S1 Critical Essay - “Boy” by Roald Dahl
What makes this an interesting and enjoyable novel for S1?
WALK ABOUT TALK ABOUT TOPICS
Each topic turns into a paragraph in your
Critical essay. Check the posters for more
ideas.
1 MEMORABLE CHARACTERS
2 VIVID DESCRIPTION
3 EXCITING INCIDENTS
4 HUMOROUS INCIDENTS
5 HOW SCHOOL WAS
DIFFERENT
6 HOW LIFE/PEOPLE WERE
DIFFERENT
S1 Critical Essay - “Boy” by Roald Dahl
What makes this an interesting and enjoyable novel for S1?
INTRODUCTION (first paragraph)
T
TITLE
A
AUTHOR
C
CONTEXT (setting, plot, characters)
T
TASK (refer to key words of essay task)
SAMPLE INTRODUCTION
“Boy” by Roald Dahl is, as the name suggests, the
story of a boy, Roald Dahl himself. This interesting and
enjoyable autobiographical novel focuses on Dahl’s
childhood and especially his schooldays. He started
school in 1922, so the world was very different from
nowadays, which makes it interesting for a modern day
child to read about. Roald Dahl was quite a mischievous
character, so it is enjoyable reading about his adventures.
Finally, Dahl’s writing style is so descriptive that we are
hooked immediately and this too adds to our enjoyment of
the book.
Now write your own introduction in your own words.
S1 Critical Essay - “Boy” by Roald Dahl
What makes this an interesting and enjoyable novel for S1?
MAIN PARAGRAPH STRUCTURE
P
POINT = topic sentence.
E
EVIDENCE = quotations
E
EXPLANATION = comment on quotation
R
REFER back to essay task (KEY WORDS)
SAMPLE MAIN PARAGRAPH
P
E
E
R
One of the main enjoyable aspects of “Boy” is
Roald Dahl’s vivid descriptive writing. For example,
“A Visit to the Doctor” is described in graphic detail:
out of my mouth and into the basin came
tumbling a whole mass of flesh and blood
This exaggerates the amount of flesh and blood
which came from Dahl’s adenoids, which makes the
story very dramatic. It is also very realistic, because
in those days there was no anaesthetic, so it
suggests the pain he was in too. Together this
made the story interesting and enjoyable.
S1 Critical Essay - “Boy” by Roald Dahl
What makes this an interesting and enjoyable novel for S1?
SAMPLE TOPIC SENTENCES
Use these to help you write your own topic sentences.
MEMORABLE CHARACTERS
Many memorable characters also make ‘Boy’ an
entertaining read. We are introduced to…
VIVID DESCRIPTION
One of the main enjoyable aspects of “Boy” is Roald
Dahl’s vivid descriptive writing. For example
HUMOROUS INCIDENTS
Another aspect of “Boy” which is enjoyable is the
humour. There are many funny incidents like ‘The Great
Mouse Plot’…
EXCITING INCIDENTS
Roald Dahl also recounts exciting events from his
childhood, for example ‘A Drive in the Motor-car’. In this
chapter…
HOW SCHOOL WAS DIFFERENT
In “Boy” Roald Dahl helps us understand just how
different school used to be. One of the things I noticed…
HOW LIFE/PEOPLE WERE DIFFERENT
“Boy” has taught me how different life used to be. An
interesting difference…