Writing the Literary Analysis
Essay
One pattern to follow for writing any kind of school essay is the
five-paragraph essay model – introduction, three body paragraphs, and a
conclusion. As your essay-writing skills mature, you can certainly move beyond this
model, but it’s a good basic model to start with.
An analytical essay is a particular type of expository essay, the
purpose of which is to explain or give information about a work of
literature. In this type of essay, each
of the three body paragraphs will contain one main example from the text to
support the essay’s thesis.
INTRODUCTORY PARAGRAPH: This paragraph should tell the
reader what your paper is going to be about.
The following information (not necessarily in this order) needs to be
included in an introductory paragraph:
1. a way to draw
the reader in, create interest
2. author of the
text
3. title of the
text ( italicized for novels and plays; in quotation marks for short stories
and poems)
4. general
statement about the literary work
5. necessary
background information about the story (very little or optional)
6. thesis statement
(your main idea – this should be closely linked to the essay question you are
answering.
For example, you might be assigned the following question
about Macbeth:
Explore the idea of
“manhood” in Macbeth. What does it mean
to “be a man” in this play?
Your opening paragraph might read something like this. The numbers in brackets show where the items
from the list above have been included in the paragraph:
Real men don’t cry … or watch soap operas … or wear
pink. Or do they? Every society has
certain ideas attached to what it means to be “manly” or “womanly.” (1)
Shakespeare’s great tragedy Macbeth,
the story of a Scottish lord who kills the king in order to become king
himself, is no exception. (2, 3, 4, 5).
Throughout this play, characters constantly make reference to manhood
and the idea of “being a man.” In Macbeth, manhood is always associated
with physical courage and sometimes even with cruelty. (6)
BODY PARAGRAPHS: These should answer the question “why?” by
giving more information about your topic.
Each paragraph should be roughly between seven and eleven sentences long
and each should have one single, clear main idea.
Each paragraph needs
to include specific examples and direct quotes from the work of literature
you’re discussing. A body paragraph
should include: