Module A CSSA Exemplar (5 Takeaways)

Before I chat about this Module A CSSA Exemplar, I want to say that English was not a subject I thoroughly enjoyed in the HSC. I wasn’t confident in my abilities, particularly at the start of Year 12. I worked hard to improve, and I went into my trial exams reasonably confident. Like, I knew I wouldn’t fail…

I was very surprised when I got my Trials back and only lost four marks out of the 110. This included two 20/20 Module Essays, which absolutely floored me. I never thought I’d do that well.

So many exemplar essays are written over time, perfected gradually. Instead, I want to put up an exemplar that was actually written in exam conditions, in my actual CSSA Trial! I typed the essay out word for word, no corrections besides spelling. You can download the essay at the link below. The essay also has comments which highlight things the essay did well, the things you should be doing to make your essays the best that they can be. In this article, I am going to go over 5 big takeaways from the essay that might not be so obvious.

Module A CSSA Exemplar – Download Here

1. No Retell

This is a super common mistake; at no point do I tell the marker what the texts are about, or about what happens in key scenes. It is unnecessary, your markers know your texts, and you can analyze the text without these details:

Dehumanising dialogue such as “How can it not know what it is?” is outweighed and challenged by Batty’s “tears in the rain” monologue, as Scott seeks to challenge the ideas of genetic engineering through chiascuro lighting and non-diegetic sound.

No plot details, purely the dialogue and the techniques used. Be efficient with your analysis.

2. Conceptual Topic Sentences

Check out this example of a topic sentence and amplification:

Human emotions remain a relevant concept of discussion in texts across time. Shelley and Scott have both considered, in their respective forms, the ideas which characterize the human condition.

Notice that the first sentence is purely conceptual, and further, links to the Module and Elective (texts across time). Only in the second sentence should you introduce the text, to ensure that you are focusing on the conceptual aspects of your analysis.

3. Audience Focus

It is important to understand that texts are just mediums for communication. The composer wants to tell something to their audience, given them some new understanding or communicate a perspective. With this in mind, it is important to accentuate the audience impacts, what we the audience gain from studying the text. This isn’t learning new things about the characters either, this is conceptual. Look at this example:

The opening shot, an extreme close up of a human eye, goes further; as we are demanded to consider our own humanity.

We are not being told anything about the characters or the text, we are considering our own humanity. It is relevant beyond the text. This is crucial for proving to the marker that you understand the idea that texts are mechanisms for the communication of ideas.

4. Word Length

While not a direct takeaway from the essay itself, it is important to consider its length. Just over 1000 words.

Now, it is absolutely possible to get a 20/20 with less words (and indeed, my 20/20 Module B essay was less words than this). The big thing to stress therefore is that you don’t need 1300 words to get a 20/20 in a module essay. The trick is being efficient with your word choice so that you don’t need too much more than 1000 to get the marks. No plot retells, no unnecessary detail, nothing that won’t get you marks.

To reduce word count, you can also try this cool trick: Blend your quote into what you actually want to say. An example:

Shelley considered notions of “nature’s power” from a romanticist standpoint, challenging ideas of the Enlightenment through powerful personification of nature as “the spirit that inhabits and guards this place.”

Instead of  actually saying what the quote does, I let the quote do it for me! This is a super effective way to make your writing shine, make it more succinct, and maintain a flow. Interrupting your thought process to introduce a quote is a bit awkward, and we don’t have to do it every time. Try this trick, it looks amazing in an essay.

5. A Note on Context

 For the Advanced students, we are taught that context is an important inclusion in our essays. Texts are products of their contexts, after all. Many students include contextual details, but it much more difficult to use it properly to further a point:

Walton’s desire to “obtain a niche in the temple,” is made to resonate with Shelley’s contextual audience through quasi-religious imagery.

 Here (though it is implied, if I had my time again I’d make this more obvious by adding the word ‘religious’ before ‘audience’), I am commenting on how Shelley capitalized on her religious context through appealing to their sense of spirituality. Not only am I implying something about her context, I am explaining how this played into Shelley’s composition. I did this periodically throughout the essay, linking some aspect of the text to its context, in order to prove that representation of the same ideas can vary based on the audience they are composed for.