"Pffft,
English.
Who
needs
that? I'm
never
going to
England."
Choose a play in which a central
character behaves in an obsessive
manner.
Describe the nature of the character’s
obsessive behaviour and discuss the
influence this has on your
understanding of the character as a
whole.
• Choose a play in which a central character behaves in an
obsessive manner.
• This is not the question. This is the pointer!
• So you must think, which characters are obsessive and how.
Then- answer the question.
• Abigail Williams is an obsessive character in “The Crucible”.
Her obsessive actions and her controlling and manipulative
relationships with other characters illustrate the simmering
tensions in the society. Through her development as an
obsessive character, other themes are revealed and explored,
such as Proctor’s triumph over his inner conflict, Proctor and
Elizabeth’s love, and the hypocrisy of the society. This central
character’s obsession is integral to the plot of “The Crucible”,
for it is the starting point for the chain of events which
ultimately lead to the death of the heroic John Proctor, and
Abigail herself fleeing Salem in disgrace.
• Then, you must continue to flesh out this answer.
• Describe the nature of the character’s obsessive behaviour and
discuss the influence this has on your understanding of the
character as a whole.
• Clearly show the marker how her obsessive nature is shown.
– Through her actions- inciting the dancing, conjuring the spirits, with the
main goal of getting Proctor back for good. Eliminating Elizabeth. Her
flirting with John, her behaviour in the trial.
– Through her relationships with other characters - John, Mary Warren,
Elizabeth. These reveal aspects of her personality.
• What are her character traits.
– Manipulative, devious, deceitful, controlling.
• What is her role as a character.
– To facilitate the “Crucible”- the melting pot of tensions in the society.
• How do her character traits reveal other themes.
• Help John to become the hero to overcome his inner conflict, allow Elizabeth
and John’s love to triumph, to show the hypocrisy of the puritan society.
Tips
• For each of these points, you find quotations
which back up your idea, your answer!
• NEVER say “In this essay I intend to answer
why …blah blah blah…”. It sounds
immature.
• Don’t read the pointer and forget to answer
the question.
• Try to incorporate your quotations into your
sentences.
• If you choose to quote a large chunk – “indent it” on a separate line. It makes it easier
to read.