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English 364
Due date of essay (day month year)
Analytical Papers (Your Title--centered, not bold or underlined)
The heading, title, and first paragraph of this assignment sheet demonstrate the MLA
Style you are to use for your two analytical essays. Please refer to a handbook or the MLA web
site, available through the Oviatt Library. Your essays must: be 3-5 pages in length (doublespaced, Times New Roman, 12-pt font), contain a clear thesis, present supporting evidence, be
well-organized, contain in-text citations, and contain a Works Cited page. See syllabus for due
dates.
Your Choices: You may choose to complete any of the options listed below (you may write
about the text you presented in class; however, you must present an aspect of the text that was
not presented in your class presentation). When writing an analytical paper, avoid
summarizing the plot--it is necessary to say something specific and significant about the work
and to use specific evidence from the text to support your point(s).
Format: Your essay should consist of several paragraphs, which logically follow each other.
 Title: The title should tell enough about the topic of the essay to capture the interest of
readers and let them know the focus of the essay.
 Introduction: To avoid a dull beginning, lead into your thesis with an engaging opening. Be
sure to include the author's complete name and the title of the work you are going to discuss.
(If you are comparing texts, then you will need to mention both authors' full names and both
titles of the texts discussed.) After the initial reference, continue to refer to the author by his
or her last name. The titles of short stories should be in quotation marks. The introduction
establishes a context for your thesis by briefly summarizing the work in terms of what you
want to argue. Your thesis statement should be somewhere in the introduction, and it should
be narrow, specific, and clearly stated.
 Body: The body paragraphs should provide support for your thesis position by offering
specific evidence from the text and explanation as to how this support is significant for your
thesis. Develop your thesis fully, making sure each paragraph connects to it. Document any
in-text citations. Analyze only those details that fit your thesis. Use transitional words and
phrases to help establish comparisons/contrasts/connections.
 Conclusion: The conclusion should refer to your introduction, without repeating your thesis
statement. It should expand the thesis idea with a concluding insight gained from reading the
work(s) or even from writing the paper. The conclusion paragraph should provide closure to
the essay without announcing that this is the conclusion.
Explanation of the Analytical Essay:
Characteristics of an essay:
1. An essay is relatively short--from roughly two to no more than fifty pages.
2. An essay is somewhat formal; that is, it follows certain forms that have become conventional.
It adheres to the rules of usage--punctuation, spelling, syntax, diction--expected in published
writing. It has a thesis that unifies the whole essay. It follows an organizational pattern that
emphasizes intellectual coherence.
3. An essay is aimed at a serious audience, one that cares about your subject and will take time
to consider what you have to say.
4. An essay is persuasive. Your purpose is to persuade people that your ideas are worthy of
consideration.
5. An essay is dialogic. It often responds to other people who have written or spoken, and it
assumes that its audience might talk back.
6. Most importantly, an essay is argumentative. It develops a line of thought (a logically related
series of claims) that relates to a thesis. It supports claims with evidence (facts and
reasoning). It organizes its claims and evidence in a coherent and logical order.
The Writing Process:
While not in any particular order, most writers think and write through stages of a process in
order to come up with a final product. This process consists of:
Inventing/Planning: Studying the subject (or text). Identifying your purpose and audience.
Generating ideas. Recognizing any limitations on your essay (length, time in which you have
to write it, specifics of an assignment). Gathering information and support.
Drafting: Determining your thesis and supporting claims. Gathering facts from the texts
and, if necessary, secondary sources, to support your claims. Organizing and developing
ideas. Writing your first draft.
Revising: Reading your draft critically. If possible, getting others to read your draft and
make comments on it. Revising and checking for clarity, coherence, and unity. Editing and
proofreading. Rethinking your plan of organization and line of reasoning.
TIPS:
 Do not summarize; analyze. Use the techniques we've been exploring in class.
 Stick to your thesis--discuss one element, instead of trying to cover everything.
 Consider how the author uses the elements of fiction to develop his/her story.
 When writing about literature use the present tense and appropriate literary terms.
 Don't regurgitate what was discussed in class or in HyperNews postings. Use your own
insights; support your ideas textually.
