How to Write a Literary
Analysis Essay
Wednesday, March 20, 13
Analysis
• Carefu!y examine a work of
literature.
•
Helps you better appreciate
and understand the piece as a
whole
Wednesday, March 20, 13
Writing boils down to the
development of an idea.
Wednesday, March 20, 13
Everything must be related to the
central idea, or thesis, and must
contribute to your reader’s
understanding of your central idea.
Wednesday, March 20, 13
Activity 1: Look at your all of your quotes,
including your style quotes.
Put a check next to all quotes that support your thesis.
Put a check minus if your style quote doesn’t support
your thesis but the technique could with a different
example.
Put an X if the quote or citation is not applicable to
your central idea (in this case, THE THEME!).
Wednesday, March 20, 13
Second Look at Citations
In the margin, for each citation, write the quote’s focus-character, setting, humor, tone, figurative language, etc.
Number your citations in chronological order.
Wednesday, March 20, 13
The Introduction
Place thesis at the end of the paragraph. Make sure you have included
the title, author and central message. Theme in this case.
Arouse interest with a HOOK--a question, quotation, anecdote (short
story that illustrates your message), startling statement or fact, or a
combination of these.
Background information or short summary necessary for your reader
to understand your central message.
Make note of the tone and any style techniques that you will use later
in your essay.
Wednesday, March 20, 13
Example
Many a holiday have resulted in tears, doors slamming and
loud arguments. Novelist Amy Tan, in her narrative essay
“Fish Cheeks” recounts an embarrassing Christmas Eve
dinner when she was 14 years old. Through humor and a
sentimental tone, Tan conveys the idea that youth can cloud
one’s acknowledgment of sacrifice and love.
Wednesday, March 20, 13
Activity 2: Write the Intro
Think of a great hook! Try a question, short anecdote,
interesting quote, shocking fact, or setting description. Tailor
it a bit to your theme (point the reader in the right direction!)
Insert a BRIEF summary that leads into your theme and
thesis.
Insert any writing techniques that will help illustrate your
thesis.
End with your thesis.
Wednesday, March 20, 13
SETTING/ANECDOTE HOOK
High school hallways are often abuzz with noise. The shrieks and giggles, the
rumors and gossip, the last minute homework help or words of encouragement.
Teens never seem to be short on words.(HOOK) This is not the case for Melinda,
the troubled protagonist of Laurie Halse Anderson’s Speak, whose reaction to a
traumatic event is to remain silent.(SUMMARY AND TITLE/AUTHOR) Through
symbolism, biting wit, and metaphor, Anderson illustrates that at times, silence is
a mask for isolation.(THESIS--THEME-- WITH STYLE TECHNIQUES)
Wednesday, March 20, 13
QUESTION HOOK
What could cause a vibrant, personable teenager to
become withdrawn, sullen, even suicidal? (HOOK)
Laurie Halse Anderson examines the aftermath of a
traumatic event in Speak.(SUMMARY/TITLE/
AUTHOR) Using symbolism and first-person point of
view, the story follows a sad, dark, yet surprisingly
funny path, leading the reader to realize how deeply
isolating silence can be.(THESIS WITH STYLE
TECHNIQUES)
Wednesday, March 20, 13
The Body
Paragraphs that support
your thesis
Each paragraph should
begin with a topic sentence
Continue with the saymean-matter pattern.
Wednesday, March 20, 13
Topic Sentence
Ties the details of
your paragraph to
your thesis, and
ties the details of the
paragraph together
Wednesday, March 20, 13
Say-MeanMatter
Provide textual evidence as a direct
quote, paraphrase or summary. (SAY)
Explain what is going on in the story
in that part. (MEAN)
Explain how the quote supports your
thesis. (MATTER).
Textual evidence should go in
chronological order.
Wednesday, March 20, 13
Include Style
Techniques
Embed comments on style with your
quotes.
Think how you can include comments
on tone, point of view, figurative
language, character, symbolism,
setting, imagery, voice, suspense,
dialect, conflict, climax, etc.
Wednesday, March 20, 13
Thesis
Using symbolism and first-person point
of view, the story follows a sad, dark, yet
surprisingly funny path, leading the
reader to realize how deeply isolating
silence can be. (THESIS WITH STYLE
TECHNIQUES)
Wednesday, March 20, 13
Body 1:Topic Sentence with SAY
Anderson sets the darkly humorous
tone of the novel with the very first
sentence, “It is my first morning of
high school. I have seven new
notebooks, a skirt I hate, and a
stomachache” (Anderson 3).
Wednesday, March 20, 13
MEAN
The reader is inside the head of
the protagonist Melinda as she
begins the first day of high
school.
Wednesday, March 20, 13
MATTER
Anderson’s use of first person
point of view allows the reader to
feel the anguish of being an
ostracized teen.
Wednesday, March 20, 13
Repeat SAY-MEAN-MATTER
“I have entered high school with the wrong hair, the wrong clothes, the
wrong attitude. And I don’t have anyone to sit with” (4). Melinda has no
one to talk to or go through this scary experience. She is alone and thus
begins her isolating silence, but the reader “hears” her voice with firstperson point of view. “It is easier not to say anything. Shut your trap,
button your lip, can it. All that crap you hear on TV about communication
and expressing feelings is a lie” (9). Melinda knows this as she says
nothing when being scolded by Mr. Neck for her not knowing where to go.
