a new perspective essay analysis

3a. Synthesizing Multiple Perspectives

Synthesis: putting together different perspectives.

Image: Different perspectives; rawpixel, CC0

In college writing and in any situation where you have to sift through a lot of information, you will need to critically evaluate what is useful and relevant to you, as well as separate what is true from what is not true. When you have done extensive reading or research on a topic, you’ll need to present your research clearly and concisely to your readers so that they understand all sides or aspects of an issue. Synthesizing your sources into your writing allows you to:

demonstrate your knowledge of a topic or issue;
make sense of different perspectives and claims on a topic or issue;
present the most important claims or points from your sources;
put your sources into conversation with one another to give context for your point of view and come to new insights and questions;
and support your claim fully.

“The scholar of the first age received into him the world around; brooded thereon; gave it the new arrangement of his own mind, and uttered it again. It came into him life; it went out from him truth. It came to him short-lived actions; it went out from him immortal thoughts. It came to him business; it went from him poetry.”

~Ralph Waldo Emerson, The American Scholar

What is synthesis?

When you synthesize in your writing, you are building a relationship between different ideas or sources. Synthesis means that you:

bring together lots of information in a meaningful way
show connections between different things
come to new insights
draw intriguing conclusions
take in the world around you, and give back truth

You synthesize multiple perspectives (including your own) in an essay, and you often synthesize two or more perspectives in a paragraph. Thus, synthesis is a creative and interpretive act. How you put together different perspectives and sources will not be the same as how another writer puts them together.

“Make it work!”

Any Project Runway fans? The show has an “unconventional challenge” segment, where the designers put together a dress from different and unusual sets of materials. For example, for one challenge, they had to put together a dress with materials from a hardware store and a flower shop. In the example below, the designers use different candies to create a dress:

Synthesis in writing is like winning the unconventional challenge, and your essay is the beautifully finished piece you create by synthesizing various sources to support your overall goal. When facing any writing challenge in college, you can use the skills of critical inquiry and synthesis to meet any deadline and remember Tim Gunn’s motto – “Make it work!”

How do I synthesize?

Synthesizing sources into your writing is a juggling act. First, you want to figure out what your paragraph is doing: Is it providing information to the reader about a topic? Is it developing support and evidence for a particular claim you are making? Is it presenting a counterargument? Is it helping you to respond to a counterargument?

If you are providing information to your reader, then multiple sources will help you to present a complete picture of the topic/issue to your reader by offering different perspectives on this topic/issue or by offering several expert sources that support a single perspective.
If you are developing support and evidence for a particular claim or point you are making, then your sources should build upon each other. Each one should further the point of the one previously made.
If you are using multiple sources to develop a counterargument, you can pit your sources against each other. Use one to help acknowledge an opposing viewpoint and use another to help develop your response to that viewpoint.

It is important when you are writing several different voices into a single paragraph that your voice does not get lost in the mix. Remember, an essay is about presenting and supporting your claims and ideas. Each paragraph should always make clear where you fit into the conversation.

See the next two pages for examples of synthesis paragraphs and a synthesis table.

Synthesis: Example Paragraphs

From: “what we talk about when we talk about obesity” by catherine womack for the conversation.

Does reframing the debate help fight obesity? Yes – in fact it’s necessary, says series lead author Christina Roberto in “Patchy progress on obesity prevention: emerging examples, entrenched barriers, and new thinking.” They suggest a variety of new or retooled strategies ranging from educating health care providers about the dangers of weight stigmatization to mobilizing citizens to demand policy changes to address obesity. Their key insights are locating problems of obesity in the interactions between individuals and their environments, and breaking the vicious cycle of unhealthy food environments that reinforce preferences for those foods. But reframing is just the first step in the process of reversing the trend of obesity. Researchers also have to ask the questions that health policy makers want to hear and act on, says food and health policy expert Kelly Brownell in a commentary, co-authored with Roberto. Historian of science Naomi Oreskes says that scientists tend to follow a supply-side model of information, assuming their results will somehow naturally reach those who need it. Brownell and Roberto underscore this error , and strongly advise obesity researchers to frame questions and convey results in ways that understandable and relevant to policy makers’ and the public. Otherwise their work will remain unheard and unused.

From: “The Persistent Myth of the Narcissistic Millennial” by Brooke Lea Foster for The Atlantic

Whether it’s Time ’s 2013 cover story “The Me, Me, Me Generation” or Jeffrey Kluger’s book The Narcissist Next Door: Understanding the Monster in Your Family, in Your Office, in Your Bed—in Your World , the same statistics are cited as proof of Millennial narcissism. In a 2008 study published in the Journal of Personality, San Diego State University psychology professor Jean Twenge found that narcissistic behaviors among college students studied over a 27-year period had increased significantly from the 1970s. A second study published in 2008 by the National Institutes of Health showed that 9.4 percent of 20- to 29-year-olds exhibit extreme narcissism, compared with 3.2 percent of those older than 65. But there’s a problem with all of this evidence: The data is unreliable. “It’s incredibly unfair to call Millennials narcissistic, or to say they’re more so than previous generations,” says Jeffrey Jensen Arnett, a professor of psychology at Clark University and author of Getting to 30: A Parent’s Guide to the Twentysomething Years . Arnett has devoted a significant amount of time and research to disproving the statistics that San Diego State’s Twenge has built a career on . He says that her assertion that narcissistic behaviors among young people have risen 30 percent is flimsy, since she’s basing it around data collected from the 40-question Narcissistic Personality Inventory (NPI), the results of which leave quite a bit up for interpretation. For example, does agreement with statements like “I am assertive” or “I wish I were more assertive” measure narcissism, self-esteem, or leadership?

