referred to and there are also suggestions for further reading. This powerpoint is useful for A Level and undergraduate students looking at The Great Gatsby.
Developing a Speech: Public Speaking
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Developing a Speech: Public Speaking

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In this Developing a Speech module you will learn how to plan, write, and structure a speech about any given topic. You will gain excellent writing and presenting tools in order to engage your audience in your chosen subject / speech. This PowerPoint covers: Key points in developing a speech The Canons of Rhetoric Strategies for finding a topic Developing your main idea Gathering material Creating an outline / structure Writing introductions Signposting / having purpose and direction Using supporting matierals Writing conclusions This is a great resource for teachers and students of any subject. It is ideal for anyone who needs to do a presentation and wants some guidelines for writing / planning their speech.
Bernard MacLaverty's 'Cal'
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Bernard MacLaverty's 'Cal'

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This package includes a PowerPoint and detailed handout on Bernard MacLaverty’s novel Cal. The work pacakge includes: Carefully selected extracts from MacLaverty’s Cal to aid discussion and analysis Excerpts from scholarly criticism on Cal Questions to aid interpretation of the novel Short explanation of The Troubles in Northern Ireland Poetry by Seamus Heaney and Douglas Carson Ideal for A Level and university students writing essays on MacLaverty’s Cal
Ibsen's A Doll's House
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Ibsen's A Doll's House

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Handout for students discussing Ibsen’s A Doll’s House. Includes quotes from the play to discuss as well as an extract from Virginia Woolf’s A Room of One’s Own. The handout focuses on themes of gender and patriarchal society in A Doll’s House. Perfect for A Level students studying Ibsen and naturalism in theatre. Also useful for university seminars working on A Doll’s House.
Sandra Cisneros's 'The House on Mango Street'
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Sandra Cisneros's 'The House on Mango Street'

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This package includes a PowerPoint lecture, *full written lecture, * and detailed handout on Sandra Cisneros’s The House on Mango Street It explores the novel’s concern with gender and race (particularly Hispanic communities in America), drawing parallels between Sandra Cisneros’s The House on Mango Street and Virginia Woolf’s A Room Of One’s Own. The lecture document includes a university-level overview of 20th-century gender theory. Ideal for A Level and university students working on Cisneros’s novel.
Saussure's Semiotics & Luigi Pirandello
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Saussure's Semiotics & Luigi Pirandello

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This presentation outlines the shift in drama from Realist to Symbolist to Modernist forms of theatre. It uses work by Chekhov, Maeterlink, and Beckett to illustrate the differences between representational and Avant-Garde playwrighting and scenography. The explanation of Ferdinand de Saussure’s semiotics is supported by examples form Luigi Pirandello’s Six Characters in Search of an Author. The presentation also covers the work of Ionesco and Tom Stoppard when discussing the Theatre of the Absurd (a term coined by Martin Esslin).
Harold Pinter's 'The Homecoming'
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Harold Pinter's 'The Homecoming'

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This handout covers the key concepts explored in The Homecoming by Harold Pinter. It outlines the premiere of The Homecoming in London’s Aldwych Theatre in 1965, exploring aspects of the set, audience reaction, as well as outlining the characters and plot. The handout also covers: Harold Pinter’s life, writing, themes, and contribution to theatre The influence of Samuel Beckett on Harold Pinter Questions that The Homecoming raises Important extracts from scholarship on The Homecoming A key scene between Lenny and Ruth Discussion of the significance of staging at the end of The Homecoming Final thinking point for further discussion Great resource to aid in understanding of one of Harold Pinter’s most well-known plays. Suitable for university students, seminars, and in-depth A Level discussions.
In-yer-face Theatre: Sarah Kane
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In-yer-face Theatre: Sarah Kane

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This presentation is about Sarah Kane’s exploration of National Identity in her infamous play Blasted. Each slide contains quotes, images, factual information, and videos about Sarah Kane and In-Yer-Face Theatre. The powerpoint focuses on extracts from Blasted that examine human frailty, compassion, brutality, and powerlessness. It asks how Kane manages to evoke compassion through violence and uses the theory of Susan Sontag and the history of the Bosnian War (1992-1995) to unpick the relationship between the Soldier, Ian and Kate in the play. There are also many ‘thinking points’, including a video discussion of the (un)ethical nature of Kane’s drama and theorist Hanna Arendt’s ‘Reflections on Violence’.