For example, if I am writing a story about a robbery, how should I begin? Should I start by describing the house itself so my readers can picture the scene clearly? Or would I prefer to begin with the robber himself, zooming in on his old clothes or explaining his motive so that perhaps the reader will feel more sympathetic towards him? Or should I introduce the owner of the house as he hears a crash downstairs, so that the reader is thrown straight into the action (a technique called beginning ‘in medias res’)?
At the end of the same story, I might want to finally reveal the identity of the robber. How should I build tension before the shock? Should I use lots of one-sentence paragraphs to slow the reader down? Or should I use lots of dialogue so they can hear the characters’ opinions? Or should I use lots of punctuation like question marks and ellipses to force them to pause and consider clues?
These are the types of decisions that writers make as they put together a story. It’s your job to work out why they have made each decision.
Analysing Structure
You can analyse structure at various different levels:
Whole-Text Structure
When you analyse the structure of the whole text, you can discuss the following elements:
- How the writer has chosen to open and close their text.
- How the focus shifts from paragraph to paragraph as the text progresses.
- What overall structure the narrative has (linear, non-linear, or cyclical).
- What narrative perspective the writer has chosen (first or third person).
Paragraph structure
When you analyse the structure of individual paragraphs, you can discuss the following elements:
- How the paragraph opens (the content of its topic sentence).
- How the paragraph closes (the content of its concluding sentence).
- The length of the paragraph (whether it contains one sentence or many sentences; lots of complex sentences or lots of simple sentences).
- Its cohesion with surrounding paragraphs (how it flows in the text).
Sentence structure
When you analyse the structure of sentences, you can discuss the following elements:
- The sentence length (if it is particularly short or particularly long).
- The first or last word of the sentence (if they are noticeable for a particular reason).
- Repetition of words, word classes, or structures within the sentence.
- The sentence type (declarative, interrogative, exclamatory, or imperative).
- The sentence form (simple, compound, or complex).
Punctuation
When you analyse the use of punctuation, you can discuss the following elements:
- The types of punctuation used.
- Repeated punctuation and the possible reason for this.
- The way that the punctuation breaks up sentences or paragraphs.
- The tension created through placement of punctuation.
For help with any of the techniques discussed in this blog, sign up for a Get My Grades subscription today – we are currently offering a 7-day free trial for new users! Our platform has hundreds of pages devoted to English Language to help you prepare for difficult tasks such as analysing structure, with thousands of questions to help you practise. Check out our example content here and don’t forget to ask your parent or guardian before signing up.
Note: Some of the information about analysing structure above may not be consistent across all exam boards. These are elements that teachers at Get My Grades consider to be relevant to structural analysis, but advice from exam boards may vary (especially around the issue of sentence types and forms).
- A huge range of resources and online textbook content, arranged into units, topics and subtopics.
- Over 75,000 practice questions of varying types, like those on exams - not just multiple choice - written by experienced teachers.
- Instant feedback after each question, with student-friendly mark schemes and explanations.
- Automated tracking, so that you can see where they are doing well and where they are struggling - which you just can't get from a traditional textbook or revision guide!
Get My Grades subscriptions cost just £9 per student per month, or £75 per student for access for the year - with all our subjects and qualifications included, including many of the most common GCSE and IGCSE courses.
Sign up now to explore the platform - and, to give you a chance to start making the most of Get My Grades, use discount code MONTH1 to get your first month for just £1!
