Literary Analysis Timed Essay-Visual Outline AP, Lecture notes of Literary Analysis

Download Literary Analysis Timed Essay-Visual Outline AP and more Lecture notes Literary Analysis in PDF only on Docsity! Literary Analysis Model for Timed Writing Essays: VISUAL OUTLINE Introduction Here’s a tip for the first sentence of your introduction: 1. Have the first sentence of your introduction mention the author’s first and last name, mention the title of the novel, poem, or prose passage as well as create a nice thematic idea about the novel (not your thesis argument). This sentence might look something like this: “John Irving’s A Prayer for Owen Meany explores the coming of age of two boys in the late 1960‘s struggling to find the answers to life’s most challenging questions of fate and faith.” 2. Next, always use your introduction to establish setting--if it is a major aspect of the novel/poem/passage. 3. Use your introduction to introduce major characters/motifs/symbols if they are asked for in the prompt, and they will be a focus of your essay/thesis. 4. Be careful not to use “reader response” techniques in your introduction or your essay. The focus of these analysis papers is the literary devices the writers are using to create meaning and tone in their writing. It’s not really about our reaction to their work. Thesis Statement: Thesis should contain a clear focus area Thesis should be an argument that relates to the “work as a whole”: For the Q1 and Q3 essays, this means theme For the Q2 essay “work as a whole” pertains to the overall meaning and dominant tone expressed in the passage. Thesis should contain key words from the essay prompt Thesis can but does not have to contain the literary devices you will focus on in your topic sentences Thesis can but does not have to use the literary devices mentioned in the prompt (the prompt may give you five choices--you might want to focus on other devices or only three). Topic Sentence Argument #1: Reminders: ts should contain key words from thesis ts should have a focused topic that explores an aspect of thesis ts should contain an argument/assertion that supports thesis idea ts should contain the literary devices that you’ll be using to support your assertion (it’s up to you how many devices you tackle in your body paragraph--you might choose two or three devices that seem to compliment each other or you could choose one device that is dominant in the passage.) AEC model for analysis in BODY Paragraphs Once you have made your assertion in your topic sentence, your next job is to find the BEST evidence you can to support your ts. As you write, be aware of whether or not you are summarizing the plot or if you are directing your reader toward the argument in your topic sentence. Your examples do not have to move chronologically! Instead, your examples should follow the argument you are establishing. Here are some tips: 1. Be sure to always introduce your quote with a signal sentence, a signal phrase, or a blending technique. Be sure that you maximize your effectiveness here--to not summarize but give enough context to identify speaker, context in story, a nudge that sets up your commentary/analysis. 2. Be sure that you choose THE BEST words, phrases sentences from the text to connect to and support the idea in your topic sentence. It is not enough to just throw a quote into your body paragraph! It must strengthen you ts argument. 3. Be sure that you follow your quote with a commentary/analysis that directly discusses the literary devices the writer is using and what the impact is on tone, characterization, meaning of the work as a whole. 4. Your commentary should also explain how your quote and the literary devices connect to the argument in your topic sentence. 5. You should always look to see that you have a 1:2 ratio in your body paragraphs (two pieces of commentary for every one piece of evidence. In a longer essay, if you introduce a long quote, your commentary should pull from the quote in your analysis. Your analysis should be as long as your long quote Concluding Sentence: Should deepen the idea in your ts/not cut and paste!