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ESSAY #2: Literary analysis
Assignment Sheet

printable version here

Description:  Without using any secondary sources beyond a dictionary, write a 750-1000 word (3 to 4 page) literary analysis essay that makes an interpretive argument about one to two of the texts we have read this semester.  You should present your issue clearly; state a clear, specific, and unambiguous position (your thesis) on that issue; develop an argument supporting your position with clear, sufficient, and relevant reasons and with convincing evidence and explanation (support); and anticipate and respond to readers' objections and alternative positions (rebuttals).

Topic: You can write on any poem, short story, or novel (up to two texts total) we have read so far this semester that you did not write on for your first essay.  You will choose from the list of topics on the topics page or can design your own topic with the professor’s approval.

Purpose: To persuade your audience to agree with your position.  You will make an interpretive argument -- you will not simply make an observation about a text, but rather make an INTERPRETATION about what you have observed.

Audience: Your audience has read the text(s) on which you are writing and knows the basic definitions of literary devices.

Points to consider:

1. Present Your Issue Clearly (Introduction):

   • Be sure to state the author(s) and title(s) of the text(s) you are writing about.

   • Explain the issue about which you are arguing - -what is the central question being answered? 

   • Give us context for your argument by telling us what aspects of the text you will focus on and what the most significant/noticeable features of the text are.  Your introduction should be specific to the text.  You may want to give a very brief description of what the text is about, but you do not want to summarize it or give a full overview the way you did in your book review essay.  Don't take the focus away from your argument. 

   • Avoid general and cosmic statements about literature, such as “good imagery brings a text to life.” 

   • Do NOT make an evaluation of the text or of the author.  Do not say the author does a “great job” or that it is a “good text.” 

   • Set up your argument by stating your thesis and forecasting your main reasons and rebuttals.

   • Remember your audience has read the text(s) and knows what all the literary devices are.

   • See Intros, Conclusions, and Transitions, for more help.

2. State a Clear, Specific, and Unambiguous Position (your thesis):

   • Your thesis will be a clear, specific, and unambiguous statement that takes a position on a literary issue. Remember that you are taking a position that is an arguable assertion: it is a forcefully stated opinion with which others may disagree.  

   • You must write not about something that is a fact, but about something that is open for interpretation. In other words, don’t try to argue that “Kate Chopin uses images of nature in ‘Story of an Hour’” because that is a fact.  Instead, argue that “Chopin uses images of nature to show how the self-centered desire for freedom will always win out over the altruistic desire to love another person.”

   • You also are not arguing something that cannot be supported by the text.  For instance, do not treat the characters as real people by arguing that "Joe and Rosa's marriage will break up in less than five years"; the novel does not cover what happens to them, so you cannot support that kind of assertion.

   • You need to take a side in your position -- you cannot waffle.  You also need to make it worth arguing -- avoid being vague, overly broad, or simplistic. 

3. Develop an Argument Supporting your position with clear, sufficient, and relevant reasons

• To support your position, you need reasons that are arguable assertions (clear and forceful statements with which others may disagree) that are tied to both your thesis and to the text(s) you are discussing.

• To make sure your reasons are tied to your thesis, look at what your thesis is asserting and make sure you are supporting all aspects of the thesis AND that you are not trying to make a point not connected to the thesis. Build your argument around the points you need to support your thesis, not around the plot of the story. 

• For example, let's say your thesis is

In “The Story of an Hour,” Kate Chopin uses images of nature and the main character's actions characterization to show how the self-centered desire for freedom will always win out over the altruistic desire to love another person.

Then you would need reasons that tie back to “images of nature,” "the main character's actions," and “the self-centered desire for freedom will always win out over the altruistic desire to love another person.” Therefore, you might have as reasons

• The images of the nature outside Mrs. Mallard’s window are images of freedom. 

• The way Mrs. Mallard tries to ignore nature suggests she is trying to altruistically love her husband.

• She eventually gives in to the sensations of nature, showing that self-centered freedom wins out over love.

• To make sure your reasons are connected to the text(s), make sure that the reasons talk specifically about the text.  For instance, in the reasons above, there are references to Mrs. Mallard, the nature outside her window, and her giving in to nature – all specific features/facts in the story.

