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SingaporeEnglish LiteratureQuick questions
Structuring the Literature Essay
Quick questions on Embedding evidence and quotation explained: O-Level Literature in English
9short Q&A pairs drawn directly from our worked dot-point answer. For full context and worked exam questions, read the parent dot-point page.
What is embed quotations smoothly?Show answer
Weave the quotation into your own sentence so the writing flows, rather than dropping it as a separate sentence. Compare the dropped "The poet describes hope. 'Hope is the thing with feathers.'" with the embedded "the poet calls hope 'the thing with feathers'".
What is always analyse the quotation?Show answer
A quotation must never stand alone; it must be analysed. The worst habit is quotation without comment, dropping a quotation and either saying nothing or merely repeating the point ("this shows the city is calm"). After every quotation, explain how the language works and what it achieves, the feature-plus-effect habit. The empty phrase "this shows" is a warning sign: replace it with real analysis of method and effect.
What are avoid the common quotation faults?Show answer
Three faults recur and all lose marks:
What are over-long quotations?Show answer
Copying whole lines or sentences to fill space, much of which then goes unanalysed.
What is quotation without comment?Show answer
Following a quotation with nothing, or with a repeat of the point ("this shows..."), instead of analysis of method and effect.
What is vague labels instead of analysis?Show answer
Saying a quotation shows a character is "creepy" or "nice" rather than explaining how the language creates that impression.
What is q1?Show answer
Why are short, well-chosen quotations better than long ones? [2 marks]
What is q2?Show answer
What does it mean to "embed" a quotation, and why is it better than dropping one? [2 marks]
What is q3?Show answer
Why is "quotation without comment" a serious fault, and how do you fix it? [3 marks]