How to Write a Grade 9 Modern Drama Essay (Edexcel IGCSE English Literature)
Revision Note
Written by: Kate Lee
Reviewed by: Jenna Quinn
How to Write a Grade 9 Modern Drama Essay
To get a Grade 9 in the Modern Drama section of the Edexcel IGCSE English Literature exam, you need to know how to write an effective essay. In Section A, you are assessed on two assessment objectives, AO1 and AO2. AO1 requires you to write an informed personal response and AO2 requires you to comment on form, structure and language.
Find out how to approach the exam question:
Exam skill 1: Developing an informed personal response (AO1)
Exam skill 2: Analysing dramatic devices through form, structure and language (AO2)
Exam skill 1: Developing an informed personal response (AO1)
AO1 requires you to show a close knowledge and understanding of your drama text, maintain a critical style and present an informed personal response. Writing an “informed personal response” means offering your individual thoughts and feelings about your drama text. A “critical style” means interrogating the play. It could involve unique insights, interpretations or connections you draw from the text.
Consider this model answer which addresses the skills required for AO1.
Question focus | Informed personal response (Grade 9) |
|---|---|
In what ways does Sheila Birling change as the play progresses? | Sheila Birling is arguably the character who changes most as the play progresses. Sheila is first described as “a pretty girl in her twenties, very pleased with life and rather excited”, which conveys her silliness and naivety. At the beginning of this act, she appears self-interested, relishing her engagement to Gerald which initially aligns her with her family’s shallow and materialistic outlook. She is enthralled by the ring Gerald gives to her: “Is it the one you wanted me to have?” However, when the Inspector arrives, Sheila begins to change and she is moved by the fate of Eva as her story is told. Priestley presents her as the first character in the play to accept responsibility for her actions, which demonstrates both her courage and empathy. She dramatically exits the stage when first shown a photograph of Eva and appears genuinely regretful of her actions. When she discovers the outcome of her complaint to Milwards about Eva, she acknowledges that she was unreasonable and is deeply apologetic: “I’ll never, never do it again”. Sheila’s language thus becomes increasingly emotional, revealing to the audience her growing maturity as a character. This is sharply contrasted with the pompous language of her father and the condescending tone of her mother. Her dialogue reveals her sensitive nature and her compassion and empathy for those less fortunate than herself. Sheila’s distress turns into anger towards her parents for their lack of responsibility and compassion: “But that’s not what I’m talking about. I don’t care about that. The point is you don’t seem to have learnt anything”. Her changing speech also demonstrates her increasing assertiveness toward her parents. |
The examiner is looking for a personal judgment and this needs to be evidenced by references to the play. Throughout your response you should aim to adopt a critical style so that you demonstrate a perceptive understanding of your text. You should also aim to add your own interpretations and ensure that all of your points are fully developed.
Exam skill 2: Analysing dramatic devices through form, structure and language (AO2)
Your play is meant to be acted out and so you need to always consider this when writing about any dramatic text. Dramatic devices are techniques that playwrights use to structure and stage their plays and engage with theatre audiences. They are communicated through their use of stagecraft, so it is just as important to explore the stage directions in your drama text as much as the characters’ dialogue.
When writing about a drama text, it is important to consider why the playwright has chosen that particular form to convey their message and what genre of drama they have chosen.
Some genres of drama are:
Drama Genre | Definition |
|---|---|
Tragedy |
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Comedy |
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Morality |
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Farce |
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Melodrama |
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Romantic |
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Tragicomedy |
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Pay particular attention to the genre used in your play: for example, is it written as a tragedy or as a morality play? Then consider why you think the playwright has chosen to use this particular genre.
Let’s take a look at an example using J.B. Priestley’s play An Inspector Calls. Consider this model answer which explores Priestley’s choice of genre.
Genre | Priestley’s intentions |
|---|---|
Morality play |
An Inspector Calls can be viewed as a morality play as it explores the individual actions and societal attitudes towards responsibility and accountability. Priestley uses the character of the Inspector to confront and expose the moral hypocrisy of both the Birling family and Gerald Croft. The Inspector’s arrival disrupts the family’s celebratory dinner and his character assumes a role of moral authority throughout the play. As a morality play, Priestley aims for the play’s moral lessons to not only resonate with the characters but also with his audience in order to challenge social injustice and inequality.
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Structure
Similar to a novel or a poem, a play will adhere to a particular structure. Typically, a play will have 5 or 6 core elements within its structure: exposition, conflict, rising action, climax, falling action and resolution.
Let’s explore the meaning of these terms.
Exposition (or Introduction) |
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Rising action (or complication) |
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Dramatic climax |
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Falling action (or second complication) |
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Denouement (or resolution) |
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The examiner expects you to comment on how the playwright has used structure for effect. For example, in An Inspector Calls, Priestley subverts the denouement of the play, by ending it on a cliff-hanger with an unexpected twist. While the pattern of ending each act on a cliff-hanger will have been anticipated by Priestley’s audience, the revelation that a girl has just died and a police inspector is on his way creates an unexpected end to the play.
