Francis Jonathan Gilbert Ma

"A great teacher," Jeremy Paxman on BBC's Newsnight. "Clearly Francis Gilbert is a gifted and charismatic teacher," Philip Pullman, author of 'Northern Lights'. "Gilbert writes so well that you half-suspect he could give up the day job," The Independent. Are you struggling to understand Shakespeare's classic play 'Romeo and Juliet'? Are you a teacher who needs a really good study guide which will enable students to understand the play's complex language and cover all the key areas required to get a good grade in an examination or coursework? This study guide may be the answer to all your prayers. Written by a teacher who has taught the text for more than twenty years in various secondary schools, this guide is aimed at students who must analyze the text in depth or teachers wanting to deliver outstanding lessons on it. This guide explains the plot, characters, language and imagery in detail, with visual diagrams and links to relevant websites. There are useful exercises on all the major sections of the play, including fill-in-the-blanks exercises for students to check their basic understanding. There's also a glossary of the essential vocabulary to know for every scene. The final section of the book contains an exhaustive explanation of how to write top grade essays on the play, including sample A* answers as well as summaries of significant literary criticism. There are plenty of pointers to help students develop their own personal responses, including thought-provoking thematic questions. This book covers the following areas in depth: It checks basic understanding by providing fill-in-the-gaps exercises on every important part of the play. It looks at why students should study 'Romeo and Juliet'. It examines Shakespeare's story, looking at the structure & themes: love, hatred and the feud, fate and the use of time. It discusses the contexts (the background) of the play: its different versions, including Brooke's poem upon which the play is based, Nashe's 'Have With You to Saffron Walden' (1596)and 'A Midsummer's Night Dream'. It investigates the nature of Shakespearean tragedy, discussing the rules Aristotle set out for this genre. It explores the world of Shakespeare's theatre and The Globe, discussing social and political contexts. It provides an overview of various productions of 'Romeo and Juliet'. It contains a detailed section on Shakespeare's language, examining his imagery and grammar, exploring his use of nouns, verbs, adjectives and adverbs. It contains a very helpful section on his use of rhythm and rhyme, setting exercises which will help students really understand this complex subject. There is a long section on his use of characterisations, discussing all the main characters in depth. There are summaries of every key scene as well as lots of lively exercises to aid understanding, analysis and creative thinking. There's an excellent glossary of all the difficult words, including vocabulary students need to learn. There are a number of speaking and listening activities that are very easy to do and really aid understanding. There is a readable account of the literary criticism of the play which looks at feminist, Marxist, cultural materialist and queer theory approaches to the text. There is a detailed account of how to write a good essay on the play which includes a dissection of sub-standard essay and an example of an A* essay. Finally, there is a section which helps students compare the play with filmed versions & performances. PLEASE NOTE: This Study Guide contains exactly same material as 'Romeo and Juliet: The Study Guide Edition' but does not include Shakespeare's text or my modern translation, which the Study Guide Edition does.

"A great teacher," Jeremy Paxman on BBC's Newsnight. "Clearly Francis Gilbert is a gifted and charismatic teacher," Philip Pullman, author of Northern Lights. "Gilbert writes so well that you half-suspect he could give up the day job," The Independent. Are you struggling to understand Shakespeare's classic play Romeo and Juliet? Are you a teacher who needs a really good edition of the play which will enable students to understand the play's complex language and cover all the key areas required to get a good grade in an examination or coursework? This brilliant edition of Shakespeare's great love story may be the answer to your prayers. Written by a teacher who has taught the text for more than twenty years in various secondary schools, this version is aimed at students who must analyse the text in depth or teachers wanting to deliver outstanding lessons on it. The book contains the complete text together with a parallel modern translation, which most students will be able to read independently or in small groups: the language is entirely appropriate for ages 11-18 years. The text is broken up by exercises on every important section of the play, with fill-in-the-gaps tasks to check understanding, questions to aid in-depth analysis, creative response tasks and tips on acting out the play. The first section of the book is an up-to-date study guide which explains the plot, characters, language and imagery in detail, with visual diagrams and links to relevant websites. The final section of the book contains an exhaustive explanation of how to write top grade essays on the play, including sample A* answers as well as summaries of significant literary criticism. There are plenty of pointers to help students develop their own personal responses, including thought-provoking thematic questions. This book covers the following areas in depth: It checks basic understanding by providing fill-in-the-gaps exercises on every important part of the play. It looks at why students should study 'Romeo and Juliet'. It examines Shakespeare's story, looking at the structure & themes: love, hatred and the feud, fate and the use of time. It discusses the contexts (the background) of the play: its different versions, including Brooke's poem upon which the play is based, Nashe's 'Have With You to Saffron Walden' (1596)and 'A Midsummer's Night Dream'. It investigates the nature of Shakespearean tragedy, discussing the rules Aristotle set out for this genre. It explores the world of Shakespeare's theatre and The Globe, discussing social and political contexts. It provides an overview of various productions of 'Romeo and Juliet'. It contains a detailed section on Shakespeare's language, examining his imagery and grammar, exploring his use of nouns, verbs, adjectives and adverbs. It contains a very helpful section on his use of rhythm and rhyme, setting exercises which will help students really understand this complex subject. There is a long section on his use of characterisations, discussing all the main characters in depth. As well as the play itself and a very accessible modern translation of it, there is a detailed summary of every act and scene. There's an excellent glossary of all the difficult words, including vocabulary students need to learn. There are a number of speaking and listening activities that are very easy to do and really aid understanding. There is a readable account of the literary criticism of the play which looks at feminist, Marxist, cultural materialist and queer theory approaches to the text. There is a detailed account of how to write a good essay on the play which includes a dissection of sub-standard essay and an example of an A* essay.

How was Stevenson influenced by a dream to write the story? What famous murderers and grave-robbers inspired the most gruesome aspects of the novella? Is this novel about sexual deviancy? If you'd like to know the answers to these questions and much more, then you should read this study guide on Robert Louis Stevenson's novella, 'The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde'. It discusses the background to the book and provides a great deal of analysis of the actual text itself, with a focus on the kinds of questions that are asked at GCSE and A Level. The guide contains: Detailed discussion of the contexts of the novella; An analysis of the book's structure and themes, and the ways in which the structure is influenced by the themes of the story; In-depth analysis of key passages in the book; Links to YouTube videos the author has made which explain the background, structure and key quotes in the novel. Crucially, the study guide focuses upon the text of the book, providing generous quotations from the text itself, followed by detailed analysis written in the formal academic style expected in coursework and examinations. An excellent way of revising the book would be to read through the second half of this study guide, absorbing the key quotes, reading the analysis, and answering the discussion point questions either in your head or on paper. This would provide a very firm grounding for taking an exam or completing coursework on the novella. It is written by an experienced teacher who has taught the book for many years in the classroom and can be contacted through his website if there are any other further questions: www.francisgilbert.co.uk "Clearly Francis Gilbert is a gifted and charismatic teacher." Philip Pullman, former teacher and author of 'Northern Lights'. PLEASE NOTE: This is an edited version of the author's "Dr Jekyll & Mr Hyde: The Study Guide Edition", containing all of its essays without the complete text. If you want the complete text, please buy the study guide edition instead.