From: “Working Out the Meaning of ‘Meaningful’ Work” by Katherine Moos for Vitae

Adam Smith believed that work forces the worker to sacrifice “his tranquility, his freedom, and his happiness.” Karl Marx criticized Smith’s view and believed that labor in the form of creative problem solving could indeed provide “self-realization.” (To Marx, the problem lay not in labor itself, but in the system of wage labor that exploited workers and alienated them from the creation of the final product.) A history of economic thought shows us that the progressive scorn nowadays of the do-what-you-love motto, is actually switching sides on a very old debate. Arguing that work is inherently unpleasant reinforces one of the more insidious assumptions in mainstream economics and one of the more cynical claims in our culture: that people are merely consumers trying to maximize their pleasure and minimize their pain. That sort of thinking leads managers to assume that workers are bound to shirk responsibility whenever possible, and are only motivated by money. It breeds extremely dysfunctional work environments with high surveillance and competition among co-workers. The polymath Herbert Simon has written about how workers’ sense of identification with the mission of an organization explains why employees actually perform the duties necessary to promote the institution’s goals, and not just pursue their self-interest as economic theory would expect.

Worksheet – Synthesis Table

Worksheet – Synthesis Table (download here)

SYNTHESIS: PUTTING DIFFERENT VOICES AND VIEWPOINTS IN CONVERSATION

Writing as Inquiry Copyright © 2021 by Kara Clevinger and Stephen Rust is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

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How to write a literary analysis essay | A step-by-step guide

How to Write a Literary Analysis Essay | A Step-by-Step Guide

Published on January 30, 2020 by Jack Caulfield . Revised on August 14, 2023.

Literary analysis means closely studying a text, interpreting its meanings, and exploring why the author made certain choices. It can be applied to novels, short stories, plays, poems, or any other form of literary writing.

A literary analysis essay is not a rhetorical analysis , nor is it just a summary of the plot or a book review. Instead, it is a type of argumentative essay where you need to analyze elements such as the language, perspective, and structure of the text, and explain how the author uses literary devices to create effects and convey ideas.

Before beginning a literary analysis essay, it’s essential to carefully read the text and c ome up with a thesis statement to keep your essay focused. As you write, follow the standard structure of an academic essay :

An introduction that tells the reader what your essay will focus on.
A main body, divided into paragraphs , that builds an argument using evidence from the text.
A conclusion that clearly states the main point that you have shown with your analysis.

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Step 1: reading the text and identifying literary devices, step 2: coming up with a thesis, step 3: writing a title and introduction, step 4: writing the body of the essay, step 5: writing a conclusion, other interesting articles.

The first step is to carefully read the text(s) and take initial notes. As you read, pay attention to the things that are most intriguing, surprising, or even confusing in the writing—these are things you can dig into in your analysis.

Your goal in literary analysis is not simply to explain the events described in the text, but to analyze the writing itself and discuss how the text works on a deeper level. Primarily, you’re looking out for literary devices —textual elements that writers use to convey meaning and create effects. If you’re comparing and contrasting multiple texts, you can also look for connections between different texts.

To get started with your analysis, there are several key areas that you can focus on. As you analyze each aspect of the text, try to think about how they all relate to each other. You can use highlights or notes to keep track of important passages and quotes.

Language choices

Consider what style of language the author uses. Are the sentences short and simple or more complex and poetic?

What word choices stand out as interesting or unusual? Are words used figuratively to mean something other than their literal definition? Figurative language includes things like metaphor (e.g. “her eyes were oceans”) and simile (e.g. “her eyes were like oceans”).

Also keep an eye out for imagery in the text—recurring images that create a certain atmosphere or symbolize something important. Remember that language is used in literary texts to say more than it means on the surface.

Narrative voice

Ask yourself:

Who is telling the story?
How are they telling it?

Is it a first-person narrator (“I”) who is personally involved in the story, or a third-person narrator who tells us about the characters from a distance?

Consider the narrator’s perspective . Is the narrator omniscient (where they know everything about all the characters and events), or do they only have partial knowledge? Are they an unreliable narrator who we are not supposed to take at face value? Authors often hint that their narrator might be giving us a distorted or dishonest version of events.

The tone of the text is also worth considering. Is the story intended to be comic, tragic, or something else? Are usually serious topics treated as funny, or vice versa ? Is the story realistic or fantastical (or somewhere in between)?

Consider how the text is structured, and how the structure relates to the story being told.

Novels are often divided into chapters and parts.
Poems are divided into lines, stanzas, and sometime cantos.
Plays are divided into scenes and acts.

Think about why the author chose to divide the different parts of the text in the way they did.

There are also less formal structural elements to take into account. Does the story unfold in chronological order, or does it jump back and forth in time? Does it begin in medias res —in the middle of the action? Does the plot advance towards a clearly defined climax?

With poetry, consider how the rhyme and meter shape your understanding of the text and your impression of the tone. Try reading the poem aloud to get a sense of this.

In a play, you might consider how relationships between characters are built up through different scenes, and how the setting relates to the action. Watch out for dramatic irony , where the audience knows some detail that the characters don’t, creating a double meaning in their words, thoughts, or actions.

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Your thesis in a literary analysis essay is the point you want to make about the text. It’s the core argument that gives your essay direction and prevents it from just being a collection of random observations about a text.

If you’re given a prompt for your essay, your thesis must answer or relate to the prompt. For example:

Essay question example

Is Franz Kafka’s “Before the Law” a religious parable?

Your thesis statement should be an answer to this question—not a simple yes or no, but a statement of why this is or isn’t the case:

Thesis statement example

Franz Kafka’s “Before the Law” is not a religious parable, but a story about bureaucratic alienation.

Sometimes you’ll be given freedom to choose your own topic; in this case, you’ll have to come up with an original thesis. Consider what stood out to you in the text; ask yourself questions about the elements that interested you, and consider how you might answer them.

Your thesis should be something arguable—that is, something that you think is true about the text, but which is not a simple matter of fact. It must be complex enough to develop through evidence and arguments across the course of your essay.

Say you’re analyzing the novel Frankenstein . You could start by asking yourself:

Your initial answer might be a surface-level description:

The character Frankenstein is portrayed negatively in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein .

However, this statement is too simple to be an interesting thesis. After reading the text and analyzing its narrative voice and structure, you can develop the answer into a more nuanced and arguable thesis statement:

Mary Shelley uses shifting narrative perspectives to portray Frankenstein in an increasingly negative light as the novel goes on. While he initially appears to be a naive but sympathetic idealist, after the creature’s narrative Frankenstein begins to resemble—even in his own telling—the thoughtlessly cruel figure the creature represents him as.

