Writing a
Thesis for a
Literary
Analysis
Grade 11
English
Your Goal for the Essay
 Writer
presents the reader
with a new, original way of
looking at the novel.
Definition of Literature Analysis
Writer
 is asked to analyze a work based on
a prompt.
 Will use careful reasoning to explain
how that evidence relates to the
main points of the interpretation.
 Writer forms a thesis based on this
interpretation.
Deconstructing a Prompt
(constructing means to build) Deconstructing means to
take apart
To deconstruct a prompt:
1. Read it
2. Take it apart
3. Understand what you need
to do
4. Determine how to respond
to the
prompt
correctly
National RtI Writing Demonstration
Project
How do I
do that?
Identifying Key Parts of a Written Prompt
Does the prompt give you suggestions to get
started?
• Pay careful attention to the wording of the prompt.
• Look for suggestions in the prompt to get you started
(ideas to think about, verbs that tell you what to do).
• Use key words from the prompt to construct
your thesis statement.
National RtI Writing
Demonstration Project
Identifying Key Parts of a Written Prompt
You can use the word RAFTS to help you remember how to deconstruct a prompt.
What role do you take as the writer? (student, citizen, expert)
Role
Who is your audience? (class, parent, teacher, friend)
Audience
What kind of response are you writing?
Format
(essay, letter, descriptive)
What are the verbs in the prompt asking you to do?
Task
(advise your classmate, justify your opinion, explain why…)
What are the key words that you need to include in your response?
Strong key
words
Hint: Use these words to construct your thesis statement.
How do I develop a Thesis?
Writer
 Makes a more comprehensive list of
the details that relate to your point.
 Remembers that one of the qualities
that makes for a good interpretation
is that it avoids the obvious.
The Thesis
Writer creates the thesis:
 a one sentence condensation of
the analysis that is to follow. We
refer to that condensation as a
thesis statement.

A thesis statement:


tells the reader how you will interpret
the significance of the subject matter
under discussion.
is a road map for the paper; in other
words, it tells the reader what to
expect from the rest of the paper.
A thesis statement:


directly answers the question asked
of you. A thesis is an interpretation of
a question or subject, not the subject
itself. The subject, or topic, of an
essay might be The Great Gatsby; a
thesis must then offer a way to
understand the novel.
makes a claim that others might
dispute.
A thesis statement:

is usually a single sentence usually
at then end of your introduction (your
first paragraph) that presents your
argument to the reader.
Formulating a Thesis Statement


Essay must be thesis driven, so form
a thesis based on the prompt.
Ask yourself: Do I answer the
question? Re-reading the question
prompt after constructing a working
thesis can help you fix an argument
that misses the focus of the question.
Formulating a Thesis Statement


Ask yourself:
Is my thesis statement specific
enough? Thesis statements that are
too vague often do not have a strong
argument. If your thesis contains
words like “good” or “successful,”
see if you could be more specific:
why is something “good”; what
specifically makes something
“successful”?
Formulating a Thesis Statement


Ask yourself:
Does my thesis pass the “So
what?” test? If a reader’s first
response is, “So what?” then you
need to clarify, to forge a
relationship, or to connect to a larger
issue.
So, how do I do it?


Use your prewriting time to jot down
ideas that support your thesis.
Choose the pieces of evidence you’ll
be able to say the most about.
Thesis Supported by
Evidence

As you begin thinking about what claim/thesis
you can make (i.e. what kinds of conclusion
you can come to) keep in mind that they
should relate to the evidence.
Thesis Supported by
Evidence
In your essay you will
 Support your thesis with appropriate
examples from the work(s).
 Each time you use a specific reference to
your story, be sure to explain the significance
of that evidence in your own words.
And that is
how you write
a thesis for a
literary
analysis!