Using Quotes and Evidence in GCSE English Language (AQA GCSE English Language): Revision Note
Why using quotations and evidence is important
In the reading sections of your GCSE English Language exam, it is essential that you support any points you make with direct quotes or textual evidence. At the highest levels of the mark scheme, you are rewarded for the “judicious” selection of textual details, examples or supporting detail. “Judicious” means using good judgement when choosing the right quotations or evidence to support or prove the point you are making.
Quotations should always be short, precise and relevant to the point being made. This shows you are being selective about the evidence you are using to support your point. Ideally, they should also be embedded into your sentences, as this also helps with the overall clarity of your response.
How to embed quotations
Embedding your quotations means that your quotes form part of your sentence, rather than standing alone.
This means, instead of writing “This is shown by the quote…” or “When the writer says…”, the quote is embedded inside your sentence. This enables you to include more specific references to the text in your point and avoids overly long quotes which do not focus on the specific words or phrases that are important.
Avoid this: standalone quotations | Try this: embedded quotations |
|---|---|
Sacha’s mother has got good eyesight: “laser eye”. | Sacha’s mother is described as using her “laser eye” to “target” Sacha when she enters the room. |
Romeo thinks that Juliet brings life, light and warmth to his world. This is shown in the quote “Juliet is the sun”. | Romeo uses the metaphor of “Juliet is the sun” to suggest that she brings life, light and warmth to Romeo’s world. |
“I told myself I must be mistaken.” This quote shows the narrator’s anxiety. | The writer uses internal monologue and the repetition of “I told myself” to reveal the character’s anxiety and fear that she wasn’t “mistaken”. |
A good way to remember this is:
Point | About what? | Quote | Why? |
|---|---|---|---|
The writer uses the simile | of the boy flying | “Like a butterfly” | to convey… |
The writer describes | the character as | “A diamond” | because… |
There needs to be a clear link between the quote you choose and your explanation or analysis. The quote needs to support the point you are making. It also needs to be precise; ask yourself exactly which word or phrase supports this inference. Avoid using whole sentences as a quote, as this does not demonstrate precision.
It is also important that you make it clear who or what your quote is about. For example:
The word “vast” shows the power of the sea.
How does the word “vast” show the power of the sea? What is “vast” describing?
Instead try:
The writer describes the wave as “vast” to demonstrate its size, indicating just how powerful and overwhelming the sea must feel.
Above all, every time you make a point, you need to prove it, either by providing the word or phrase from the text as evidence, or by referring to the specific part of the text.
Making the most of quotations at GCSE
Writing in detail about a point can often be a way of moving up a level in the mark scheme. For example, a student working at lower levels might typically attempt to make one point or inference, and then move on to make a separate point. However, by focusing and analysing the same point further, a student is more likely to produce the explanation they need to meet the criteria for higher levels of the mark scheme.
The best responses use evidence to support perceptive comments within the framework of the writer’s “big ideas”. Any comments you make about a quote or textual reference need to be specific, rather than generic comments like “this makes the reader want to read on”. There are several ways you can make the most of your quotations:
Zoom in on a particular word and consider why it was chosen by the writer:
Think about the connotations of the word
Expand your analysis:
After you have commented on why the writer has chosen that word or phrase, make another point that links to the wider themes in the text, or any patterns you have spotted in the text as a whole
Use subject terminology accurately and only to support your point:
Examiners frequently warn against just “listing” techniques without exploring the effect of the chosen technique
Remember, “subject terminology” can mean referring to the writer describing something, or using the word or phrase in a particular way and in a particular context
How to analyse a quote example
Let’s consider the following passage taken from Half of a Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Adichie. In this passage, Ugwu, a 13 year old boy, is starting work as a cleaner for a university professor in the city:
He smelt something sweet, heady, as they walked into a compound, and was sure it came from the white flowers clustered on the bushes at the entrance. The bushes were shaped like slender hills. The lawn glistened. Butterflies hovered overhead. |
Here, the writer is trying to convey how magical this new environment is for Ugwu. In your exam, you could write about this like so:
The writer describes the compound as smelling “sweet, heady” to convey how intoxicating it seems for Ugwu. He goes on to compare the bushes to “slender hills” as the “lawn glistened” and “butterflies hovered overhead”. This suggests that, to Ugwu, the compound seems magical and almost impossibly perfect, emphasising the contrast with his previous home. The use of the adjective “glistened” makes the lawn seem pristine, as if it were something precious that can be polished. |
This example demonstrates embedded quotations to support the points being made, with expansion and zooming in on a particular word.
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