English 30-1

Isherwood

Miss Isherwoods Guide to Writing a

Critical-Analytical Response to Literature . . .
Without Losing your Mind!
Name:_____________
The main point of any literary essay is to demonstrate an understanding of the literature. Your goal should be to
show insight into the literature to which you are referring.
Without a doubt, the biggest problem with essays discussing literature is that the essay writer either retells the
story or summarizes it. This makes for an ineffective essay for two reasons. First, what happens in the story is
not the point of your essay. Everyone reading your essay, including your evaluator, will have had the
opportunity to read the original. Let them do that. The author has already told the story. You do not need to
tell it again. Second, by simply relaying the plot-lines of the story, you are making no statement about the
content and have nothing to prove. Very likely, the essay question also goes unanswered. This is a very easy
trap to fall into; be careful that you do not.

Format:

Your CARL will have three parts: an introduction, a body, and a conclusion. See the flash orange page in your
Tools for Success booklet for more information.

CARL Topic:

Brainstorm:

Write down all of your ideas on the literature and the topic.

Adapted from: http://www.indiana.edu/~wts/pamphlets/thesis_statement.shtml

English 30-1

Isherwood

1) Introduction
What is a Thesis Statement?

Your thesis is the statement of the central idea that you are proposing to support, prove, or develop in
the rest of your essay.
The thesis statement usually appears near the beginning of the essay so that the reader is clear about
what central idea the essay will be exploring.
A good thesis statement clearly indicates that you understand the assigned topic, and it clearly suggests
what the rest of the essay will be about.

-Consult the yellow pages in your Tools for Success booklet and decide what type of CARL you are going to
write:

Chronological
Significant Events
Dimensions of Character

Literary Technique
Conflict

-Put pen to paper and draft your thesis. Check: does it directly answer the essay question?
The introduction is possibly the most complicated part of any essay. It is what will generate interest from your
reader, give direction to your writing, and show your effective planning. The introduction is created using three
parts. Each part should be about two to three sentences long. A longer essay (over 500 words) should have a
longer introduction (more than five sentences). Each of the three elements of the introduction has a specific
purpose.
o

Hook/Generalization The generalization is approximately two sentences which, while relating

to the topic of the essay, make broad statements about society in general. They do not deal with
the literature specifically, but instead apply to the subject of the essay (which relates to the
literature) to a larger scale.

T.A.G. In this section, the literature will be specifically introduced, naming the author and title
of the work. (For the majority of essays, one work will be sufficient; in some cases, two works
could be examined, but not more than two.) The sentences will introduce the literature in the
context of the subject of the essay. The best way to introduce both author and title is to separate
them into the two sentences: i.e. have the title of the work in the first sentence and introduce the
author in the second sentence.

Thesis The thesis is the most important part of the essay. This is where the main idea of the
essay will be presented in a clear, concise manner. Since the thesis is the most crucial part of an
essay, it should have significant work put into it. A strong essay introduces the topic specifically
and presents what the essay will try to prove. A strong essay does NOT present two opposing
views; rather a strong essay will choose a point to prove, will prove it, and will not include
statements that prove the opposite.

Adapted from: http://www.indiana.edu/~wts/pamphlets/thesis_statement.shtml

English 30-1

Isherwood

2) Essay Body This is where the main points of the essay will go, all aimed at supporting your thesis
statement. There needs to be two or three paragraphs, each containing a different main point. In this section,
use the details you have selected to prove or support your thesis statement and thereby answer the essay
question. For each statement you make, have a supporting piece of evidence (a quotation, detail, or example)
from the literature you are dealing with, but make sure you are making a statement, and not just retelling the
story. There should also be transitional sentences between the body paragraphs. A transitional sentence will
summarize the previous paragraph and introduce or flow into the next paragraph. They should be the first or
last sentence in each paragraph.
Developing the Supporting Paragraphs

The supporting paragraphs of your essay must be unified. In other words, their relationship with your
thesis must be perfectly clear.
Indicate how paragraphs link to or are related to each other as well.
When you are interpreting literature, refer to specific details and examples from the literature to support
your observations and analysis. As well, explain how these details and/or examples develop your
observation and analysis.
Each body paragraph requires 2-3 pieces of evidence and explanation: check the orange and pink
pages in Tools for Success for information on paragraph structure.
If you can re-arrange your body paragraphs, you do not have a unifying effect. Go-back and re-work
your ideas at a deeper level of analysis.

3) Conclusion Like the introduction, the conclusion is also a complex paragraph. While it is set up in the
reverse of the introduction, it is not simply a copy. The conclusion is often the forgotten paragraph, with
students so eager to finish the essay, the conclusion is often thrown together without thought. Remember that
the conclusion is the final thought in the reader's mind when they finish the essay. A strong conclusion adds
immensely to the strength of an essay. If attacked properly, it is relatively easy to develop.

Your conclusion should serve to remind your reader what it was that you set out to prove or to support
(your thesis).
o Restate Thesis When you restate the thesis statement, you need to reword and revamp it, so
that, although it does state essentially the same idea, it is formed differently. By the end of the
essay, the original thesis has been proven using the specific details you presented. The restatement of the thesis should reflect this completion.
o

Closing for Text Restates the author and title of the work and shows either what the characters
or reader learned through the journey of the work (this must relate to the thesis), or sums up the
main ideas in the essay. As in the introduction, the author and title can be separated into
different sentences.

Generalization Similar to the generalization in the introduction, these sentences should reflect a
generalization about society or a reconnection to real life. This can now be accomplished either
by reflecting what the characters learned, what the reader has learned (without using the first
person), or what society should have/has learned.

Whew! Youve survived! Nice work

Adapted from: http://www.indiana.edu/~wts/pamphlets/thesis_statement.shtml