Human Qualities & Emotions
Define 'collective human experience'.
A collective human experience is one shared by a group, community or society.
Define 'representation'.
Representation is the way texts construct meaning about ideas, experiences or people through choices in language, form and structure.
Why is storytelling important across cultures and time?
Storytelling transmits human experiences, values, and cultural identities across time and place.
Define 'context'.
The circumstances (social, historical, cultural etc) shaping a text's production and reception.
Define 'metalanguage'.
Specialised terms used to analyse texts.
Give an example of a universal human quality represented in your prescribed text.
Love and sacrifice are shown in Jackie Elliot giving up his pride and loyalty to the strike to support Billy's future.
Identify one language or film device that shapes how human emotion is represented in your prescribed text.
Symbolism - Billy's dance represents freedom.
Provide an example of how your prescribed text reflects a particular culture.
1980s British working class culture - miners' strike and entrenched gender roles.
How does the director's context shape meaning?
Daldry's directorial purpose was shaped by Thatcher-era Britain - a time of economic hardship and conservative gender norms.
List three synonyms for the verb 'represents'.
Shows, depicts, illustrates
Explain how paradox or inconsistency is represented in your prescribed text.
Jackie's opposition to ballet, followed by a reversal shows the paradox of parental love overriding ingrained prejudice.
How does structure influence meaning in your prescribed text?
The film's 3 act structure - discovery of dance, conflict with family/community and resolution at audition.
How does storytelling in your prescribed text invite responders to see the world differently?
By challenging gendered assumptions about who can dance.
How does audience context influence interpretation of your text?
Modern audiences may interpret Billy's defiance of stereotypes as progressive, whereas 1990s audiences may have seen it as more controversial.
List three film techniques.
How does your prescribed text challenge assumptions about human motivation?
The film challenges assumptions that masculinity is fixed by showing how Billy expresses strength through dance.
Analyse the use of figurative language in this quote:
"I feel a change in my whole body. And I've got this fire in my body. I'm just there. Flyin' like a bird. Like electricity. Yeah, like electricity".
Simile
Compare how storytelling conventions differ between your prescribed text and a poem you studied in Module A.
Visual realism in Billy Elliot vs repetition in various languages in 'This is where it begins' by Bobis.
Discuss the relationship between purpose and form in your text.
The film's purpose is to inspire and critique prejudice and is reinforced by its form as a social realist film that blends humour, grit and emotional drama.
Analyse this quote: "Lads do football or boxin' or wrestlin', not friggin ballet!"
Exclamation, listing, profanity
How does your prescribed text explore anomalies in human behaviour?
Billy is the anomaly in his family - preferring to pursue ballet instead of being a miner like his father and brother.
Define 'mise en scene'.
The arrangement of the scenery, props, etc. on the stage of a theatrical production or on the set of a film.
Evaluate how the role of storytelling in your prescribed text deepens responders' insight into human nature.
Through Billy's journey, the storytelling both honours working class solidarity and critiques its rigidity, giving insight into human resilience, change and identity.
Compare how context shapes meaning in your text and that of what you studied in Module B.
In Billy Elliot, 1980s context of class struggle and gender prejudice is central. In 'Curious Incident', the 1990s context of personal struggle and living with a neurodiverse child is focal.
What is a thesis statement?
Main argument