 You may draw from your own knowledge of the material, if appropriate, including
biographical material about the author. Make sure you cite your sources, if you use them, and
include a Works Cited page.
 You may draw from what you are learning in other classes, as long as it is pertinent to your
discussion of the text.
 Show that you understand the text and demonstrate that an analysis requires more than one
reading of a text. In other words, do not discuss the surface level of the text (analysis should
go beyond the surface level that any reader could easily recognize). Make your reader think.
 Use the Learning Resource Center Writing Lab (Student Services Building 4th floor).
 No cover page.
 No folders.
Essay Grading Criteria
I consider each essay in terms of the following: ideas (content); the arrangement of those ideas (form); the
effectiveness of your expression of ideas (style); and the mechanical correctness of your writing
(mechanics).
What follows are descriptions of characteristics of A, B, C, D, and F essay writing in English 364. These
characteristics apply to your revised drafts:
A--The essay is of outstanding quality in all, or almost all, respects.
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It has a clear, concise thesis.
The essay addresses the prompt and surpasses the minimum page requirement.
It makes an original, provocative argument that illuminates the text(s) under consideration.
The scope of the essay has been narrowed sufficiently so that the writer can present adequate evidence from
the text to support assertions.
The argument is logical, coherent, and well-supported with evidence in the form of both paraphrase and
quotes from the text(s).
In a comparison/contrast essay, a balanced, equal analysis of both works is achieved.
MLA format is adhered to in terms of layout, in-text citations, and Works Cited page.
The sentences are clear, smooth, and consistently grammatical.
B--The essay, while living up to many requirements of the ideal essay, nevertheless falls short in
one major area.
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Perhaps the conclusion is inadequate to give point and significance to the argument.
Or perhaps there is a flaw in logic or incoherence at one point in an otherwise coherent, persuasive
argument, or evidence many not be adequate.
Or, in a comparison/contrast essay, both works may not be analyzed in equal depth.
Or, MLA format may not be strictly adhered to.
Or perhaps there are minor grammatical errors sprinkled throughout the text.
Or, the essay may lack in some aspect(s) of the assignment requirements.
C--The essay makes a competent case for a commonplace idea about the literary work.
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Perhaps, however, given a significant and original thesis, the essay lacks a sharp focus, so that the
argument, though seemingly valid, cannot be supported in any great depth.
Or, the thesis and support may be nothing more than a rehash of class discussion, without original insights
or input from the writer.
Or, while the essay states an interesting and seemingly valid case, the presentation of the ideas and/or the
evidence is occasionally disorganized, meandering, or otherwise lacking in logical coherence.
Or, there may be little evidence directly cited from the text(s).
Or, in the case of a comparison/contrast essay, balance in the analysis of the compared works may not be
fully achieved.
Or, MLA format may be flawed or absent.
Or, in an essay that otherwise would rate a grade of a B, the sentences are consistently awkward, imprecise,
or ungrammatical.
The essay does not meet the minimum page requirement or may not directly address the prompt.
D--The essay shows serious and consistent problems in formulating a thesis (in a comparison/contrast
essay, there may not be a clear basis for comparison between the works), pursuing a logical argument,
using evidence, using proper format, or maintaining a respectable prose style.
Whenever the thesis is lacking in significance, clarity, or validity, the essay should be liable to a
substandard grade. Late papers will receive a grade reduction of one full letter grade.
F--The essay shows a complete misunderstanding of the material dealt with.
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Or, fails to present the materials in the form of an argument.
Or, it produces no evidence from the text(s).
Or, its prose fails to meet basic requirements of standard written English.
Or, it contains plagiarized material.
What Can I Write About? -- Steps in choosing a topic:
1. Be a Creative Reader: Creative reading--reading for interpretation--is the crucial first step
toward choosing a topic. Read and then re-read a work, study formal elements in it, make
connections between the work and your interests. Reading creatively should give you ideas
and questions about what the work means. Any of these ideas or questions can be topics for
essays about literature.
2. Raise a key question about the work: The topics of interpretive essays always refer to
questions. The purpose of taking up such topics is to answer the questions that
give rise to them. When you state your topic, you should not phrase it as a question, but
good topics always imply questions of interpretation.
