How to do a Dialectical
Notebook
Step by step instructions
What is a Dialectical
Notebook?
A
Dialectical Notebook is a double-entry journal
On one side are passages copied out and/or questions
about the text
On the other side are responses to the quotes or
questions that you took on the other side.
The purpose of a Dialectical Notebook is to practice
doing a close reading.
What is a Close Reading?

Reading with a pencil hand and annotating the text.
 Annotating is underlining or highlighting key words and phrases, as
well as making notes in the margin.

Also look for patterns in things you’ve noticed about the textrepetitions, contradictions, similarities, and literary devices.

Literary devices include personification, metaphors, similes, ect. Think
back to the poetry analysis you did in 10th grade. The purpose is to
explore the author’s purpose in using these devices not simply
identifying them.

Ask questions about the patterns like why does the author repeat that
word in every paragraph?

You should also explore the author’s syntax (grammatical structure)
and diction (word choice)
What is SOAPST?




SOAPST stands for:
S peaker (Who is the narrator in the passage)
O ccasion (When it was written)
A uthor (Background info on the author)
P urpose (Why they wrote this piece)
S ubject (The main point of the piece)
T one (The use of words to depict a meaning)
The type of quotes that you pull should try to address one of these.
Think of SOAPST as a guide when you decide what to explore in your
dialectical journal
Dialectical journals are not a “journal” persay. This is not the place to
discuss whether or not you liked a piece. You can bring your opinion in
when addressing things such as how an author used a metaphor, or the
way the author constructed a sentence.
The following as examples to use as guides while you do your own journal.
Feel free to look back if you need help.
A POETRY EXAMPLES
“Because I could not Stop for Death”
Emily Dickinson
Because I could not stop for Death,
He kindly stopped for me;
The carriage held but just ourselves
And Immortality.
We slowly drove, he knew no haste,
And I had put away
My labor, and my leisure too,
For his civility.
We passed the school, where children
strove
At recess, in the ring;
We passed the fields of gazing grain,
We passed the setting sun.
Or rather, he passed us;
The dews grew quivering and chill,
For only gossamer my gown,
My tippet only tulle.
We paused before house that seemed
A swelling of the ground;
The roof was scarcely visible,
The cornice but a mound.
Since then 'tis centuries, and yet each
Feels shorter than the day
I first surmised the horses' heads
Were toward eternity.
“Because I could Not Stop For Death”
Emily Dickinson

“He kindly stopped
for me”

“The carriage held
but just ourselves
and Immortality”

“And I had put
away my labor, and
my leisure too,
For his civility.”

This line is an example of personification. Dickinson refers to
Death as “he” and explains that he “stopped.” This may be an
allusion to the Grim Reaper or the mythological Greek god
Thantos.

The idea that Death rides in a carriage once again furthers the
personification. It also creates the image of a gentleman not
the terrifying image of the Grim Reaper that is most often
seen. The words “carriage” and “kindly” in the above passage
creates this image. Perhaps Dickinson meant to refer to the
god Hades, he rode in a carriage pulled by black horses.

By indicating Death’s “civility” Dickinson insinuates that she
was the one who was not civil. “And my leisure too” is set off
by comas indicating that this may be an after thought.
Dickinson seems eager to rid herself of her labors but a little
more hesitant to leave her leisure behind. In other words,
perhaps Dickinson had not thought that she would leave those
things that she loved in death.

“We passed”

Stanza three

“Or rather he
passed us”

“’Since then ‘tis
centuries; but each
feels shorter than a
day.”

In the third stanza, this phrase is repeated three times.
Perhaps Dickinson is trying to create the feeling of a
long journey by repeating this phrase. It reads a bit like
a list.

This stanza seems to replay the life. The school yard
represents childhood, the grazing fields the middle
years of life, and the setting sun old age.

The passage is another example of personification and
perhaps another allusion. Dickinson refers to the sun
as “he”; this may also refer to the Greek god of the sun
Helios. This also contradicts what was said in the
stanza before. Perhaps this would indicate that
Dickinson’s main character died young, before she
reached old age, explain why old age passed her.

This line indicates that the narrator died many centuries
ago. This is also an example of a paradox since the
narrator states that the century is shorter than a day.
Reminders




Your entries should do more than just point out sentence structure
and literary devices; you should be looking for the author’s purpose
or commenting on whether you think the literary device worked in
the context it is used. If you summarize the poem, you cannot score
well.
Some of the your entries will be longer than others.
Remember that if you pose a question on the left (which you should
try to pose at least one) you must attempt to answer it on the right.
Do not go on the internet and look these poems up. I want to hear
what you have to say. It is better that you are interpreting the poem
on your own. For some of these works, there is not a right or wrong
answer. OWN YOUR ASSERTIONS! Using the internet for this
assignment is cheating and will be deemed as such.