Remember that you can revise your thesis statement throughout the writing process , so it doesn’t need to be perfectly formulated at this stage. The aim is to keep you focused as you analyze the text.

Finding textual evidence

To support your thesis statement, your essay will build an argument using textual evidence —specific parts of the text that demonstrate your point. This evidence is quoted and analyzed throughout your essay to explain your argument to the reader.

It can be useful to comb through the text in search of relevant quotations before you start writing. You might not end up using everything you find, and you may have to return to the text for more evidence as you write, but collecting textual evidence from the beginning will help you to structure your arguments and assess whether they’re convincing.

To start your literary analysis paper, you’ll need two things: a good title, and an introduction.

Your title should clearly indicate what your analysis will focus on. It usually contains the name of the author and text(s) you’re analyzing. Keep it as concise and engaging as possible.

A common approach to the title is to use a relevant quote from the text, followed by a colon and then the rest of your title.

If you struggle to come up with a good title at first, don’t worry—this will be easier once you’ve begun writing the essay and have a better sense of your arguments.

“Fearful symmetry” : The violence of creation in William Blake’s “The Tyger”

The introduction

The essay introduction provides a quick overview of where your argument is going. It should include your thesis statement and a summary of the essay’s structure.

A typical structure for an introduction is to begin with a general statement about the text and author, using this to lead into your thesis statement. You might refer to a commonly held idea about the text and show how your thesis will contradict it, or zoom in on a particular device you intend to focus on.

Then you can end with a brief indication of what’s coming up in the main body of the essay. This is called signposting. It will be more elaborate in longer essays, but in a short five-paragraph essay structure, it shouldn’t be more than one sentence.

Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein is often read as a crude cautionary tale about the dangers of scientific advancement unrestrained by ethical considerations. In this reading, protagonist Victor Frankenstein is a stable representation of the callous ambition of modern science throughout the novel. This essay, however, argues that far from providing a stable image of the character, Shelley uses shifting narrative perspectives to portray Frankenstein in an increasingly negative light as the novel goes on. While he initially appears to be a naive but sympathetic idealist, after the creature’s narrative Frankenstein begins to resemble—even in his own telling—the thoughtlessly cruel figure the creature represents him as. This essay begins by exploring the positive portrayal of Frankenstein in the first volume, then moves on to the creature’s perception of him, and finally discusses the third volume’s narrative shift toward viewing Frankenstein as the creature views him.

Some students prefer to write the introduction later in the process, and it’s not a bad idea. After all, you’ll have a clearer idea of the overall shape of your arguments once you’ve begun writing them!

If you do write the introduction first, you should still return to it later to make sure it lines up with what you ended up writing, and edit as necessary.

The body of your essay is everything between the introduction and conclusion. It contains your arguments and the textual evidence that supports them.

Paragraph structure

A typical structure for a high school literary analysis essay consists of five paragraphs : the three paragraphs of the body, plus the introduction and conclusion.

Each paragraph in the main body should focus on one topic. In the five-paragraph model, try to divide your argument into three main areas of analysis, all linked to your thesis. Don’t try to include everything you can think of to say about the text—only analysis that drives your argument.

In longer essays, the same principle applies on a broader scale. For example, you might have two or three sections in your main body, each with multiple paragraphs. Within these sections, you still want to begin new paragraphs at logical moments—a turn in the argument or the introduction of a new idea.

Robert’s first encounter with Gil-Martin suggests something of his sinister power. Robert feels “a sort of invisible power that drew me towards him.” He identifies the moment of their meeting as “the beginning of a series of adventures which has puzzled myself, and will puzzle the world when I am no more in it” (p. 89). Gil-Martin’s “invisible power” seems to be at work even at this distance from the moment described; before continuing the story, Robert feels compelled to anticipate at length what readers will make of his narrative after his approaching death. With this interjection, Hogg emphasizes the fatal influence Gil-Martin exercises from his first appearance.

Topic sentences

To keep your points focused, it’s important to use a topic sentence at the beginning of each paragraph.

A good topic sentence allows a reader to see at a glance what the paragraph is about. It can introduce a new line of argument and connect or contrast it with the previous paragraph. Transition words like “however” or “moreover” are useful for creating smooth transitions:

… The story’s focus, therefore, is not upon the divine revelation that may be waiting beyond the door, but upon the mundane process of aging undergone by the man as he waits.

Nevertheless, the “radiance” that appears to stream from the door is typically treated as religious symbolism.

This topic sentence signals that the paragraph will address the question of religious symbolism, while the linking word “nevertheless” points out a contrast with the previous paragraph’s conclusion.

Using textual evidence

A key part of literary analysis is backing up your arguments with relevant evidence from the text. This involves introducing quotes from the text and explaining their significance to your point.

It’s important to contextualize quotes and explain why you’re using them; they should be properly introduced and analyzed, not treated as self-explanatory:

It isn’t always necessary to use a quote. Quoting is useful when you’re discussing the author’s language, but sometimes you’ll have to refer to plot points or structural elements that can’t be captured in a short quote.

In these cases, it’s more appropriate to paraphrase or summarize parts of the text—that is, to describe the relevant part in your own words:

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The conclusion of your analysis shouldn’t introduce any new quotations or arguments. Instead, it’s about wrapping up the essay. Here, you summarize your key points and try to emphasize their significance to the reader.

A good way to approach this is to briefly summarize your key arguments, and then stress the conclusion they’ve led you to, highlighting the new perspective your thesis provides on the text as a whole:

If you want to know more about AI tools , college essays , or fallacies make sure to check out some of our other articles with explanations and examples or go directly to our tools!

