English Literature
Revision
Tragedy Paper:
Section C
Death of a Salesman & Tess of the
d’Urbervilles
, AO1 essentially requires informed and relevant responses which are accurately written and use appropriate
concepts and terminology.
Kay Aspects of Tragedy:
Death of a Salesman:
1. Betrayal- the action of betraying a group, or a person; treachery
2. The American Dream- the ideal by which equality of opportunity is available to any American, allowing the highest
aspirations and goals to be achieved.
3. Denial- the action of denying something.
4. Exploitation- the action or fact of treating someone unfairly in order to benefit from their work.
1. Patriarchy- a system of society or government in which men hold the power and women are largely excluded from it.
2. Class Mobility/ Structure- the hierarchical organization by which a society or community is divided into classes.
Tess of the d’Urbervilles:
1. Patriarchy- a system of society or government in which men hold the power and women are largely excluded from it.
2. Exploitation- the action or fact of treating someone unfairly in order to benefit from their work.
3. Manipulation- the action of manipulating someone in a clever or unscrupulous way.
4. Social Hierarchy/ Mobility- the hierarchical organization by which a society or community is divided into classes.
5. Nature- the phenomena of the physical world collectively, including plants, animals, the landscape, and other features
and products of the earth, as opposed to humans or human creations.
6. Modernity- the quality or condition of being modern.
7. Industrialization- the development of industries in a country or region on a wide scale.
8. Fate- the development of events outside a person's control, regarded as predetermined by a supernatural power.
9. Predestination- (in Christian theology) the doctrine that God has ordained all that will happen, especially with regard to
the salvation of some and not others. It has been particularly associated with the teachings of St Augustine of Hippo
and of Calvin.
Vocabulary: Sentence starters:
Outcast/ castaway/ isolation/ desolation One dramatic method….
Downfall/ deterioration/ atrophy However, …
Dogma/ doctrine/ article of faith Alternatively, …
Fragmented/ disintegrate/ disunite/ distorted Conversely…
Dialect/ idiom On the other hand, …
Passivity/ inability/ dependence/ faith/ credence Then again, …
Alluded/ suggested/ implied/ insinuated Significantly…
Interestingly…
Conversely…
Equally, …
Essay Sentence Starter Examples:
1. Question: ‘A tragic hero is a great or virtuous character’. To what extent do you agree with this view in relation to two
texts?
In ‘Tess of the d’Urbervilles’, Hardy presents Tess with immense greatness and virtue when she demonstrates the
lengths she would go to, in order to provide from her family and please her parents.
× However, critics may view Tess as a naive character symbolising a lack of understanding which ultimately outweighs
any greatness or virtue she is presented with.
In ‘Death of a Salesman’, Willy Loman can be viewed as a great character when taking into consideration his main
motivation in life; to improve the quality of life for his family and help both his sons become successful.
× Contrastingly through, other critics may argue Miller creates Willy to be a character exerting great hubris which
contradicts him being viewed as a vitreous character.
2. Question: ‘Tragedies cause suffering and evokes pity and fear in the audience/readers’. To what extent do you agree with
this view in relation to two texts?
Introduction:
Throughout TOTD, Hardy evidently exaggerates the suffering Tess endures to evoke pity and fear in the reader. Hardy
accomplishes this through emphasising her vulnerability and subservience towards Alec, her antagonist but also through
showing that her fate is predestined by her noble ancestry and how this leads to her tragic end. Miller also attempts to
evoke pathos in the audience in DOAS, although less prominently. Willy Loman is perhaps responsible for his own downfall
Revision
Tragedy Paper:
Section C
Death of a Salesman & Tess of the
d’Urbervilles
, AO1 essentially requires informed and relevant responses which are accurately written and use appropriate
concepts and terminology.
Kay Aspects of Tragedy:
Death of a Salesman:
1. Betrayal- the action of betraying a group, or a person; treachery
2. The American Dream- the ideal by which equality of opportunity is available to any American, allowing the highest
aspirations and goals to be achieved.
3. Denial- the action of denying something.
4. Exploitation- the action or fact of treating someone unfairly in order to benefit from their work.
1. Patriarchy- a system of society or government in which men hold the power and women are largely excluded from it.
2. Class Mobility/ Structure- the hierarchical organization by which a society or community is divided into classes.
Tess of the d’Urbervilles:
1. Patriarchy- a system of society or government in which men hold the power and women are largely excluded from it.
2. Exploitation- the action or fact of treating someone unfairly in order to benefit from their work.
3. Manipulation- the action of manipulating someone in a clever or unscrupulous way.
4. Social Hierarchy/ Mobility- the hierarchical organization by which a society or community is divided into classes.
5. Nature- the phenomena of the physical world collectively, including plants, animals, the landscape, and other features
and products of the earth, as opposed to humans or human creations.
6. Modernity- the quality or condition of being modern.
7. Industrialization- the development of industries in a country or region on a wide scale.
8. Fate- the development of events outside a person's control, regarded as predetermined by a supernatural power.
9. Predestination- (in Christian theology) the doctrine that God has ordained all that will happen, especially with regard to
the salvation of some and not others. It has been particularly associated with the teachings of St Augustine of Hippo
and of Calvin.
Vocabulary: Sentence starters:
Outcast/ castaway/ isolation/ desolation One dramatic method….
Downfall/ deterioration/ atrophy However, …
Dogma/ doctrine/ article of faith Alternatively, …
Fragmented/ disintegrate/ disunite/ distorted Conversely…
Dialect/ idiom On the other hand, …
Passivity/ inability/ dependence/ faith/ credence Then again, …
Alluded/ suggested/ implied/ insinuated Significantly…
Interestingly…
Conversely…
Equally, …
Essay Sentence Starter Examples:
1. Question: ‘A tragic hero is a great or virtuous character’. To what extent do you agree with this view in relation to two
texts?
In ‘Tess of the d’Urbervilles’, Hardy presents Tess with immense greatness and virtue when she demonstrates the
lengths she would go to, in order to provide from her family and please her parents.
× However, critics may view Tess as a naive character symbolising a lack of understanding which ultimately outweighs
any greatness or virtue she is presented with.
In ‘Death of a Salesman’, Willy Loman can be viewed as a great character when taking into consideration his main
motivation in life; to improve the quality of life for his family and help both his sons become successful.
× Contrastingly through, other critics may argue Miller creates Willy to be a character exerting great hubris which
contradicts him being viewed as a vitreous character.
2. Question: ‘Tragedies cause suffering and evokes pity and fear in the audience/readers’. To what extent do you agree with
this view in relation to two texts?
Introduction:
Throughout TOTD, Hardy evidently exaggerates the suffering Tess endures to evoke pity and fear in the reader. Hardy
accomplishes this through emphasising her vulnerability and subservience towards Alec, her antagonist but also through
showing that her fate is predestined by her noble ancestry and how this leads to her tragic end. Miller also attempts to
evoke pathos in the audience in DOAS, although less prominently. Willy Loman is perhaps responsible for his own downfall
