The big idea: Paper 1 gives you unseen non-literary text(s) and asks for a guided analysis.
| Level | Texts | Marks |
|---|---|---|
| SL | analyses one text | [20] |
| HL | analyses two | [40] |
The whole game: The whole game is one move: don't just spot features — explain the choices the writer made and what they achieve. Choices → meaning.
Each text comes with a guiding question. You may answer it, or choose your own focus — either way your analysis must be focused, not a random tour of everything you notice.
Feature-spotting (weak)
- 'There is a rhetorical question.'
- 'The writer uses the word "home".'
- Names a device and moves on
- Lists techniques with no 'so what'
Analysis (strong)
- 'The rhetorical question pulls the reader in and makes refusing feel unreasonable.'
- '"Home" carries warmth and safety, so the charity's cause feels personal.'
- Names the choice, then its effect and meaning
- Every point earns its place by explaining effect
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Use the same four steps on any text. The heart of it is step 3 — the move that turns noticing into analysing.
Four steps to a guided analysis
Get the gist
In one read, fix the text type, purpose, audience and main message. Everything you say should serve this.
Use the guiding question
Let it point you to a central feature — or choose your own focus. Turn it into a one-sentence thesis (your overall answer).
Feature → effect → meaning
For each point: name the choice (device, word, image, layout), explain its effect on the reader, then link it to the writer's purpose/meaning. This is Criterion B.
Structure it
Thesis, then paragraphs each on one feature or aspect (each doing feature-effect-meaning), then a short conclusion. Quote briefly and often.
Gist → Guiding question → Feature-Effect-Meaning → Structure
- Thesis
- Your one-sentence overall answer that the whole analysis supports.
- Tone
- The writer's attitude — e.g. urgent, playful, angry, warm.
- Register
- How formal or informal the language is, and who it suits.
- Diction
- Word choice, and the associations those words carry.
- Juxtaposition
- Placing two things side by side so they comment on each other.
The sentence stem to use: Keep looping this stem: ‘By [choice], the writer [effect], which [meaning/purpose].’
Example: By repeating 'every child', the writer makes the problem feel vast and personal, pressing the reader to act.
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How this is tested: Real guiding questions almost always say ‘how’ and ‘to what effect’ — for example, ‘How and to what effect is tone used to express the author's opinion?’ That wording is telling you: analyse effect, don't list features.
Imagine an opinion column that opens: ‘Let's be honest — nobody reads the terms and conditions.’ Watch a weak note become a strong point.
From note to analysis
Weak (feature-spotting)
‘The writer uses the phrase "Let's be honest" and a dash.’ — True, but it earns almost nothing: no effect, no meaning.
Better (add the effect)
‘"Let's be honest" speaks directly to the reader and sounds like a friend confiding.’ — Now there is an effect.
Strong (add the meaning)
‘By opening with "Let's be honest", the writer adopts a confiding tone, positioning the reader as an ally — so the criticism that follows feels like shared common sense, not a lecture.’ — Choice → effect → meaning.
Name the choice → its effect → the meaning
Notice the move: Same detail, three levels. Only the third does what Criterion B rewards: it evaluates how the choice shapes meaning. Aim every paragraph at that third level.
How and to what effect is tone used to express the author's opinion in an opinion column? (a real Paper 1 guiding-question style)
Model answer plan
See the mark-by-mark plan — for / against / judgement, with marking guidance — in study mode.
Common mistakes: 1. Listing devices with no effect — always add the ‘so what’.
2. Summarising the text instead of analysing it.
3. Ignoring the guiding question's focus and writing about everything.
4. Forgetting visual choices (layout, image, colour) in visual text types — they are analysable too.