Advanced Sample Analysis 2
- Let's try and analyze another text.
- After all, practice makes progress!
Sample Quote:
“I glanced at a buzzing bee, / a dull grey pebble fell to the ground. / I glanced at a singing bird, / a handful of dusty gravel spattered down.”
Step 1: Identify Stylistic Features
- Repetition:
- “I glanced” is repeated at the start of two lines.
- Effect: Emphasizes Medusa’s anxious, obsessive mindset and builds a rhythmic pattern that mirrors her compulsive checking or paranoia.
- Enjambment:
- The lines run over without full stops (e.g., line 1 into 2, and 3 into 4).
- Effect: Creates a sense of instability or emotional disintegration. The uncontrolled flow reflects the unraveling of her identity and control.
- Juxtaposition / Contrast:
- “buzzing bee” vs. “grey pebble”, “singing bird” vs. “dusty gravel”.
- Effect: Highlights transformation from life to lifelessness, reflecting how Medusa's emotional state taints the world around her.
- Metaphor:
- The transformation of living creatures into lifeless objects.
- Effect: Represents how her jealousy and rage turn beauty and vitality into lifelessness, a metaphor for emotional ruin.
- Sound Devices - Alliteration & Consonance:
- “dusty gravel spattered down” contains hard consonant sounds (d/g/p).
- Effect: Creates a harsh, grating auditory effect that mirrors violence and decay.
- Color Imagery:
- “grey”, “dusty”
- Effect: Conveys dullness, lifelessness, and emotional bleakness, reinforcing Medusa’s inner emotional world.
- Sensory Detail:
- “buzzing”, “singing”, “spattered”
- Effect: Appeals to hearing and touch, intensifying the reader’s immersion and the suddenness of transformation.
- Symbolism:
- Bees and birds symbolize life, freedom, and nature turned to pebbles and gravel (symbols of death, ruin).
- Effect: Symbolic loss of hope, beauty, and love.
Step 2: Put this into a PEEL Paragraph
- We've identified loads of techniques, but you don’t need to spot and analyze every technique. You just need to:
- Pick the ones that best support your interpretation.
- Analyze them in depth, not just name them.
- Always link them back to the thesis.
P (Point):
- Duffy uses metaphor, sound, syntax, and visual imagery in Medusa to show how emotional betrayal distorts perception and corrodes identity.
E (Evidence):
- In the lines, “I glanced at a buzzing bee, / a dull grey pebble fell to the ground. / I glanced at a singing bird, / a handful of dusty gravel spattered down,” Medusa’s gaze turns living creatures into lifeless matter.
E (Explanation):
- The extended metaphor of transformation, "bee to pebble, bird to gravel" externalizes Medusa’s inner pain, implying that her emotional suffering makes the world around her decay.
- The enjambment across the lines fragments the rhythm, reflecting her fractured mindset.
- Harsh consonance in “gravel spattered down” creates a violent, jarring sound, evoking the destructive impact of her perception.
- The repetition of “I glanced” builds a sense of anxiety and compulsiveness
- Color imagery (“grey,” “dusty”) drains vitality from the scene, symbolizing emotional numbness.
L (Link):
- Through these stylistic choices, Duffy humanizes Medusa, portraying her not as a monster, but as someone consumed by fear, paranoia, and grief
- Someone whose pain literally shapes the world around her.
Step 3: Putting it all together
In Medusa, Duffy uses stylistic contrasts to expose the emotional deterioration caused by jealousy and self-hatred. The repetition of “I glanced” at the start of consecutive lines mirrors Medusa’s obsessive need to monitor the world around her, creating a compulsive, almost panicked rhythm. This is reinforced by enjambment, where the lines flow without pause, suggesting a lack of control and emotional unraveling. Duffy deepens this instability through sharp juxtapositions: the vibrant “buzzing bee” becomes a “dull grey pebble,” and a “singing bird” is reduced to “dusty gravel.” These transformations operate as metaphors for Medusa’s internal decay, her perception turns life into lifelessness, beauty into ruin. The shift from natural vitality to dead matter symbolizes how destructive emotions can corrode one's world. Duffy’s use of harsh consonant sounds in “dusty gravel spattered down” also amplifies the violence of this change, creating a jarring auditory effect that echoes the character’s inner torment. Finally, the imagery of color and sound “grey,” “buzzing,” “singing” emphasizes the sensory loss that accompanies emotional collapse. Through these layered stylistic choices, Duffy paints a vivid portrait of a woman consumed by insecurity, where perception becomes punishment and love is petrified into dust
Write an analytical paragraph based on the following extract:
“I never get to talk to nobody. I get awful lonely.”
Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck
Using the PEEL structure (Point, Evidence, Explanation, Link), write a paragraph analyzing how Steinbeck uses literary techniques to explore the theme of gender inequality. You should:
- Identify at least two techniques (e.g. dialogue, tone, repetition, characterization)
- Explain the effect of each technique in relation to the theme of gender inequality
Solution
Level 1
- Identifies a technique with little or no explanation
- No clear PEEL structure
- Misunderstands context or theme
Level 2
- Some attempt to explain a technique
- Purpose is unclear or poorly linked
- Structure is weak or inconsistent
Level 3
- Identifies at least one relevant technique
- Some explanation of effect
- Limited attempt to connect to the theme
- Basic PEEL structure is attempted
Level 4
- Identifies one or two techniques with generally clear effects
- Links techniques to theme with some insight
- Mostly follows PEEL structure, but lacks flow or depth
Level 5
- Identifies multiple techniques and explains them clearly
- Purpose and effect are well-connected to the theme
- Uses PEEL structure effectively with some cohesion between ideas
Level 6
- Identifies multiple techniques with detailed explanation
- Makes consistent links to purpose and theme
- Strong, cohesive PEEL paragraph with logical development
Level 7
- Sophisticated analysis of multiple techniques
- Explains effect with precision and insight
- Consistently links to theme and authorial purpose
- Fluent, cohesive PEEL structure with a confident academic voice
Sample Level 7 Response
Steinbeck explores gender inequality through dialogue and repetition to reveal how Curley’s wife is emotionally isolated by a patriarchal society. Through the simple, ungrammatical speech in “I never get to talk to nobody,” Steinbeck emphasizes her lack of education and social power. The double negative creates a sense of desperation, reinforcing how her gender confines her to silence and exclusion on the ranch. The repetition of “I” also highlights her self-centered loneliness, a product of being reduced to Curley’s possession rather than treated as an individual. Furthermore, the tone of vulnerability in “I get awful lonely” shows the psychological toll of being the only woman in a male-dominated space. Her need for attention is not vain but a symptom of deep neglect and dismissal. Steinbeck uses her character not just to evoke sympathy, but to critique the gender roles that strip women of meaningful human connection. This shows how gender inequality is not only systemic but emotionally damaging.
