Establish the situation
Establish the situation
On a first reading, identify the speaker, apparent audience, setting and central subject. Remember that the speaker is not automatically the poet, and that a first-person voice may be unreliable, conflicted or changing.
Step-by-step lessons on Eduqas GCSE English Literature 3.1.1 Analyse content, ideas, language, structure and form in a first unseen poem. Each one builds up to exam-style questions. Work through your set texts (Shakespeare, the 19th-century prose text, the post-1914 text, and the poetry anthology) alongside regular unseen-poetry practice, since Component 2's unseen poetry section is usually the most time-pressured on exam day.