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By tracing the depiction of Frankenstein through the novel’s three volumes, I have demonstrated how the narrative structure shifts our perception of the character. While the Frankenstein of the first volume is depicted as having innocent intentions, the second and third volumes—first in the creature’s accusatory voice, and then in his own voice—increasingly undermine him, causing him to appear alternately ridiculous and vindictive. Far from the one-dimensional villain he is often taken to be, the character of Frankenstein is compelling because of the dynamic narrative frame in which he is placed. In this frame, Frankenstein’s narrative self-presentation responds to the images of him we see from others’ perspectives. This conclusion sheds new light on the novel, foregrounding Shelley’s unique layering of narrative perspectives and its importance for the depiction of character.

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Exploring Perspectives: A Concise Guide to Analysis

(14 reviews)

Randall Fallows, University of California Los Angeles

ISBN 13: 9781453311455

Publisher: Saylor Foundation

Language: English

Formats Available

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Learn more about reviews.

Reviewed by Heidi Hamilton, Professor, Emporia State University on 11/5/21

Comprehensiveness rating: 4 see less

The book focuses particularly on the analytical essay, and in that regard, provides a comprehensive covering of what goes into the conceiving and writing of this type of essay. While I expected more attention to building support for your analysis, the book seems more focused on a personal analysis type of essay. While this may make it useful for beginning composition courses, the applicability to courses in other fields, as the author intends, is more limited.

Content Accuracy rating: 4

Writing principles seem accurate, although geared more for English composition and literature courses. Use of term “assertion” to represent one’s claim is not universal in other fields, and “argument” might be better term, given an assertion generally suggests a claim that is unsupported.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 3

The basic principles of analysis and writing remain relevant despite the publishing date. The popular culture examples used in the book, however, are likely less well known to today’s students. While it’s possible (questionably) that they still view Office Space, a Tori Amos song would resonate with few of them. An instructor may need to supplement to provide further application examples.

Clarity rating: 5

The author’s style makes this book easily accessible to an undergraduate student. Fallows writes very “casually” at times, particularly when relating personal experiences, but this may aid some students’ understanding. Overall, terms are defined.

Consistency rating: 4

While the book begins as an introduction to how to write an analytical essay, some chapters focus more on writing mechanics, while others focus on the type of essay purported to be the book’s focus. This lends itself to some inconsistency in the framework and purpose of the book.

Modularity rating: 5

The chapters easily could be used separately, depending upon what you want students to learn. Chapters are subdivided as well. I can see only assigning what is useful to my course without any problems.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 4

Middle portions of book that discuss aspects of writing such as language and style seem to flow less logically. If book’s focus is on writing analytical essay, then it would make sense for chapters to build on how to support and develop your points or arguments, rather than discussing writing mechanics. More positively, each chapter flows well with clear learning objectives stated at the start of each section, then the material presented, and ending with exercises and key takeaways.

Interface rating: 5

No interface problems were detected with either the pdf or the online version.

Grammatical Errors rating: 5

A few errors but not significant to disrupt the flow or readability of the book. The pdf version contains some copyediting issues, such as text being repeated.

Cultural Relevance rating: 4

Nothing in the text appears culturally insensitive or offensive. That being said, the examples, especially the popular culture examples, provide a narrow representation of race, ethnicity, and background, as most of them refer to white, middle-class U.S. citizens.

For someone, like myself, who does not teach composition classes but assigns analytical essays to upper-level students, this text both delivers and disappoints. I definitely could assign the first chapter which explains an analytical essay and nicely lays out common errors in writing these. The appendix section at the end also answers common questions. Middle chapters, however, would be more useful for an instructor focused on teaching writing skills, rather than an instructor using analytical essays for assignments and hoping to use this text to improve students’ understanding of this type of writing.

Reviewed by Jennifer Schaupp, Adjunct Professer, Point Park University on 8/18/19

This book claims to be a concise guide to a specific style of writing–the analytical essay–and that it does. In its conciseness, the book actually attempts to cover multiple aspects of the writing, researching, revising, and idea generating... read more

Comprehensiveness rating: 5 see less

Content Accuracy rating: 5

This book acknowledges the existence of bias in writing and, obviously, the author writes from his own experiences in teaching and writing, including an example of one of his own published essays, which demonstrates the process he discusses in this book. Overall, the author creates an objective template, if you will, to guide the subjective undertaking of analytical writing.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 4

Close reading and analytical writing have been around for years and continue to be a part of many college English courses. While classes, universities, and teachers vary, especially over time, the expectations remain similar and reference material like this one will come in handy. In the book, a few references to current social media forms may need to be updated in the future depending on technological advancements, and a few pop culture references, while applicable to most teachers' generations, feel a little out of touch with the current students' generation.

Aside from a few jargon words, like heuristic, the book is easy to read and accessible to readers given the author's informal style and personal examples. In a world of online bullet-point reading material, this book provides an easy-to-remember acronym (AXES) for the four main components of analytical writing and clearly-labeled takeaways at the end of each chapter.

Consistency rating: 5

The main purpose of the book is present in each chapter. The author does not lose sight of his focus, and the consistent layout of the beginning and end of each chapter provides reliable visual cues to the readers.

The chapters consistently start with learning objectives and end with key takeaways and also consist of exercises that allow students to practice main ideas. Depending on where they are on the writing process, students can refer to specific chapters or subchapters for guidance.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 5

This book strives to take its own advice, following the order a student would take in developing ideas for, writing, and revising an analytical essay. Each chapter refers back to something the author already discussed, showing both the importance of connections/transitions but also the non-linear nature of the writing process. Additionally, the FAQ chapter at the end acknowledges common student concerns about analytical writing and looks at the value of analytical writing for students of all majors.

I did not observe any interface issues with the PDF or online version of this book.

Grammatical Errors rating: 4

There are a few errors in Chapter 6 (the PDF version) that could be easily corrected with another round of proofing.

The book excellently draws on a variety of forms that likely require analysis—from books to music to advertisements. However, the author tends to rely on examples of famous white men, including John Lennon, Vincent van Gogh, and Shakespeare, as well as pre-2000 references. The examples could use a bit more generational, racial, and other forms of diversity.