She has a voice she is unable to use. She doesn’t use it when bullied at the
pep rally, scolded by her parents, or raped. “In my head, my voice is as
clear as a bell: ‘NO I DON’T WANT TO!’ But I can’t spit it out” (135).
Her silence forces those around her to ignore, chastise, hurt or spite her,
blockading her from the help she so desperately needs.
Wednesday, March 20, 13
Body Paragraph 2: TOPIC SENTENCE
with TRANSITION
Another way Anderson
portrays how isolating
silence can be is through
the use of symbolism.
Wednesday, March 20, 13
SAY
“I pull my lower lip all the way in
between my teeth. If I try hard enough,
maybe I can gobble my whole self this
way (Anderson 39).
Wednesday, March 20, 13
Mean
Here, Melinda is not only struggling
with an algebra problem in front of the
entire class, but she is being assisted by
her ex-best friend Rachelle, to whom she
has been unable to talk to since the rape
incident.
Wednesday, March 20, 13
Matter
Anderson has Melinda biting her lips
whenever she is threatened, either by
shame, fear, or anger. Rather than speak
up about what happened to her, she tries
to “gobble” herself away, symbolically
eating away her presence, her voice, her
pain.
Wednesday, March 20, 13
Transition
An additional example of the symbolic
lip biting is when Melinda hears the
Marthas commenting on her ragged lips.
Wednesday, March 20, 13
Say-Mean
“‘What’s wrong with her lips? It looks like she has a
disease of something’”(45) quips one of the Marthas,
prompting Melinda to hide in the bathroom and let her
salty tears sting her scabs. She wishes she could wash
her face until “there is nothing left of it, no eyes, no
nose, no mouth”(45).
Wednesday, March 20, 13
Matter
Melinda uses her lip-biting to silence herself. The very
appearance of her sores isolates Melinda from others
and help even more. Not until Melinda finds her voice
does she get the help she needs.
Wednesday, March 20, 13
Body Paragraph 3-OPTIONAL
Another example of the
impact of isolating silence is
often humorous lack of a
school mascot. (prove with
say-mean-matter).
Wednesday, March 20, 13
CONCLUSION
Provides a sense of closure for the reader.
Brief--1-2 sentences
NO NEW INFORMATION!
Wednesday, March 20, 13
Concluding Paragraph
Through Melinda’s silent cries for help,
Anderson masterfully creates a biting,
humorous look at the importance of
speech in society. Without a voice, one is
truly alone.
Wednesday, March 20, 13
TITLE
With your table group, discuss the symbolism of the title
Speak.
Next, think about the title of your growing pains novel. Is
there deeper meaning? Or is your title more literal, pointing
straight at the plot or character? Share with your table.
Wednesday, March 20, 13
Give your essay a
The Title of Your Essay
It is essential that you give your essay a title which is
descriptive of the approach you are taking in your paper.
Just as you did in your introductory paragraph, try to get
the reader's attention. Using only the title of the
literary work you are examining is unsatisfactory.
Wednesday, March 20, 13
Some Title for Speak
Silencing the Pain in Speak
Finding Voice in Speak
Hush-Hush: Melinda’s Isolating Silence
Wednesday, March 20, 13
Your Turn!
Try three different titles!
Remember to point at your thesis.
You don’t have to mention the title.
Wednesday, March 20, 13
Time to revise and check! Ask yourself the
following questions:
1.Is your title engaging? Does it suggest the approach you are taking in
your paper?
2.Does your first paragraph introduce your topic, name the writer and the
work, and end with your thesis statement? Will it get the reader's
attention?
3.Is your thesis clear? Does it state the central idea of your paper?
4.Are your developmental paragraphs unified (everything in the paragraph
relates to the topic of the paragraph) and coherent (everything in the
paragraph is arranged in a logical order)?
5.Have you used transitional words where necessary within each
paragraph? Are there transitions linking all the paragraphs of your
essay?
6.Does your concluding paragraph provide a sense of closure?
Wednesday, March 20, 13
G.U.M.S.
Grammar: Try and use different lengths of sentences. Here’s a
reminder of the types:
• Simple: subject-verb (I went to the store.)
• Compound: 2 independent clauses joined by a conjunction (I went to
the store, and I bought candy.)
• Complex: independent clause and dependent clause (While traveling
to the store, I saw my friend.)
• Compound-complex: 2 independent clauses and one or more
dependent clauses (While
traveling to the store, I saw my friend, and she gave me money for
candy.)
Wednesday, March 20, 13
More Grammar and Usage
Make sure when you write about
literature you use PRESENT TENSE!
Go back and take out any instances you
used 2nd person (“you” or “your”)
unless in a direct quote from the book.
Wednesday, March 20, 13
More GUMS
MECHANICS:
Check that you correctly punctuated your literature titles:
Underline book titles, films, magazines, plays and
movies.
Place poems, songs, short stories and plays in quotation
marks.
Wednesday, March 20, 13
More GUMS
Check that you correctly cited your textual evidence. See
handout.
Wednesday, March 20, 13