For this activity, you’ll choose one of our essays listed below to assess and analyze in a literary analysis essay.
Here are your options:
-Inner City Blues by Paula L. Woods
-Murder on the Red River by Marcie R. Rendon
-Clark and Division by Naomi Hirahara
Prompt
A literary analysis essay’s purpose “is to provide a careful examination and evaluation of a work of literature to better understand the work” (Winston-Salem State University). A literary analysis essay is not a summary of the work itself. Instead, “it is an argument about the work that expresses a writer’s personal perspective, interpretation, judgment, or critical evaluation of the work” (Germanna University). That is your purpose in writing about one of the novels listed above.
A literary analysis can be three pages or thirty pages. This essay is 5-7 pages in length and therefore you’ll need to create a specific and argumentative thesis statement; you will not be able to cover every aspect of your chosen novel in this essay, so be careful when choosing your thesis statement and lens of analysis. You’ll support your thesis statement with body paragraphs that rely on analysis rather than summary and provide ample evidence (quotes, paraphrasing, etc.) from your chosen novel. When reading, commenting on, and grading your essays, I’ll be looking for the following items:
An introductory paragraph with a thesis statement that controls and guides the rest of the essay
Body paragraphs that avoid summary and instead rely on analysis and evidence from your chosen novel
Good organization and a logical flow from one paragraph to the next
Sophisticated analysis that derives itself from your personal interpretation of the novel
A concise conclusion that succinctly wraps up your essay
Use of MLA formatting and a Works Cited page
Additional research is not required for this essay, but you might find yourself using outside research to support your claims or demonstrate how your novel has wider historical, cultural, or social implications.
We will go over literary analysis throughout the semester, but if you’d additional guidance or a few additional literary analysis resources on how to do them, here are some:
https://libguides.uta.edu/literarycriticism
https://wssu.libguides.com/english/literaryanalysis
This activity is due Friday, April 12 at 11:59pm. Below are the logistics for your essay:
An essay of 5-7 pages in length (excluding the Works Cited page) that meets the above prompt requirements for a literary analysis essay
Essay has an original title and is double-spaced with a standard size 12 font
Essay uses MLA formatting
A Works Cited page listing all your sources