I taught Introduction to Literary Studies last semester to students generally stuck on the traditional five-paragraph essay model with a specific prompt from their teacher. When I asked the students to generate their own ideas about the books we read in class, they were often stumped. I created guidelines for them to brainstorm, draw from personal experiences, and create theses that passed the so what? test. This book would have been a handy resource for those first few weeks of class (and throughout the semester) when the students were trying to figure out the best way to tackle the writing, revising, and even the peer reviewing of their analytical essays!

Reviewed by Virginia Garnett, Lecturer of English, UNC Pembroke on 2/1/18

Fallows does not purport to offer a complete handbook and in fact states that this volume would be most useful as supplemental reading assigned during the first two weeks of a semester. That said, it successfully covers a wide range of topics central to the writing classroom, including source selection, notetaking, responsible source use, pre-writing strategies, reverse outlining, among others. Additionally, the FAQ section, appearing at the end of the volume, addresses a variety of student concerns, namely the transferability of the analytical skills introduced in the volume. This edition does not contain an index (and only the online edition contains a table of contents), so readers might find the interface frustrating when looking for a quick reference.

The information presented in this volume is reliable, and the advice offered should prove useful to students at various levels of writing proficiency. Fallows is careful to avoid offering too prescriptive a guide to writing, recognizing that different rhetorical situations require different approaches and strives instead to offer guidelines that could be easily transferred across disciplines. His discussion of the potential effects (good and bad) of employing first-person pronouns in academic writing, for example, is accurate and prepares students to adopt a voice appropriate to a given situation.

Fallows’s strategies for writing are consistent with many process-based handbooks and so should prove relevant for the foreseeable future. His references to Twain, Shakespeare, Plato, among others, should likewise stand the test of time. His pop culture references, on the other hand, will likely appear dated to current college students, as references to Creedence Clearwater Revival, Don McLean, Beavis and Butthead, and Office Space, for examples, are not likely to reflect their interests.

Perhaps one of the biggest strengths of Fallows’s book is his conversational tone, and he provides numerous analogies and personal examples to clarify his points in a style readily accessible to freshmen readers. His use of the acronym “AXES” (“making assertions, “including examples,” “explaining the examples,” and “extending the significance”) to help students remember the four components of analysis is clever and easy to follow.

Fallows seems focused on breaking students out of potentially limiting and/or outdated forms of composition to help them view writing as a process of inquiry and discovery. Each section of the book works toward this end, offering students new strategies to adopt and adapt to suit their future writing needs.

Exploring Perspectives is designed to be read as a linear work, as Fallows builds on previously-discussed skills and examples in each subsequent chapter. That said, his chapters are broken into manageable sections, and instructors would face little difficulty in assigning them in a different order to suit the needs of the class, so long as they were prepared to explain a few recurring concepts like the Burkean parlor.

The organization of Fallows’s book is strong, with each chapter beginning with clear objectives and ending with exercises and a list of “key takeaways” for review. The book, as indicated by the table of contents (which, as noted previously, appears only in the online version), moves from concept to application, thereby progressing in a logical manner.

Interface rating: 4

The textbook is easy to follow whether reading online or downloaded as a PDF, though at least one internal link in the online version is broken (between chapters 3 and 1). The online version includes a number of highlighted words over which readers can hover and view a definition. These hover boxes work, though their value is questionable, as many of the definitions offered are almost the same as those given in the body of the text. See “freewriting” and “brainstorming,” for examples (chapters 2 and 4, respectively).

Grammatical Errors rating: 3

The book contains only a few minor grammatical errors, though the most common problems throughout the volume are inconsistent capitalization and missing spaces between words. The most glaring editorial error is the repetition of the same paragraph on page 102.

Fallows works to offer examples from a variety of fields—literature, film, philosophy, political science, history, among others—and should likewise be accessible to a variety of readers. While nothing about his discussion, references, or writing style appears offensive, I do wonder at how culturally inclusive his work will appear to students for whom his pop culture references fall flat. See "Relevance/Longevity."

Overall, Exploring Perspectives would serve as a useful supplement to a writing-intensive course in which students are assumed to have some proficiency in writing at the college level (i. e. they have already taken first-year writing). A first-year writing course would require a more comprehensive resource, but this text, particularly with its examples of underdeveloped analysis, would likely prove useful to students in a literature survey, for example, or other general education courses.

Reviewed by John Wallace, Senior Lecturer, University of California at Berkeley on 2/1/18

The scope of this book is to provide a basic approach for writing an analytic essay for college students unfamiliar with the practice. In that it never forgets its audience and takes care to provide structure and advice for "beginning" students to... read more

This book is fully accurate except for a very limited number of places where spaces between words are missing or font is non-standard. There might be 5-10 of these occurrences in the entire work. These are in the PDF version only. The web-based version of the text is perfect as best as I can determine.

Many of the fundamentals of analytic thinking are, indeed, enduring. But the portions of this book devoted to research need better attention to digital resources. The word "internet" appears only three times in the entire volume. Some comments feel dated. For example, "And thanks to the Internet, I do not even have to leave the house, but can do a Google search for up to the minute news or visit any number of academic websites to see what my fellow scholars have written about my subject."

Clarity is one of the outstanding successes of this work. It has excellent structure, clear and clean prose, ample examples, useful callout boxes, and conceptual rigor. The book reads quickly and easily and would be easy to navigate, too, should one need to go back and locate a certain topic that was discussed.

This book has been well-conceived and reconsidered and rewritten with care, affording a strong sense of an "organic whole" to the project of teaching how to build a good analytic essay from the inception of the ideas to the submission of the work. The key concepts are kept alive and effective everywhere. There is no sense that the topic or argument is shifting or slipping at any point.

This book has struck an excellent balance between the full explanation of a concept and the packaging of it in a module of a size that would be comfortable for undergraduates.

The author has a vision of how an analytic essay gets started and grows into its final form. After a chapter that establishes his definition of analysis, its four key components, and the need to maintain a balance among them, then a much longer chapter that argues for the necessity to think of analysis as an act of a thinking subject embedded in contexts that affect the direction of analysis, he takes up each of his three phases of development: establishing key perspectives / theses, explaining the origins and implications of them, and structuring the essay argument. This 5-chapter approach offers a logical progression of ideas that significantly improve the chances that undergraduates unfamiliar with writing analytic essays can develop a writing path that will work for them.

