Let’s look at a VCE English and EAL essay prompt for the novel, We Have Always Lived In The Castle!
We Have Always Lived In The Castle is one of the most popular VCE texts for Year 12s across Victoria, so much so it feels like every second student is tackling this novel by Shirley Jackson!
So let’s look at an essay prompt and unpack how students can tackle the question, and highlight some common traps that students might fall into.
Jackson portrays masculine values as ideologically opposed to female power in We Have Always Lived In The Castle. Discuss.
As I mentioned in an earlier post, ‘Discuss’-style questions is not asking for a debate on the truth of the statement, it is actually an invitation to explore how and why it is true. Students wanting to score well in Section A of the VCE English/EAL exam will need to confidently explore and examine the nuance and application of the ideas in the statement.
For this Castle essay prompt, the key phrases are ‘masculine values’, ‘ideologically opposed’ and ‘female power’. It means that students are asked to consider how masculine values and female power are constructed, and examine the tension between them throughout the novel.
Now, of course there are many moments of conflict and tension between the worldview represented by Cousin Charles and the worldview represented by the Blackwood sisters. But students should not fall into the trap of just summarising their many conflicts, and focus instead on the underlying, incompatible values. When exploring this area, students should tease apart what these values prioritise, and in turn, dismiss, and that should then lead to a discussion on why they are irreconcilable to each other.
A successful student not only must examine how these worldviews are diametrically opposed, but also analyse how Jackson has constructed this tension throughout the novel. Remember, the question is asking how and why; a high scoring essay must explore the reasons behind this clash of perspectives and the mechanisms that Jackson deploys.
I hope this helps! Here’s our full video explainer on tackling this prompt:
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