Literary Analysis Essays
Odysseus is an EPIC
hero!
He’s holding on till
the end of the night.
He’s gotta be strong,
He’s gotta be fast,
He’s gotta be larger
than life!
Your Splendid Introduction
• 3 Key Parts
• An OPENING to capture the reader’s
attention
• Your Thesis(the point you will prove in
your essay)
• Outline the main points of your essay
(what you will talk about in your body
paragraphs)
Title and Author
• You must include the
title and author in
your introduction
The Odyssey
Homer
The Odyssey by Homer
**Sample Introduction
•
Epic heroes must
represent the values
and beliefs of a
culture. In The
Odyssey by Homer
Odysseus proves
himself worthy of
the title epic hero.
He does this by
being both brave and
clever.
Introduction
• Quote, Statement or Question
• ______________________________
• Thesis- In “The Odyssey” by Homer
Odysseus proves himself to be an epic
hero by being both ______ & ______.
• Outline key points.
• Odysseus had to be ____ when. He had to
show ____ because ________.
Body Paragraphs
• Topic Sentences- the first sentence in
your body paragraph. It MUST have
commentary (your opinion)
Topic Sentences
tell your reader
what your
paragraph will be
about
If my essay was about how Harry Potter is a fabulous hero because
he is good at quidditch and defeats “he who must not be named” what
are some sample topic sentences for my paragraph on quidditch?
Topic Sentences- the good, the bad and the ugly
• Good Example- Harry
Potter is by far the
best quidditch player
at Hogwarts
• Bad example- Harry
Potter plays quidditch.
• Ugly example- I love
Harry Potter! (this has
nothing to do with your thesis)
The Odyssey
• Topic Sentences- If my essay is about
Odysseus being brave and clever. One
body paragraph is on him being brave.
Now in your row come up
Remember topic Sentences- are the firstwith a sample topic sentence
sentences of your body paragraph.
for a body paragraph on
They include a subject and an opinion. Odysseus
They do NOT include specific facts!
Odysseus shows he is an epic hero by
being brave in many dangerous
situations throughout The Odyssey.
Concrete Details
Concrete Details= your EVIDENCE.
CDs (concrete details)
are quotes or facts
from the story that you will use to
prove your topic sentence.
Concrete detail sentences present examples that support
what you said in your topic sentence
Concrete Details
• Harry Potter often
captures the golden
snitch winning the
game for Gryffindor.
This is an example of why HP is
an excellent quidditch player.
* One example of
Odysseus’s bravery is
when he goes to find
his men who have
been turned into pigs
by Circe
Transitions
• Transitions are words that go in FRONT
Of your concrete details
One example, First, Another
example, For instance, In
addition,
Commentary- your opinion and
analysis
• Commentary is your
opinion and analysis of
your concrete detail.
The job of commentary is to PROVE how your
Concrete detail proves your topic sentence
When you write commentary, you are
Commenting on how the concrete detail
proves the truth of your topic sentence
Commentary is the WHY or the FEELINGS
Why did Odysseus do something? Or how do you imagine
he felt?
Commentary Help
• Commentaries are to add analysis and
insight to your CDs.
Insight and analysis = something I don’t already know
Evil/Bad Commentary- Odysseus was brave when he traveled to Hell
to meet Tiesias.
This states the obvious! Of course you have to be brave if you are going
Into Hell. Tell me something I don’t know!
Fabulous Commentary- Odysseus felt it was hopeless, he was still willing to
travel to Hell because of his
love of Penelope was worth the danger
The job of commentary is to show
how your CD proves your topic
sentence
• One example of
Odysseus being
brave is when he
goes to rescue his
men, who have been
turned into pigs, from
the Goddess Circe
This shows that Odysseus could have just left them
behind, but he would have felt guilty and plus Odysseus likes to
play the hero. Odysseus was probably afraid, but he knew
it was his fault his men where turned into pigs so it was his job
to save them.
Magical List of Commentary
Starters
Commentary starters go in front of
your commentary. Remember the whole point
of commentary is to ANALYZE your CDs. Tell
me why/how your CDs prove your topic
sentence!
Obviously, This means, This example shows,
It is clear that, It seems like, Most would agree
that, It is as if, This example reveals, This
illustrates that, This proves that,
Organizing your Essay
Hook, Thesis, Outline your main points
• Introduction
TS (topic sentence)
• Body ParagraphCD (concrete detail – don’t forget your transition*)
CM-commentary (analyze not summarize)
CD
CM
CD
CM
CS- concluding sentence
• Conclusion
Restate your thesis, summarize your main ideas,
closing statement/idea
The End!
Time to write your fabulous essay!
You are a hero! You are brilliant!
You can and will
Write a fabulous essay!