• Remember to use literary devices (see Terms to Know) to help you develop reasons.  For example, in the examples above, the reasons are connected to imagery and characterization.  However, when you write about literary devices, you must write about them specifically.  In other words, don’t just say “the characterization of Mrs. Mallard’s actions” or “the imagery in the story”  but rather say “the way Mrs. Mallard tries to ignore nature” or “the images of the nature outside Mrs. Mallard’s window.” Remember to write about specifics, not generalities.

• Remember you are writing a focused argument: you will not be able to talk about all aspects of a text.  At the same time, you need sufficient support, so be sure to consider the whole text as you develop  your reasons.

4. ... and with Convincing Evidence and Explanation (support):

• Support your reasons with specific textual evidence, mostly in the form of direct quotations from the text, and with explanation instead of summary and assumptions. 

• When using quotations, quote only as much as you need: for instance, do not give five sentences if all you are talking about is a three-word phrase.

• Set up the quotation by giving us some context for it – for instance, in "Until Gwen," where and when is Bobby when he thinks “you feel like someone has finally given you permission to live”?  You can use a signal phrase to give context to your quotation – remember, all quotations must be integrated into a sentence (see Bedford Handbook chapter 56).

• When you use a quotation, you must explain it (analyze it) so your readers can see HOW it supports your reason.  Remember, you should always say something about any quotations you include – you should never expect your quotations to do the work for you. Don't assume we’ll agree with your evidence or see how it supports your point: spell everything out for us. 

• Be sure you are interpreting your quotations and NOT just rewording them.  For instance, do not quote “you feel like someone has finally given you permission to live” and then say “Here, Bobby finally feels like it is okay for him to be alive -- he does not need someone to give him permission.” 

• Do not fall into summarizing the story instead of making an argument. 

• Providing enough evidence and analysis is the  most difficult part of this assignment, so be sure to spend a lot of time on it! 

• Beware of vague "this"s and "which"s – read Bedford Handbook chapter 23.

• You will need to use your sources correctly (MLA guidelines).

5. Anticipate and Respond to Readers' Objections and Alternative Positions (rebuttals):

   • You should anticipate valid objections and alternative positions on your issue and rebut them. 

   • You may choose to counterargue (say yes, but…”) or refute (say no, you are wrong…”) in your rebuttals. 

   • You will need to use clear cues to indicate when you are rebutting (such as “Some might argue that …. but in fact ….). 

   • You will also need evidence and analysis to support your rebuttals. 

   • Make sure your response is strong so that raising the objection/question does not weaken your position. 

   • The rebuttals may be concerned with

     • an objection to a reason (“Some may say that the nature imagery in the story is about confinement, not freedom, because it deals with rain, but in fact the rain is a sign of new growth ...")

     • an objection to evidence ("Although some readers think that Bobby's actions are spontaneous, we must remember that earlier in the story he buys glue ..."...”). 

     • an alternative position ("Some may believe that love does win out in this story ...")

   • A good way to come up with rebuttals is to look for holes in your argument and to ask yourself if there are any places where you are not convinced yet by your own argument.

6. Conclusion:

   • Without simply repeating previous sentences in your essay word for word, restate ALL your main points -- both your thesis and the reasons and rebuttals supporting your thesis (hint: look at your topic sentences).

   • Don’t introduce new ideas that support your argument – for instance, don’t mention a new reason that also supports your thesis, don’t give a quotation that would have supported your assertion back in paragraph three, don’t change your mind about what your thesis is, etc.

   • Avoid general and cosmic statements about literature, such as “good imagery brings a text to life.” 

   • Do not make an evaluation of the text or of the author.  Do not say the author does a “great job” or that it is a “good text.” 

   • Take your thesis one step further by suggesting to us why this thesis is worth thinking about. Give us a sense of closure, but also leave us wanting to explore the ideas you’ve raised further. You may want to give a quotation that helps you make this final point.

   • Make sure your conclusion would not work better as your introduction. Also double-check in your conclusion that what you are stating is what you actually have been arguing for during the essay.

