Literary Analysis EssayHonors English 2

2013

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Thinking about the genre…Resembles an argument

You make a claim about the workSupport your claim with evidence

from the text, reasoning, and analysis

The purpose is to persuade the reader that your analysis and interpretation of the work are valid, reasonable, and logical.

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Thinking about the genre…Participate actively in the construction

of knowledge about the textThe text itself creates only part of its

messageLiterature cannot be empirically tested

in the lab—its meanings come from its readers

You will read, react to, think about, and interpret the text

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Thinking about the genre…Your focus is to interpret and

analyze the textBe objectiveUse third person pronouns onlyInclude a clearly stated thesis

(claim)Use present tense verbs to

discuss the work

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Strategies for Reading the Work1st reading—read through the work to get

the “gist” of the plot, the characters, and meaning

2nd reading—pay attention to vocabularyExamine the setting and its culture;

consider socioeconomic status and ethnicity

Examine how characters interact with one another, how they speak

Annotate the text!

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The AssignmentWrite about any piece of literature from

the Southern Gothic short story packet.Your essay should be an argument that

provides your interpretation/analysis of the work.

Support that claim with appropriate and sufficient details (evidence) from the work.

Supplement your evidence with secondary research.

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Exploring Your Topic—

Identify which short story

you will work with.

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BrainstormWhat is your “gut reaction”? What, specifically, do you

like or dislike?How are the experiences of the characters like/unlike

my own? Does the difference make the character difficult to understand?

What is the setting? What recurring images or objects did I notice in the

work? Do they have cultural significance?What is the title? Why did the author choose it?Who is “telling” the story? Why? How would it be

different from another point of view?Why might the author have written this work?

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Literary TheoryVarious Perspectives for Literary Criticism

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Formalism

Treats the work as its own distinct piece, free from its environment, era, even author

The key to understanding a text lies within the text itself

Typical Questions—

How does a work use imagery to develop its own symbols?

How are the various parts of the work interconnected?

How does the author resolve apparent contradictions within the work?

Is there a central or focal passage that can be said to sum up the entirety of the work?

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Psychoanalytic

Much of the human mental process takes place in the subconscious mind & reveals itself through symbols and code

The critic seeks to decode these meanings by examining the writer’s psychology as it applies to the work.

Three approaches—

Examine the psychological process of art—what effect does the work have on the reader? How does the work impact the mental and sensory functions of the reader?

Study the psychology of the writer. What was the writer’s motivation? What makes him/her tick? What nuances are revealed in the symbolism?

Analyze fictional characters. What actions might give insight to the author?

Examines the surface, while speculating what lies

beneath.

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New Criticism

Reconnect a work with the time period in which it was produced

Identifies the work with the cultural and political movements of the time

Assumes every work is a product of the historic movement that created it

Typical Questions—

What language/character/events present reflect the current events of the author’s day?

How are the events’ interpretation and presentation a product of the culture of the author?

How does the literary text function as part of a continuum with other texts from the same period?

How does the work consider traditionally marginalized populations?

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Feminist

Concerned with how literature reinforces or undermines the economic, political, social, and psychological oppression of women

Also concerned with less obvious forms of marginalization

Typical Questions—

How is the relationship between men and women portrayed?

How are male and female roles defined?

How do characters embody these traits?

What does the work reveal about patriarchy?

What role does the work play in terms of women’s literary history and literary tradition?

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Planning the Essay

Creating a Working Thesis/Claim Should state the writer’s perspective, but allows it

to be debated

Should state a writer’s opinion, but allow readers to arrive at their own conclusions

Pride and Prejudice is about Elizabeth Bennet’s effort to overcome her own proud behavior and discrimination towards Mr. Darcy, as well as how her family is affected by the haughtiness and preconceptions of the society around them.

Pride and Prejudice is about five sisters and their journey to find love.

Which one is debatable?

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Developing a Claim/ThesisLook over your chosen text.What strikes you as an interesting

issue?What idea do you keep thinking

about or coming back to in your notes?

Write your claim as a complete sentence, keeping in mind you should state it in third person.

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Peer Review

Trade organizers with a partner.Read your partner’s claim. Is it strong? What makes it

strong?Is it on the weak side? How can it

be stronger?Give specific feedback.

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Revising and Moving OnRevising the Thesis

Refine your thesis to make it stronger.

Make sure that you have a working thesis that lends itself to the evidence.

Make a writing plan.

Gathering the Evidence

Start brainstorming passages from the text that support your thesis.

Organize the evidence—your paper has to have flow.

Interpret the evidence. What does it mean?

Stay away from summary!