Literature Help

profileRealnice12
wiritngaliteraryanalysisfinal.pptx
Home>Literature homework help>Literature Help

Refresher: Elements of a Literary Analysis

A Few Helpful Reminders for How to Write a Literary Analysis/Expository Essay

Introduction

An expository essay and in this case, a literary analysis, makes a claim about a work of literature.

Usually, the writer chooses one main point, one small aspect of the work and shows how this main point helps to understand the whole work.

The main point is presented as the thesis.

Thesis Statement

Each essay must include, and work to prove/explore, a thesis statement.

The thesis is the main claim that you will be working to prove throughout the essay.

The thesis is stated as the final sentence of the introduction paragraph.

In the case of a literary analysis or expository essay, the thesis should tell your audience what it is you are going to write about the work.

thesis statement (cont.)

For example, if you are writing about Emily Dickinson’s focus on imagination throughout her poetry, your thesis might look like this:

One of the main themes of Dickinson’s poetry that informs both the form and content of her work is the imagination.

thesis statement (cont.)

The following paragraphs of your essay will then discuss how the theme of imagination can be seen in the Dickinson’s poems.

You might choose two or so poems on which to focus (perhaps one for each paragraph of your essay) and offer examples and close readings of “imagination” as a theme in the work.

Your argument will support your thesis.

Paragraphs

Each paragraph of the essay should contain one complete thought/idea.

Each thought or idea should really be supported by a concrete example.

When we talk about concrete examples we mean examples from the text of which you are discussing, usually in the form of quotes or paraphrases.

In the example on the next slide, notice the topic sentence, or first sentence of the paragraph which sums up or shares the mini-thesis/focus of the paragraph.

paragraphs (cont.)

Emily Dickinson, in her poem “Life: XLII” discusses how the human mind is a source of vast creative energy. She uses nature imagery to depict the power of the mind when she writes that “The brain is deeper than the sea/for, hold them, blue to blue,/ The one the other will absorb,/As sponges, buckets do” (3). Here, Dickinson offers a comparison between the ocean and the mind, both of which are deep and hold much life, however, the brain (or the mind, knowledge) is able to grow and become more vast, through learning and imagination.

paragraphs (cont.)

In the example paragraph, there is a concrete example followed by a discussion of the quote, unpacking the meaning from the excerpt and connecting it back to the discussion. This helps to ground the discussion in the text.

You will also notice the commentary serves as a transition to the paragraph that will follow.

Discussion vs. Summary

Remember that the essays written in most literature courses are expository essays comprised of critical analysis and interpretations.

These essays should not be book reports or plot summaries of the works we read in the course, but instead, thoughtful interpretations.

Find a theme, idea, or interesting aspect of the work and discuss it.

Tell us what you think the text means or why it is an important read.

Works cited

Dickinson, Emily. “Life: XLIII”. American Literature Since the Civil War. Create Editions. Ed. Perkins and Perkins. Mcgraw Hill Companies, Inc., 2012. 3.