THESIS STATEMENTS IN LITERARY ANALYSIS

PAPERS
*The thesis statement is one of the (if not the) most important
parts of your paperthin of it as the foun!ation of a house
if your foun!ation is "ea an! poor#y $onstru$te!% "hat !o
you thin happens to the house&
*The thesis statement is the announ$ement of your ana#yti$a#
ar'ument that you inten! to mae an! pro(e in the !uration of
your paper) It is a roa! map for the paperit te##s the rea!er
"hat to e*pe$t from the rest of the paper)
*It shou#! +e p#a$e! some"here in the Intro!u$tion of your
paperMany #ie to put it as the #ast senten$e(s) of their Intro
"hi$h is fine)
*Su$$essfu# thesis statements pro(oe thou'ht an! shou#! rea!
+eautifu##y)
*Your thesis statement shou#! in$#u!e t"o parts, -HAT an!
-HY)
*-HAT, -hat $#aim are you main' a+out the te*t&
*-HY, -hy shou#! "e $are& -hy is your $#aim
important& Your thesis shou#! ans"er the .so "hat&/
0uestion)
*A thesis statement is usua##y% +ut $an +e more than% one
senten$e #on')
E*amp#es of Literary Thesis Statements,
* .Mar T"ain1s Huckleberry Finn is a 'reat Ameri$an no(e#)/
*-hat1s "ron' "ith this thesis statement&
*An opinion a+out the +oo% not an ar'ument)
* .In Huckleberry Finn% Mar T"ain !e(e#ops a $ontrast
+et"een #ife on the ri(er an! #ife on the shore)/
*2etter& Ho" so& -hat is sti## missin'&
*3oesn1t ans"er the .so "hat&/ 0uestion"hat is
the point of the $ontrast& -hat !oes the $ontrast
si'nify&
* .Throu'h its $ontrastin' ri(er an! shore s$enes% T"ain1s
Huckleberry Finn su''ests that to fin! the true e*pression of
Ameri$an i!ea#s% one must #ea(e 4$i(i#i5e!1 so$iety an! 'o +a$
to nature)/
*E(en +etter&
*It presents an interpretation of a #iterary "or +ase! on
an ana#ysis of its $ontent an! ans"ers the .so "hat/
0uestion)
* .E!'ar A##en Poe1s "or "as affe$te! 'reat#y +y the $urrent
e(ents of his #ife% $o(erin' his fami#y #ife% his $hi#!hoo!% an! his
$areer6 these e(ents $han'e! the sty#e an! su+7e$t of his
"ors)/
*-hat1s "ron' "ith this thesis statement&
*More 0uestions than ans"ers, "hi$h "ors "i## +e
e*p#ore!& -hat $urrent e(ents& -hat $hi#!hoo! or
$areer e(ents& Ho" !i! Poe1s sty#e $han'e an! -HY IS
IT IMP8RTANT&
* .There is a #ot of sym+o#ism in The Scarlet Letter)/
*2a!& -hy&
* .Ha"thorne1s use of sym+o#ism in The Scarlet Letter fa#ters
an! u#timate#y +reas !o"n "ith the intro!u$tion of the
$hara$ter Pear#)/
*2etter& -hy&
* .The $hara$ter of 2en in Arthur Mi##er1s Death of a
Salesman is a 'reat 9or important% or $ru$ia#% or unfor'etta+#e%
et$): $hara$ter)/
*-hat1s "ron' "ith thesis&
*This !oes not say enou'h to ser(e as the +asis for an
essay) 2esi!es% ea$h of these 7u!'ments is entire#y a
matter of persona# opinion +e$ause none of them !efine
the $riteria +y "hi$h the 7u!'ment is +ein' ma!e)
* .Throu'h Pau#1s e*perien$e +ehin! the #ines% at a Russian
prisoner of "ar $amp% an! espe$ia##y un!er +om+ar!ment in
the tren$hes% Eri$h Maria Remar0ue rea#isti$a##y sho"s ho"
"ar !ehumani5es a man)/
*-hat $an "e anti$ipate that the author of this thesis "i##
pro(e to us in the rest of the paper&
Samp#e #iterary thesis statements
TOPIC QUESTION AND THESIS STATEMENT
Character In The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne depicts Pearl as alien to her
societ !ntil her "ather ac#nowled$es her%
&elationships a'on$
Characters
In The Catcher in the &e, Salin$er shows that the relationship (etween
Holden and Phoe(e acts as a positi)e "orce on Holden%
The'es The Ad)ent!res o" H!c#le(err *inn is a satire on racis'%
Stle+ E""ecti)e !se o"
i'a$er, "oreshadowin$, or
s'(olis' to ad)ance
character de)elop'ent, the'e
or artistic p!rpose
Thro!$h the !se o" i'a$es and s'(ols in The Catcher in the &e, Salin$er
re)eals 'an s!(tleties a(o!t Holden,s sensiti)e personalit
Stle+ The point o" )iew, or
narration ad)ance character
The "inal "i"th o" The Ad)ent!res o" H!c#le(err *inn does not help "!l"ill
Mar# Twain,s artistic p!rpose in the no)el%
de)elop'ent, the'e or
artistic p!rpose
Settin$ The ra"t on the Mississippi &i)er in The Ad)ent!res o" H!c#le(err *inn is a
place with di""erent r!les than the towns alon$ the ri)er%
Str!ct!re In The Ad)ent!res o" H!c#le(err *inn, Mar# Twain !ses the ri)er -o!rne
to ill!strate H!c#,s increasin$ awareness o" the 'oral hpocris in the
.ci)ili/ed. So!th%
Historical Conte0t+ The
social, political, and c!lt!ral
cli'ate in which the a!thor
li)ed and the no)el was
created
Arth!r Miller chan$ed so'e o" the "acts a(o!t the Sale' 1itch Trials in his
pla, The Cr!ci(le, to ad)ance his artistic p!rpose%
Critical O)er)iew+
2ac#$ro!nd on critical
rep!tation o" the no)el
incl!din$ contro)ersies
1hat reasons do critics ha)e "or censorin$ The Ad)ent!res o" H!c#le(err
*inn3 S!(ordinate 4!estions+ Is the no)el o(scene3 Is the no)el racist3 Is the
lan$!a$e too coarse3 Is it i''oral3
Media Adaptations The 5667 'o)ie O" Mice and Men 'ore poi$nantl e0presses the alienation
and loneliness o" 'i$rant "ar' wor#ers than the no)el%