Literary Analysis Essay

Literary Analysis Essay 800-1000 words Your goal is to choose one of the stories listed below and offer your analysis/interpretation of its deeper meaning. This means that you will look very closely at ONE aspect of the story that interests you, and analyze how it contributes to the overall meaning/impact of the story. Potential “aspects” that you might analyze include: The author’s use of language (metaphor, imagery, dialogue) to advance his/her meaning. An object or element that recurs in the story (the ocean, for instance, or snow, or a train….)–and how it contributes to the meaning, The author’s choice and use of a particular point of view (such as the narrator of the story) One or more of the characters Humor in the work–and how it advances meaning/impact The author’s use of a particular technique, like flashbacks, stream-of-consciousness, epiphany or minimalism ….. Before you begin, please read pp. 1070-1075 and 1079-1081. (“Writing about Short Stories”) in The Story and its Writer. Here are the texts you may choose from: Maxine Kumin’s “The Missing Person” Download options Don Delillo’s “Midnight in Dostoevsky” (http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2009/11/30/midnight-in-dostoevsky) Ben Marcus’ “Cold Little Bird” http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2015/10/19/cold-little-bird I recommend the following process for writing a successful literary analysis: Read “Things to Know When Writing About Literature” (link in first block on homepage) Read through your chosen work carefully, taking note of places that strike you as either important, powerful or confusing. These are probably where the deeper meaning lies. Once you’ve done this several times, you should begin to see a pattern or an incongruity or something that intrigues you. Perhaps you are interested in how the author uses language. Or is there a recurrent image or metaphor? Perhaps a character or relationship grabs your attention. One of these may become the element you choose to analyze. Now that you’ve chosen your focus, really spend some time looking at how it works within the text. You may want to read aloud or share your thoughts with another student. You may want to take notes or make a chart. You may want to list questions you have about the element and how it works. Do whatever you need to do to take yourself to a deeper reading. Please do NOT use any outside sources. No Wikipedia or Sparknotes, no literary criticism or model essays. Your ideas are important. They are the ideas I want to hear. Respect yourself and your abilities enough to submit ONLY your own work. Once you have done sufficient analysis, it’s time to try to state it in a thesis. Please see the thesis assignment under Week 7; it will help you with this. Submit your thesis by Week 7, then check back within 2 days for my comments. You may need to revise in order to have a successful essay. After I have OKed your thesis, you should spend some time organizing your essay–either with a formal outline or paragraph by paragraph–whatever works for you. But be sure you at least organize your 2-3 main points, and how you plan to present them. Make sure each point is supported by LOTS of details and evidence (quotes) directly from the text. We will practice how to do this in our Mini Essays. Each paragraph should have only ONE focus. For beginning writers, this usually means having 2-4 sentences per paragraph. Make sure you follow all the guidelines given in “How to Write About Literature”–in the first block of resources on the homepage. After writing your draft, let it rest for a day or two, then go back through and edit for clarity and language. Submit your rough draft for peer review in Week 9. Peer review another classmate’s essay (by Tues, Week 9) Be sure to read your final draft aloud before submitting. Your final version should be your best, college-level work. Assessment