3. Choose a Good Topic: What makes a topic good?
 Ask yourself how easily your audience could answer the question that lies behind it. A
useful criterion is that a topic is "good" if your readers could not answer the question after
reading the work once. That is, readers could not answer it convincingly, either for themselves or
for others, without reviewing and studying the work. In other words, the topic must be genuinely
thought provoking rather than obvious.
 Your topic must be meaningful. As the author, you should care about the topic, and your
audience should be interested in it. One of the least interesting questions is "What happened in
the work?" Usually readers can understand a work's details after reading it once; you do not need
to provide information your audience already knows. Your topic should not be a summary of the
work.
 A third way to assess the quality of your topic is to ask if it is focused narrowly enough for the
confines of your essay.
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Possible Essay Topics for your First Paper
(see instructor if you are interested in writing about a topic that is not listed)
Your First Paper must focus on one (or two, if you are comparing stories) of the stories read
during weeks 3-7. Consider all of the prompts offered but respond to only one (do not try to
write a paper responding to all of the prompts found under the story title).
1) Irving, "Rip Van Winkle"
a) Why did Irving begin his tale with the poem by Cartwright (an unidentified poet) and
the cumbersome explanation of the origin of the tale in Diedrich Knickerbocker's
papers?
b) What different kinds of humor are present in the story?
c) Do you think the portrait of Dame Winkle is fair or unfair? How essential is her role
in Rip's story?
2) Poe, "The Cask of Amontillado"
a) Montresor doesn't tell his story until a half century after the actual event. Analyze
how Poe adapts the flashback technique to affect the reader of this story.
b) Explicate the passage in the story in which Montresor entices Fortunato into the crypt.
c) Discuss why the setting in this story is appropriate.
3) Maupassant, "The Necklace"
a) Analyze the symbolic implications of the necklace.
b) Consider the contrast between the lives of Mme. Loisel and her friend Mme.
Forestier.
c) Do we use anecdotes like "The Necklace" to point out moral lessons today? Compare
other examples of this kind of moral instruction found in popular literature.
4) Chekhov, "The Lady with the Little Dog"
a) Describe Chekhov's characterization of the wronged spouse in this story.
b) Discuss the meaning of the three geographical locales in this story.
c) What is the function of the paragraph that begins "In Oreanda they sat on a bench not
far from the church."
5) Wharton, "Roman Fever"
a) Show how Wharton manipulates point of view in this story.
b) Compare and contrast the two ladies' responses to widowhood and advancing age.
Who takes them harder? Why?
6) Anderson, "Hands"
a) Write an essay analyzing the crucifixion of Wing Biddlebaum.
b) What other hands do we see in this story? Compare them with Wing's.
c) How would this story be different if the author had chosen to present it in
chronological order? Would the story have an identical theme?
7) Kafka, "A Hunger Artist"
a) Is it possible to read Kafka's "A Hunger Artist" literally, as a realistic tale? What
gives you the sense that there is more to the story than its plot and characters? Be
specific.
b) Is Kafka describing an unimaginable situation? Explain.
c) As the Hunger Artist loses his popularity, he joins the circus, and his cage is put on
display near the animal cages. What does this symbolize? What does this action
foreshadow? Can we make any "real world" connections?
8) Gilman, "The Yellow Wallpaper"
a) Identify what has driven the narrator to the brink of madness. How does she try to
free herself from this element? What is her greatest desire? What is the central irony
of the story?
b) Compare and contrast the monologue in Gilman's "The Yellow Wallpaper" with that
of Poe's "The Cask of Amontillado."
9) Hurston, "Sweat"
a) Discuss the role of white families in the small town in making it possible for Delia to
eke out her hard living. What could the community have done to make her life better?
b) Discuss the social attitudes that accept Delia’s husband’s rights to brutalize her
physically and emotionally.
10) Faulkner, "A Rose for Emily"
a) Consider the relationship between "A Rose for Emily" and the history of the South.
b) Discuss the meaning of time and Faulkner's handling of chronology in "A Rose for
Emily."
11) Hemingway, "Hills Like White Elephants"
a) What is a "white elephant"? How does this expression suit the story?
b) In what ways could you categorize this story as a minimalist work?