The web-based version of this book is well designed, with a table of contents listing hyper-linked chapters and chapter sections. Many of the key terms have useful pop-up definitions associated with them. As with many web-based books, the chapters require a considerable amount of scrolling to navigate.

The PDF version seems more like an afterthought. There is not even a title page or table of contents.

This book keeps its sentence structure simple and clear. There are times when I felt that the tone was just slightly condescending because of its simplicity. On the other hand, as a textbook for those not strong in reading, or in a hurry, or for non-native students, this approach is understandable, perhaps even laudable.

There is some narrowness in its cultural terrain, in my opinion. For example, the author writes, "Jeff is not happy. His clock shows 2 a.m., but his computer screen shows nothing. For the last four hours he has tried to get started on an essay on William Shakespeare’s The Tempest, but he just doesn’t know where to begin. 'It’s Professor Johnson’s fault I’m in this mess,' he thinks to himself." To my ear, "Jeff" and "Johnson" — although I understand the wish to be generic and broadly approachable — seem a bit too exclusively of a certain cultural background. Also, the text feels just slightly "old" to me in this way. Again, when discussing argument in advertising, the example used, as if recent, is "things go better with Coke" — a 1960s phrase. This just evokes a certain America to me.

This work is most appropriate for lower-division undergraduates or college students of any level who have not had much training in analytic essay writing. While I wouldn't be able to use it in my lower-division literature classes in its entirety, there are portions definitely worth sharing. For example, the coverage of basic errors is something I feel could be repackaged and offer welcome guidance. I am glad to have read it. Some of its observations may well find a place in my teaching plans.

As a final note, some of the author's arguments seem just a little too simple. But perhaps avoiding those complexities is one of the strengths of this basic textbook.

Reviewed by Lisa Jensen, Adjunct Instructor, Saint Paul College on 6/20/17

The book focuses on analysis and breaks the subject into easy-to-use chapters. While not deep or entirely comprehensive, the book does provide a baseline explanation that instructors can add to as needed. I could see using my own examples, for instance, or easily applying his concepts to my particular assignments. As other reviewers have noted, the book touches on the most important aspects of analysis both in composition and literature/film. I particularly like the section on moving from interpretations to analysis. This chapter identifies key aspects of argument, thesis statements, and analysis that are helpful in a variety of writing situations. I also like the organization within each chapter. Each section and chapter begins with learning objectives that are explained in the chapter, illustrated through examples, tested with exercises, and enforced with the "key takeaways" box. This varied approach to learning styles works with different students and different assignments. Finally, the appendix, which highlights student questions, puts writing in a larger perspective which in turns shows students that writing skills and analysis with benefit them beyond the assignment or class.

Fallows deals accurately with the major aspects of analysis. While I think the examples are geared more toward a literature course, overall the book provides a strong base for all analytic writing situations.

The explanation of analysis is up-to-date and the content is arranged in such a way as to make updates easy and straightforward.

The book is clearly written and Fallows has an accessible, conversational style. The online version has hover links for definitions to enforce key terms.

Chapters are consistent and content builds from one chapter to the next. If I were to change anything, I would suggest moving the chapter on using sources to later in the book.

Because each chapter builds on the previous, I imagine instructors would teach the book in the order presented. Later chapters often reference terms or ideas presented earlier. In the online version, quick links between chapters would be helpful so students, when reading about brainstorming techniques in chapter 4, for example, could quickly link back to the first description of this practice in chapter 2.

Topics are presented in a clear and logical fashion. As noted earlier and in other reviews, the organization of each chapter is quite useful.

I read the book both in PDF form and in its online form and found no problems with the interface. Chapters were easy to navigate. The PDF version has a note to teachers while the online version has links to definitions and other content. Neither version has a glossy or index, and the PDF version does not have a table of contents. In the online version, links between chapters would be helpful to remind students of key concepts.

No glaring grammatical errors.

Cultural Relevance rating: 3

The examples Fallows uses are not culturally offensive or insensitive, but the book would be more appealing with a wider variety of cultural examples. The Wizard of Oz, Tori Amos, Office Space, and the Beatles could be replaced with a wider variety of cultural representations that more accurately reflect our students.

Reviewed by Rosalind Sibielski, Assiatant Professor of English and Film Studies, Rhode Island College on 4/11/17

The strength of this book is that it is limited to exploring one very specific type of academic writing: the analytical essay. Over the five chapters included in the book, it provides students with a step-by-step breakdown of the process of analyzing texts, formulating theses, compiling examples, and organizing the analysis into a coherent essay that provides consideration of the significance of the approach to the analysis within the context of the larger body of scholarship surrounding the topic. It also provides students with in-depth examples--and, what is perhaps more helpful, for each example, an explanation connecting it back to the sections of the book outlining the analysis and writing processes. It also gives consideration to how these steps to analyzing texts can be applied to a wide range of types of texts, from literature, to film, to advertisements.

The content is accurate and error-free. It does draw heavily from the authors own experience in teaching analytical writing to college students, but that bias in relation to the books' topic is arguably a strength rather than a weakness in terms of the trustworthiness of the information provided.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 5

The book is relevant in terms of the pedagogical approach it advocates when it comes to both scholarly analysis and scholarly writing in the college classroom. The examples used in the book (both the sample writings and the examples used to explain the analysis process and the writing process) are likely to remain accessible to students for some time. The book also provides useful background explanation for students not familiar with the examples. So, for example, when the film The Wizard of Oz is used to provide an example of how to analyze a text, the author includes a plot summary for students who have not seen the film.

The book is very accessible for undergraduate students, steers clear of jargon for the most part, and when rhetoric/composition jargon is used, explanations are provided to make clear the concepts behind what those terms refer to.

The book is consistent all the way through in terms of both the use of specialized terminology and its framework.

Modularity rating: 4

The book follows a step-by-step process for how to analyze and write about a variety of texts. Each chapter focuses on a different part of the analysis and writing processes. Chapters are also broken up into sub-sections based on specific steps in analyzing and writing. This makes it very easy to divide the book up into modules for a syllabus. The book is not as easily switched around to align with a teaching approach that follows a slightly different order in terms of these steps, since each chapter (and each sub-section within each chapter) builds on a skill and on context examined in the previous chapter.