Consider this paragraph which explores the exposition in Priestley’s play.
Structure | Priestley’s intentions |
|---|---|
Exposition |
In the opening of the play, Priestley establishes the tone and context for the events which are to unfold, by introducing all of the main characters, with the exception of the Inspector. In the exposition, Priestley immediately introduces the central characters’ backgrounds, relationships and social status which are key to the themes of the play. For example, Birling’s speech concerning the impending marriage between his daughter Sheila and Gerald Croft establishes the Birling family’s affluent status and their socially mobile aspirations. It also introduces the audience to the themes of class, responsibility and collective guilt which are explored throughout the play.
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Examiner Tips and Tricks
When working out the structure of a play, particularly when the acts are divided into a number of scenes, it can be helpful to make brief summaries of each one. These summaries will not only help to clarify the sequence of events but will also enable you to question why the playwright has structured the play this way. As you read / watch your drama text, try to consider: ‘why this, now’?
For example, in An Inspector Calls, consider the timing of the Inspector’s arrival at the Birling household in Act 1. Why does Priestley use his sudden appearance to disrupt the seemingly idyllic atmosphere on stage?
Dramatic devices
A playwright’s use of dramatic devices shapes the audience’s understanding and interpretation of the play. For example, a playwright might make use of dramatic devices such as dramatic irony, foreshadowing or cliffhangers.
Look at these dramatic devices and consider the questions attached to each one in relation to your play.
Dramatic device | Questions to consider |
|---|---|
Acts and Scenes |
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Setting |
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Stage directions |
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Characterisation |
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Dialogue |
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Let’s take a look at some examples using An Inspector Calls. Consider these model paragraphs which explore Priestley’s use of setting and dialogue.
Dramatic device | Analysis of dramatic devices (Grade 9) | |
|---|---|---|
Setting | One location: the Birlings’ drawing room | The events of the play take place in the Birlings’ dining room. The single location of the play may signify the Birlings’ relative isolation and detachment from the lower classes. It also adds an element of entrapment or imprisonment with the characters seeming unable to escape the Inspector’s interrogation. The intimate location also creates a contrast between the private and public spheres of the family. The revelations explore a private family matter, yet the impending visit of the police inspector at the end of the play will threaten to expose the characters by bringing events into the public sphere. |
Dialogue | Monologue, imperatives, questions, pronouns | The Inspector is the most important voice within the play. He speaks “carefully” and “weightily” and controls the events and dialogue. As his character is used for exposition and to move the plot revelations forward, much of his speech is filled with questions and commanding imperatives: “And be quiet for a moment and listen to me” and “Remember that. Never forget it.” The Inspector is also deliberately dramatic in his speech and he delivers many lengthy monologues, demonstrating the significance of his character. Ideas relating to social responsibility are repeatedly interwoven throughout his speech and he continually uses the inclusive pronoun “we” to underscore his message of social and collective responsibility. |
Examiner Tips and Tricks
Stage directions are used to give you more information about the characters and the situation occurring within the scene. Stage directions can also be found directly before the characters' dialogue to convey the manner in which they speak and their mood.
For example, in An Inspector Calls, Priestley uses stage directions in Act 1 to show that Sheila speaks to Mrs Birling in a “half serious, half playful” manner when she says “I don’t believe I will” following her mother’s advice regarding men. Priestley does this to foreshadow her surprise later in the play when it is revealed that Gerald had an affair with Eva Smith.
Other dramatic techniques
You should also consider other dramatic techniques that the playwright uses. Look at these dramatic devices. Does your drama text use any of these techniques?
Dramatic irony | Dramatic tension | Dramatic pauses and cliff-hanger |
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Dramatic conflict | Soliloquy | Aside |
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Let’s explore a model answer which explores Priestley’s use of dramatic irony. We will use an exam question to give this response a clear focus:
Exam question | Analysis of dramatic techniques (Grade 9) |
|---|---|
How does Priestley present the characters of Mr and Mrs Birling in the play? | In Act 1 of An Inspector Calls, Priestley uses dramatic irony to elicit the audience’s animosity towards the characters of Mr and Mrs Birling for their actions. Mr Birling is made to appear unreliable and foolish as he is pompously incorrect about the Titanic, war and labour. Priestley uses this technique to make the audience mistrust Mr Birling. The playwright also makes use of dramatic irony in Act 2 when Mrs Birling condemns Eva Smith for her decisions and for not obtaining assistance from the father of her child, when she is unknowingly criticising her own son: “I blame the young man who was the father of the child she was going to have”. This highlights her hypocrisy to the audience as they know she would not apply the same standards to her own family. |
Find out more about how you can write a Grade 9 answer.
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