by H.G. Hess

Created on: April 13, 2007   Last Updated: May 14, 2007

Oftentimes, people make the mistake of assuming that writing a literary analysis is writing what the piece of literature is about. But literary analysis goes much further than that. Analysis goes beyond the obvious picture to discover what is really going on in a piece of work. Here are some key items to concentrate on when writing literary analysis.

SYMBOLISM- What are the major symbols in this literary piece and what do they represent? How do they affect the theme of the story? What is the author trying to convey through symbolism?

RHETORIC- What is this piece of literature trying to convince the reader of? How does it do this? Consider the time frame in which it was written and think about major events during that time. Is there a political or social opinion being stated directly or indirectly?

CHARACTER RELATIONSHIPS- How do the characters see each other? If through first person, what is the narrator like? What are the general attitudes, actions, and feelings of these characters? How do they interact, and why do they interact this way?

Structure of a literary analysis
MAIN TOPIC- Make sure you have proved the main topic of your analysis throughout. Do your best not to stray from the purpose of your analysis and use as many details and quotes in your paper as possible. Be sure to properly cite pages or lines from the piece of work.

BODY- Do not introduce more than one concept or main point per paragraph. Make sure your paragraphs are well thought out. Do not leave your reader lingering. Write several sentences to explain and prove what you are trying to convey. Do not mislead the reader by stating one objective in your main topic and then writing a completely different body. Stick to your points!

CONCLUSION- The conclusion of your literary analysis should summarize the body. No new points should be introduced. Still, you want your ending to have pizzazz, so try to make a connection between all the content in your paper. If this is too confusing, summarize your points and make a generalization based on what you have written.

Do be clear, concise and articulate.
Do not base your analysis solely on your opinion.
Do elaborate.
Do not be too far-fetched in the connections you make to the story.
Do read the literary work thoroughly before you even start!
Do not Cliff Notes it. People will be able to tell

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