Guide to spelling, punctuation and grammar

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SAMPLE ESSAY 7: 
WRITING ABOUT A NOVEL
Writing an essay about a novel demands a slightly different approach
from writing about a play or poetry. As with essays on plays, you must
avoid paraphrasing or more or less telling the story (‘plot’ in terms of a
play) of the novel. You must understand what aspects of the novel you
are being asked to write about and concentrate on those, rather than
retelling the whole story and commenting on characters who may be
irrelevant to the assignment. You must, however, make close references
to the novel, mentioning relevant incidents or things that relevant
characters have said to back up the points you are trying to make. The
opportunity to quote at any length are limited (unless you are writing a
very long piece) so quotes should be brief and embedded at intervals in
your essay rather than in big chunks of quotation. 
Below is an essay written in response to the following topic:
‘In “Great Expectations”, Pip has to regain his moral values after
losing them along the way.’ Discuss this analysis of the novel.