3U – Literary Essay Composition – Mr. Go
3U Macbeth Literary Essay Feedback
Generally:
Remember that the purpose of a literary essay is to explore an idea, a claim presented in
the thesis. Literary criticism explores a piece of literature and examines the artist’s use
of language and how the themes are promoted through various dramatic and literary
techniques. Shakespeare is particularly famous for his use of poetic device and crafting
of timeless characters.
Greatest Strengths:
- identifying examples, gathering the evidence
THESIS: O(pinion) + (because) reasons a, b, and c.
Ex: Shakespeare promotes the inescapable nature of fate through blood, darkness and
light, and sleep imagery.
Most common weaknesses:
- poorly introduced theses. The various types of imagery (i.e., the reasons of the thesis)
need to be previewed and discussed prior to their appearance at the end of the intro.
- Embedding quotations into the grammar of the analysis. Summarizing the plot rather
than delving into the dramtic significance of the selected evidence
- using transition words or phrases to guide reader from one argument to the next
Content
Intro: - Opening sentence: stick to the text. Avoid too general a statement. Begin with a
reference to a moment in the play that focuses the reader on your analysis. Mention the
general thematic context behind your arguments.
- Prior to thesis, provide a preview of arguments and set parameters of your discussion.
Prepare reader for thesis by expanding on importance of each type of image (universal
symbolism, or that used in the play). Ex: If blood is one of your images, speak of its
importance as a historical archetype (biblical, sacrificial, mythological), the association
of blood with violence (even in modern media, movies, news).
- avoid (grandiose) empty praise of author (ex: “Shakespeare is one of the most magnificent
writers. His masterpiece, Macbeth…). By appreciating through criticism, you are showing how
good the work is, not merely telling the reader (i.e., show how author is great through
her/his work rather than merely saying it is great.
3U – Literary Essay Composition – Mr. Go
Style
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Stay in the present tense unless referring to actual historical events
For example:
Lady Macbeth provides audiences with an example of one of the first feminists
who take charge. To be sure, the average Elizabethan woman, whose place in the
home was relegated to childrearing and house work might have viewed the play
with a sense of shock if not horror at seeing such a breech in societal proprieties.
would When referring to the title of a work, underline for bound works (e.g.,
plays, novels, anthologies), “quotations” for works from a larger collection (e.g., poems,
short fiction
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