General Rules for Critical Essays
Remember that the QUESTION is actually the SECOND sentence – use this to plan your essay.
The first part of your essay should deal
with the portrayal of the relationship. You
will therefore be talking about the
archetypal roles the father and son play,
the elements of their characters which lead
to the corrosive or confrontational nature
of the relationship, the physical and
emotional barriers between the two
characters, how the setting adds to our
understanding of their relationshipand the
way the style of the passage portrays the
relationship (i.e. the way they speak to one
another).
However, in order to fully answer the
question, you must then think of the bigger
picture. What is MacLaverty’s point in
writing this story? To show us that in
violent or volatile situations, where
relations have broken down between two
opposing sides, communication can often
lead to solution. What do you understand
about the text because of the relationship
between father and son? Perhaps it is that
relationships need work, or that
communication is vital?
Therefore, your essay plan should deal with both parts of the question.
Introduction
Your introduction must include:
*
Name of text:
‘Father and Son’
*
Name of author:
Bernard MacLaverty
*
*
*
NB:
Reference to question, i.e. “A short story in which there is a corrosive and confrontational
relationship is…
Statement of intention, i.e. “By examining [insert the techniques you will be examining here], it can
be shown that [rephrase question here].”
Brief summary of plot and setting.
You may have learned in Intermediate 2 to write your summary as a separate paragraph. Bear in
mind the pros and cons of these two methodologies: at the end of the day, it is up to you which
technique you go for, but it is not a requirement to have a separate summary, and indeed, often the
most stylish essays incorporate this into their introduction. At Higher level, we are seeking flair and
style as well as knowledge.
Paragraphs
Your paragraphs must use suitable topic sentences. An effective topic sentence makes reference back to the
question and then forward to what the paragraph will do. For example, one of these is an effective topic
sentence. Can you spot which one, and also what makes it effective?
The title of the short story, ‘Father and Son’, is very effective in establishing archetypal characters.
MacLaverty establishes the confrontational nature of the relationship as early as the title of the story.
At the beginning of the story, the reader is faced with an unusual, stark title.
The story begins in the home of the two major characters, whose names we never find out.
You must then use suitable quotations in order to back up each point that you make. You should use major
quotations as well as internal quotations to further develop your points. This is an example from the latter
part of one paragraph on setting:
LINKAGE BETWEEN POINTS
As well as this, MacLaverty makes the confrontation clear using barriers:
“a heave of bedclothes in his wake”
MAJOR QUOTATION
The father and son continually use things in the home to create physical blocks between them, which
inevitably prevent communication. The son pretends to sleep and hides beneath his “heave of bedclothes”,
suggesting the sheer effort required to overcome such barriers. Later, we hear that the son “takes up the
paper between him and his father”, and once more we see a physical manifestation of the emotional gulf
between the two men. The setting reflects their lack of communication and the stand-offish nature of their
relationship.
ANALYSIS
INTERNAL QUOTATION
EVALUATION
REFERENCE BACK TO QUESTION