The book is very clearly and logically organized. It is easy to follow the flow of information from one section to the next and one chapter to the next. Again, this is a plus for use in undergraduate writing courses (or other courses where analyzing texts is a key component).

I read part of the book as a PDF downloaded to my computer, part of it in a web browser on my computer, and part of it on a web browser on my tablet. The interface in all three versions was intuitive and easy to navigate.

The text contains no grammatical errors.

Cultural Relevance rating: 5

The text is not culturally insensitive or offensive. It uses a variety of examples and a variety of approaches to analysis that include examinations of ideological analysis around issues of race and gender. It also avoids the use of the "universal" male pronoun when discussing hypothetical readers or students.

I teach both first year writing in an English department and a variety of film analysis courses in a film studies program. I would definitely use this book for both first year writing and for my intro to film course. In fact, I will be adopting it for both next year.

Reviewed by David Bockoven, Adjunct Instructor, Lane Community College on 8/21/16

Comprehensiveness rating: 2 see less

The first two chapters show the most promise in discussing the concept of analysis, but the development is very thin. In later chapters, I was hoping to see more of a pay off from this initial promise. Instead, it seems to devolve into a typical composition textbook in terms of "how to write an essay." An example of what I am talking about comes in Chapter Two: In the first section of Chapter Two, Fallows endeavors to explore the effect of personal circumstances on one’s opinions, but he merely scratches the surface here. He doesn’t really show how a student might deal with this in any kind of depth. I'm wondering if the author was so focused on being concise that he sacrificed other aspects of the topic?

The book does not contain an index or glossary. In the on-line version of the text, some of the terms are given a hyperlinked definition, but the application of this feature seemed inconsistent (not all instances of these words throughout the later chapters are given this link). In the .pdf version of the text, there's no table of contents.

I found much of Fallows's advice to be sound. When Fallows writes in his Appendix of Frequently Asked Questions “analysis is not an objective process. You cannot necessarily uncover the author’s intentions or reveal the one correct conclusion just by thoroughly understanding specific relevant facts,” I think he is correct and also providing students a helpful way of thinking about analysis. Other helpful nuggets of advice: “A good analysis starts with the right questions. To uncover your point of view, you need to identify the dilemma or confusion in the scenario. And then you need to ask a question that requires more than a summary or objective answer.” In Chapter One, he writes, “Though you need to provide examples, you should select and discuss only those details that shed the most light on your points of view. “ In Chapter Two’s description of the writing process, I agree with his assessment that writing is not necessarily a linear process, but more recursive. “Remember that the goal is not to come up with an answer to the question ‘what’s THE meaning of the piece?’ But rather to explore dimensions of the subject that do not have definitive answers, allowing us to consider our own subjectivities.” Chapter Three.

Fallows makes an effort to bring in a discussion of non-academic topics, such as students' potential career choices, to demonstrate how analysis is a life-long skill that can be used in many different contexts. This comes across most clearly in the Appendix of Frequently Asked Questions. The content seems almost timeless to me as this pattern of thought has been around for a long time.

Clarity rating: 4

Mostly very good, I think. Fallows really makes an effort to explain his concepts in a very basic way so that any first year student should be able to understand these concepts. Potential exceptions include "heuristics" and "rhetorical choices." In the on-line version of the text, there is a hyperlinked definition for heuristics (but only the first time he uses this idea). I thought his use of the acronym AXES (assertion, examples, explanations, significance) was clever, and he shows how the plural form of both "axis" and "axe" apply well to the notion of analysis.

Consistency rating: 3

The exact purpose of the book feels inconsistent to me. Is it mostly a book on academic analysis or on the writing process. Of course, the two are not mutually exclusive, but it did feel like the book was attempting to be all things to all people. This criticism applies specifically to the "framework" of the book in a conceptual sense. In terms of its use of terminology and its references, it is very consistent.

The concise nature of the text makes it easy to adapt to different contexts. Helpful features of the text (Learning Objectives and Key Takeaways) are also useful in this regard. There are a few moments where the text does seem self-referential. Sometimes the use of hyperlinks (in the on-line version of the text) direct readers back to relevant sections, but this is not always applied.

The book has a strong sense of continuity. Again, its concise nature aids in achieving this quality.

Interface rating: 3

The use of hyperlinked definitions of key terms in the on-line version of the text were helpful, but their use was inconsistent. Usually only the first instance of a word had the hyperlinked definition. If a teacher were using sections of the book out of order, then this practice would not be helpful. Sometimes, I wondered if words really needed this definition: such as "examples" (do some people really not know what an example is?) Another problem with the hyperlinked definitions was that they were the exact same wording as the text. If the term is being defined in the text, then why the need for the hyperlink?

I found two errors: “a students was inspired” in Appendix and Chapter Three: “The best way to begin your analysis is with an attentive, open mind; something that is more difficult than most of us care to admit. “ semi-colon usage? The text is inconsistent about coordinating quotation marks with other punctuation (does period go inside or outside?).

The text is not culturally insensitive or offensive, but it also feels very "white bread" to me. Text does make an effort to achieve a sense of gender balance.

I wish that he would have followed his own advice in Chapter Three: “ it is almost always better to write ‘a lot about a little’ than ‘a little about a lot.’ “ In trying to tackle the writing process as well as analysis, the book ends up saying a little about a lot. At the same time, there is a lot of helpful information about the process of analysis (and his discussion of the writing process is not bad--it just seems to detract from the book's focus). I'm almost wondering if the material on analysis wouldn't work better as an essay rather than an entire book? As I was reading the book, I felt that it was really an extended essay.

