Note that student work varies significantly from one assignment to the next, even within
the same level. The intent of providing exemplars such as this one is to guide students in
recognizing key criteria of assignments and in assessing their own work.
SAMPLE QUOTATION ANALYSIS – LEVEL FOUR
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Strengths:
• clear overall structure of paragraph
• sound connections made with the rest of the novel, particularly when relating the
quotations significance to a central theme of the novel
• well-written in terms of sentence structure and diction
Tips for improvement:
• incorporate more segments of the original quotation into this analysis – consider
bringing the significance of Jem’s line, “[t]urtles can’t feel, stupid”, into your
discussion of theme
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Dill said striking a match under a turtle was hateful.
‘Ain’t hateful, just persuades him – ‘s not like you’d chunk him in the fire,’ Jem
growled.
‘How do you know a match don’t hurt him?’
‘Turtles can’t feel, stupid,’ said Jem.
‘Were you ever a turtle, huh?’ (14)
This quotation is part of a conversation in which Jem and Dill are arguing. The
boys have come to know each other during the summer, and the Radley place has aroused
their curiosity. Jem has just compared making Boo come out to striking a match under a
turtle.
The conversation between the two boys highlights Dill’s compassionate character
and begins to develop a critical theme in relation to respecting those who are generous
and caring. When Dill asks Jem if he was “ever a turtle”, he shows that he is willing to
challenge an older boy in order to stand up for his beliefs. Dill is able to show empathy
for another living creature, a turtle, even though agreeing with Jem would have avoided
an argument. Difficult circumstances reveal a person’s true character in the way that the
argument with Jem clearly reveals Dill’s compassionate nature. Dill’s reaction to Jem’s
comparison is also significant because it introduces an important theme in the novel:
people who are generous and caring deserve everyone’s respect. As previously stated,
Boo Radley has been compared to a turtle. While seeking privacy, neither the turtle nor
Boo harm anybody. At this point in their lives, the children’s biased viewpoints prevent
them from seeing Boo as caring or generous, but future events gradually reveal Boo and
others to be truly generous and caring, setting up the central metaphor of the novel: the
comparison of mockingbirds to various characters, including Boo. This progression
begins with Boo being compared to a turtle, and it culminates much later when Scout
realizes that making Boo’s heroism public would be “like shootin’ a mockingbird”(276).
Scout’s comparison conveys her understanding of why Boo deserves respect, as she
clearly sees Boo for who he is. Thus, Jem and Dill’s conversation reveals Dill’s
compassion and begins to develop the theme regarding the importance of respecting those
who are generous and caring.