Sorry, my bad. "Standard" structure was referring to the key argument-based analysis' or technique-based analysis'. I've never heard of one based on key players... Would you be mixing up the arguments and the techniques to show their intended effect on the audience? So like a build up?
Yes, it's essentially a 'build up' of analysis so it gives your piece a bit of direction - meaning you don't have to just float between random points of analysis and you can comment on overall persuasion by the end. It's not necessarily like 'mixing up the arguments' though; if anything you're structuring
by argument (eg. one para on how the author manipulates the idea of censorship, one paragraph on how he wants us to feel about governmental responsibility, and one on the idea of freedom and security.)
Might be best to check some of the earlier explanations (pg 1 of this thread) and let me know if you're still confused
Open question to everybody.
What are your views/ recommendations about the use of comparisons and analogies in context pieces.
For example, studying encountering conflict, would I be able to successfully compare people to trees. ie. if someone is rooted in the place that they grew up in with their beliefs passed to them by their fore-bearers, they are unlikely to change their views, which in turn leads to long lasting conflict
etc.
DO IT!!! I'm a sucker for these kinds of metaphors/puns/all-round-bad-humour, so that sort of stuff can work wonders for making your writing more engaging.
It all depends what kind of piece you're writing; if it's a mega-conventional & formal essay, then this might seem a little out of place, but if it's more hybrid-y then you can get away with a lot more.
And the usual do-as-your-teacher-says-for-SACs-disclaimer-here.
Having said that, making the metaphors too cliched or forced can be problematic. It also depends how much you're utilising the comparison, ie. whether you're just making an offhand reference, or constantly revisiting the metaphor to strengthen the link.
Like most things in Context I'm afraid it just comes down to 'it depends.'
It could complement your style and give the assessors a glimmer of hope as their coffee stained eyes drift to the piles of essays they still have to get through, or it could just make them grumble with irritation.
Ironically, it's best to
contextualise these sorts of options because it all comes down to how you write, so I guess see how your teacher reacts when marking your essays?
I am not sure where to look for the files you have uploaded in particular the hybrid essay / feature article. Could you please direct me to where they are
Yeah, so... my precious little laptop gave itself an aneurysm and so the drafts I had are now on a hard drive I'm desperately trying to recover. Or, more accurately, a hard drive that my tech-inclined mate is desperately trying to recover while I prod him with sticks. I'm on a phone at the moment so writing whole essays isn't really an ideal option.
Suffice it to say that for feature articles, it'd be better to look at actual feature articles (ie. non-Context-based, like in The Australian or an online magazine) to get a sense for how the genre operates. It's a really 'open' form of writing, so having a go yourself and then adapting your method later is probably better than attempting to appropriate someone else's.
As for the hybrid, that is something I want to post an example of just because I know it's not often explained or demonstrated, so hopefully by this weekend I'll have either recovered the one's I was working on before, or will have written a new one
It'll be posted here when I'm done:
English Resources and Sample High Scoring Responses