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- Analysing language
Analysing language
Examiners want more than spotting techniques. They want to know what the writer's word choices make the reader think and feel.
Methods to look for
Simile: a comparison using like or as.
Metaphor: saying something is something else.
Personification: giving human qualities to a non-human thing.
Word choice: powerful verbs, adjectives and adverbs.
Sensory language: sight, sound, smell, touch, taste.
Metaphor: saying something is something else.
Personification: giving human qualities to a non-human thing.
Word choice: powerful verbs, adjectives and adverbs.
Sensory language: sight, sound, smell, touch, taste.
What, how, why
What is the writer showing? How do they do it (quote and method)? Why: what is the effect on the reader?
Zoom in on single words. "Crept" suggests something different from "walked".
Zoom in on single words. "Crept" suggests something different from "walked".
A practice extract
This extract was written for GCSE-ready.
How does the writer make the fog seem threatening?
- What: the fog seems alive and creeping into the town.
- How: the simile "like a beggar seeking warmth" and the verb "crawled".
- Why: "crawled" suggests something slow and sinister, and "pressing its grey face against every window" makes the reader feel watched.
Answer: Personification and the verb "crawled" make the fog seem alive and intrusive.
Name the method, quote it, then explain the effect of specific words on the reader. What, how, why.
The interactive lesson includes the diagrams for this topic.
Check you have got it
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