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• NCEA on TKI
• NZQA website

3.3 Respond critically to Shakespearean drama studied

Content notes

Content notes are the questions, learning activities, extra reading, and notes you should have completed in class when studying a Shakespearean play. Texts will be discussed in general terms, so apply these suggestions to the Shakespearean play you have studied. At this level critical response involves the close examination and understanding of how and why the writer has chosen to express ideas in a certain way and that all aspects of a text work together to support the author's purpose. Critical academic readings are journal articles that have been written by top academics as discussion papers focusing on key issues from a text. You can access academic readings through your school library on 'close reserve' or you can order material online from the INNZ catalogue. Use this material to support and extend your study.

Key aspects to study:

• plot and structure
• setting and context
• style and techniques
• characterisation
• theme and purpose
• conflict
• symbolism and imagery.

Ways to study the content:

• Read the text closely and ask questions to help you really understand the text, see Introduction, and Taking notes from research reading (PDF 88KB).
• Translate or summarise important scenes into your own words, use cartoon versions to understand the plot, or a video performance of the play.
• Answer plot questions using detailed references and quotations from the text.
• Make flashcards to learn important quotations.
• Draw diagrams and flowcharts to show the relationship between different aspects such as character and theme or setting and mood. See Graphic Organizers for suggestions on how to organise your key points into a new format.
• Construct charts and grids to compare and contrast information on different aspects of the text.

Select the play you have studied from these sites, for examples of content notes:

• Shakespeare (scroll to bottom of page)
• Some plays explored
• William Shakespeare
• Online play guides
• The Complete Works of Shakespeare
• The Merchant of Venice

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