How To Construct a Body Paragraph in Lit Analysis:
1) Topic Sentence: Must have an argumentative topic sentence: no plot summary, no quotes to start! Make an argument – topic sentences are mini-thesis statements and show strong Level 2 thinking. Should reflect the content of the paper. More general intro to the paragraph.
2) Provide any important background or context, but only if necessary.
Avoid plot summary for no good reason!
3) Literary Evidence Primary Source: You must cite a quote to support your topic sentence: again, less is more! Since you are analyzing an entire novel, you want to choose key sections (scenes or passages) from the novel to analyze and connect to theme. What you choose to analyze shows how well you know the novel. Choose 1-2 significant quotes from that scene or passage that actually need your analysis and your skill to unpack and analyze the quotes. You must blend in the quotes and correctly cite page number. Do not leave quotes standing all alone!
4) Explanation of Quote: You have to pause and dig into the quote!
Don’t just cite the quote and move on! For example, many of you used the quote about Elizabeth making a “cold house” in
Crucible essay, so you cited that quote and then just moved on; this is an incomplete analysis because you never fully explained what “cold” means – stop to analyze diction (word choice), irony, figurative language, etc. Don’t just move on!
5) Critical Analysis Secondary Source: You now need to cite a critical source that either supports your argument or disagrees with it. You now to correctly cite the quote and blend it in. Then, pause to analyze the quote and connect it what you’ve already written. You must provide analysis in your own words of the critical source because that brings your voice into the essay. (Depending on the structure and content of the paragraph, you may not even be using a critical source
OR you can use it wherever you think it fits best in the paragraph!)
6) Concluding Sentence: This is a more specific end to the paragraph – really hammer home your point! Do not end a paragraph on a quote because then you have two problems: (1) an unexplained quote (2) your voice is in jeopardy because the author’s words are threatening the power of your voice; use the concluding sentence to end the paragraph with your own strong voice!