Contextual evidence in text response

[brookereid]

Hey guys!

I did units 1+2 of Literature last year, which has given me a real insight into the cultural and personal influences of writers and their works. But I am now left wondering how much of this can be included in a text response essay as textual evidence? My teachers have either brushed me off or not known how to approach the matter. This is more specifically for prompts relating to the writer's intent and their presented ideas.

For example, I wrote to a prompt similar in effect to "Owen in his poems intends to expose both the lies and truth of the war".

Any help is greatly appreciated, thank you.

[marielacion]

Hey there!
Doing WO tommorow! I have a ton of contextual evidence in my essays! I have read over my SAC criteria sheet and placing Owen in his "social and historical context" is one of them. I can send you my essay if you're unsure on how to approach it! Let me know!
Cheers x

[brookereid]

That's so good to hear! I would love to read your essay, thanks so much!

My teachers have been so unclear about what counts as textual evidence, I've never really been sure of how much biographical proof to include.

Thanks heaps.

[literally lauren]

My advice would be to use very little evidence that isn't directly from the poems. You can get away with occasional references to WWI and Owen's life, but in general, every sentence in your essay should be about the text!

You can have a broader opening, or perhaps a few references scattered throughout your body paragraphs to relevant historical and societal concerns, but unlike a V&V essay in Lit. where you get a lot of freedom to incorporate relevant points, an English Text Response is much more focused on the text itself.

So you can make passing references, but do so with caution. Make sure it's for a valid, relevant analytical purpose too, and not just a bit of filler