Critical Analytical
Response to Literature
English 10-1
Introduction
 Start with a general statement about the topic.
This could be a quote, a dictionary definition, a
statement or an idea.
 Add more details about the idea, moving to
become more specific to the topic
 Transition to text
 Thesis statement
Thesis Statement
A thesis statement is the last sentence or two of
your introduction paragraph. It contains the focus of your
essay and tells your reader what your essay will be
about.
A thesis statement must be
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strong
defendable
make a statement
clear
concise
related to the topic
Thesis Formula
In the (text type), (text name), the author (author’s name)
suggests that… (answer to the thematic topic).
For example
Topic: What does the text creator(s) suggest about an individual in the midst
of conflict?
In the play, “Romeo and Juliet”, playwright
William Shakespeare suggests that an
individual in the midst of conflict may choose
to stand up for what (s)he believes, or may be
forced to act in a prescribed way.
Try One Yourself
Think about the short story, “Gaston”, by William
Soroyan. Create a thesis statement for the following topic.
What does the text creator(s)
suggest about the need for
individual identity?
Body Paragraphs
 Topic Sentence (state what the
paragraph will be about)
 S – statement sentence
 E – evidence from the text
 E – explanation of relevance and
analysis
 Concluding Sentence (summarizing
argument and transitioning to next
argument)
REPEAT 3 TIMES
Body Paragraphs
Statement of Ideas
 The S in your body paragraphs must be a strong
statement about the character
 Must be defendable
 Must be about the character’s traits (not about what the
character does, or what happens in the story)
 Must be able to be related to the topic
Body Paragraphs
Evidence from the text
 The first E in your body paragraphs must be directly from
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the text
Must support your statement
Must be accurate
Must be in quotation marks
Must be precise
Must be integrated correctly
Body Paragraphs
Explanation of Evidence
 The second E of your body paragraphs must explain the
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relevance of your statement and evidence to the topic
Must connect all parts of SEE together
Must be directly connected to statement and topic
Must relate everything back to your thesis statement
Must be clear and concise
Conclusion
 Restate thesis statement in other
words
 Summarize your three statement
arguments
 Make a general statement about
the topic
Introduction
Initially: Intro Sentence
SEE
SEE
SEE
Concluding Sentence
However: Intro Sentence
SEE
SEE
SEE
Concluding Sentence
Consequently: Intro Sentence
SEE
SEE
SEE
Concluding Sentence
Conclusion
ESSAY
OUTLINE
STRUCTURE
Let’s Create an Outline
As a class, we are going to create an essay outline for the
short story “The Father”
Topic: What does the text creator(s) suggest about the
impact of personal choice?
Where do we start?
 Understanding the topic:
 Circle the thematic topic in your essay question
 Define the main words in the thematic topic
 Rewrite the topic in your own words
 Take point-form notes under the following headings
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Character
Conflict
Outcome
Theme
**DIFFERENT OUTCOMES PRODUCE DIFFERENT THEMES**
Keep Going…
 Ensure that the topic works with the text you want to
talk about
 Do not try to force a topic on a text
 If you write an essay that does not address the topic, or that
does a poor job of addressing the topic, you will receive poor
marks
 It is far better to use a text that works with the topic than to
use your favorite text and make it work
HOMEWORK
 Read “Trifles” by Susan Glaspell
 Answer the multiple choice questions about the text in
your learning guide
 Write your answers on a separate sheet of paper