ANALYZING A LITERARY WORK--Overall Considerations

1. What are the significant objects, words, ideas, thoughts, and actions in this piece of literature? Note
especially anything that occurs more than once. Repetition of key words, images, or
situations is a good key to significance. Look for patterns.

2. Look for conflicts. What conflicts (or oppositions) are present in motives, values, images,
ideas:

– between characters

– within a single character's mind

Be alert for ambivalences.

3. Look for multiple meanings. Pay attention to multiple meanings of words, situations, images. If
some of these meanings conflict or modify each other, we call this verbal irony , for example, "honor"
in Lords of Discipline.

4. Ask yourself "Why?" Why do characters feel act as they do? What are their motives? Again, any
conflicts?

5. Ascertain point of view. How do characters feel about themselves and their situations? What
are their points of view? Are there conflicting points of view? The point of view structures
reality.

6. Look for tone. What is the narrator's attitude toward characters and their situations? This is called
tone. One reflection of the narrator's point of view is his or her choice of words.

CAUTIONS

1. Some of these suggestions and questions may be more fruitful than others for any given
literary work (or reader).

2. An analysis is not a summary. A paper that retells a work in your own words is not an
analysis. (Some specific evidence from the work you have read will be necessary in order to
support points within an analysis, however.)

3. In most cases you can assume that the reader of your paper has recently read the work, but it is a
good idea to check with your instructor.

The Writing Center

Humphreys 116
University of Central Missouri
Analyzing a Literary Work – Overall Considerations