   • See Intros, Conclusions, and Transitions, for more help.

7. Organization:

   • Think of your argument as a pyramid: a broad foundation of evidence and explanation supports a smaller section of reasoning that supports the very small top of the pyramid, which is your judgment.  Thus, the bulk of your essay will be EVIDENCE AND EXPLANATION.

   • Do not automatically write a five paragraph essay; make your argument as long as it needs to be. Organize your essay around your argument, not around how long you think an essay is supposed to be.

   • Your introduction is like a table of contents for your essay, so make sure the points you raise in the body of your essay are in the same order that you raise them in your introduction.

   • Transitions show the connections between and among your ideas, so you need to understand how your ideas are connected to each other before you can make clear transitions.  A good transition needs clear cue words/phrases (such as Next, However, In addition, Most importantly, In contrast, Not only … but also, etc.) and will often use repetition (you may want to repeat part of your thesis, a phrase used in a previous paragraph, a similar structure to your last transition, etc.).  A transition can be separate from or part of your topic sentence.  See Intros, Conclusions, and Transitions, for more help.

Documentation and integrating quotations:

• You should use correct Modern Language Association (MLA) documentation in your essays with parenthetical notations and a works cited page.  Refer to the Bedford Handbook and me for guidance.

• This essay does not allow the use of any outside sources beyond the text itself and a dictionary.

• Integrate all quotations into your sentences: do not let them stand alone.  If a quotation is long, set it of as a “block” quotation.  See a style manual for more information.

• For every quotation, you will use parenthetical documentation listing the page number (put the number only – do not put “pp.” or “pg,” etc.).  If you are writing about one text, you will identify the title and author in your introduction and will not have to refer to the author in the parenthetical note.

• Much more info is available on the Documentation page.

Grammar and Mechanics: Problems in grammar and mechanics will lower the quality of your argument and thus the grade of your essay.  See the Major Errors page for information on the most significant grammar errors.  I am happy to meet with anyone to go over grammar concerns!

Required Conferences: All students are required to meet with me at least once during the writing process.  I encourage you to meet with me and use the writing Center as much as you want.).

Turnitin.com: Each student is required to submit his/her essay to turnitin.com before midnight on the day the essay is due.

Academic Honesty: do not consult, review, copy, or even read ANYTHING from outside sources  -- not Spark Notes, not another textbook, not your older sister’s essay, not a website – I want ONLY YOUR ideas and YOUR ideas ONLY. If you look at someone else’s ideas, you run the risk of plagiarizing. If you are having trouble with your essay, talk to me or a writing tutor. I strongly encourage you to review this course's academic honesty policy on the syllabus and to consult with me if you have any questions. Any student caught plagiarizing will automatically fail the course.

Formatting the Essay: See the formatting guidelines for directions.  I reserve the right not to accept an essay without correct formatting.

Portfolio:

1. All of the following items are REQUIRED for this essay assignment. 

   • All invention, outlines, etc.

   • First draft

   • First draft revision plan

   • Second draft

   • Peer Evaluations of draft 2

   • Second draft revision plan

   • Final draft

   • Unit Evaluation (please TYPE this): Answer these questions: 1. What was the most helpful part of the instruction/teaching for this unit?  2. What would have made the instruction better? 3. Other comments or suggestions?

2. Place all materials in a two-pocket folder with your name on the front.

3. Staple or paperclip and label all individual items (except for the final draft).  You may handwrite labels.

4. Items should appear in this order:

Penalties and Grading:

• See Guidelines to Evaluation for grading criteria for this essay

• -5 points for incomplete or late invention

• -5 points for EACH missing or late rough draft (2 rough drafts required)

• -5 points for failure to provide a draft for peer evaluation on time

• -5 points for failure to complete peer evaluations

• You will receive a homework grade based on the organization and completeness of your portfolio.

• I will randomly select one peer evaluation that you’ve completed from one of your classmate’s portfolios.  You will receive a homework grade based on the quality and comprehensiveness of your response.

SEE SYLLABUS FOR MORE INFORMATION

FAILURE TO DOCUMENT SOURCES AT ALL WILL RESULT IN AN AUTOMATIC GRADE OF F