Reviewed by Erica Parker, Instrutor , Colorado State University on 1/7/16

Fallows uses a conversational tone to share a stirring range of helpful insights. He frames each chapter with objectives and takeaways while offering examples to highlight his points throughout the middle. There is no index or glossary. However, while an index would be helpful, Fallows defines his central language (either directly or through example(s) or both), so I see the lack of a glossary as an opportunity for students to create their own glossaries. Depending on the type of class, student-created glossaries could be a wonderful way to increase comprehension and study for quizzes and exams; additionally, these glossaries might be employed by teachers to monitor which students read. The appropriateness of this text is dependent on the type of class. For example, I could see this text as wonderfully appropriate for the literature classes I teach, but, across the board, it falls short of the depth required for a composition class.

While Fallows is just one speaker representing one person’s views on subjects that can be interpreted and applied in many ways, there was nothing major about the content itself that weakened his authority in my eyes. His tone is relatable, and his insights are often more than sound. Still, a bit more concision and proofreading would advance his ethos.

Some examples are more timeless than others. The textual excerpts and models are timeless because students can review for themselves the techniques that Fallows highlights; in contrast, references may become outdated or prove too narrow for a wide audience, which is one of the most common difficulties for any text like this one. Still, Fallows selects references that are more universal than niche.

A relatable, flowing voice is one of the strengths of this textbook. At times, Fallows could clarifying terms and context in more detail, but, on the whole, he does this quite well. Additionally, this book is a better match for a lower-division course because the terminology and concepts can deepen from here.

Chapters are consistently presented and content builds on itself.

While there are a number of visual cues (like colored boxes) and a consistent use of headings, since the flow of the author's voice is one of the leading organizational tools, chapters may resist being broken into parts.

Easy to follow and reference.

Nothing about the interface confused this reader, but there are no images or charts, which might be nice additions.

While the text never becomes unreadable, punctuation and sentence clarity do cause some stumbles. As an instructor in an English department, I do not want to put a textbook in front of my students that does not model consistent and clean sentences at a level they should aim for.

Topics and language do not sway into the offensive, and the tone of the text is inclusive and friendly – inviting all readers to think and learn. However, the vast majority of examples represent Western cultural as embodied largely by its white (and predominantly male) members (Alfred Hitchcock, Vincent Van Gogh, Woody Allen, Mark Twain, and Tori Amos, just to name a few). Additionally, I wonder about the demographic nature of audiences for media like Office Space and Family Guy, but it is a daunting task to find media that has a true appeal for an enormous audience (perhaps a movie like Cloud Atlas would at least encourage students to consider at least some elements of diversity more directly). On the whole, this textbook could do more to appeal to the rich diversity of American students, the realities of our histories and its contributors, and our expanding global context.

Reviewed by Andrea Hills, Instructor, Portland Community College Portland, Oregon on 1/7/16

This is an engaging text that clearly covers the the purpose, strategies, and writing process for an analysis assignment for a variety of disciplines. The most comprehensive sections of the text are the descriptions and examples of various aspects of the writing process. The sections that cover analysis are less detailed and sometimes skim over important concepts. As a result of the uneven coverage, it is somewhat difficult to pinpoint the student audience for the text. For example, some of the detailed discussion of the writing process would work well for a lower level class, but the instructor would need to supplement/expand some of the analysis concepts. For a higher level class, some of the extensive examples about general writing strategies like creating an introduction might be repetitive, but the analysis sections would offer enough information. However, the text is consistently formatted and sections are clearly labeled, so instructors could pick and choose which sections are most relevant to their courses. The text does not have an index or a glossary, and a table of contents would be a helpful addition. There is an appendix of FAQs about analysis, but it is a somewhat confusing mixture of odds and ends.

The content is accurate, and the author clearly and completely cites all references to outside sources. The author does have a bias concerning the use of first-person and the ability to achieve objectivity, but he is up front about his positions. It will be up to each instructor to decide how comfortable they are with some of the author's statements on these issues. The text does have a number of distracting editing errors.

The content rests on a solid foundation of writing and analysis strategies and principles that will remain relevant. In fact, the author does an excellent job discussing often-tread writing concepts such as thesis statements in a refreshing manner, bringing new life to established concepts. The one element of the text that runs the risk of becoming dated is the reliance on pop culture references. In the case of the extended use of the film Office Space in Chapter 3, the reference might be hard to update; however, most references, such as the use of South Park, are brief examples that could be quickly replaced with more current examples. Note: Most of the music examples have already passed their expiration date and should be updated in the next revision.

The clarity of the text is definitely a strong point. The author is skilled at drawing the reader into the text and providing engaging descriptions of the various writing and analysis concepts. For example, in the section on conclusions in Chapter 5, the author does not just repeat the old adage to avoid starting a conclusion with the phrase "in conclusion"; instead, he offers a full paragraph describing how this phrase limits the possibilities of the conclusion. The author is at his strongest when discussing writing principles, and offers clear explanations and effective examples. In other parts of the text, namely Chapters 2 and 3, discussions of some of the more academic concepts such as researching and gauging an argument's effectiveness get a bit thin, and too many concepts are covered in large sections of text. The author does offer a plethora of examples and definitions for most ideas in the text. The most effective ones are those that are briefly woven into the flow of the text such as the quick definition of stock phrases in Chapter 3. Other examples, especially long, narrative examples such as the issue dialogue on page 36, are less effective as they get lost in too much detail and sometimes seem too personal and simplistic to be useful for an academic course. There could be increased attention to various learning styles as the book is quite text heavy with just one visual in Chapter 4. For example, adding visuals to the AXES and pentad heuristics discussions would help clarify these ideas for all students, but particularly for visual learners.

As a whole, the text is consistent in terms of tone, approach and formatting. The one section that stands out as lacking consistency is 3.2. All other sections open with an appealing introduction that engages the reader with a hypothetical scenario or some real life situation that leads the reader into the focus of the chapter. However, section 3.2 has a brief, abrupt introduction, and the rest of the section is not as cohesive and examples are not as fully integrated as in other chapters of the text.

Chapters, sections and sub-headings are clearly and consistently labeled throughout the text, so assigning specific portions of the text is feasible. One drawback is that some chapters such as Chapter 2, which opens with Kenneth Burke's parlor parable, and Chapter 4, which opens with a extended focus on The Wizard of Oz, refer to the opening examples throughout the chapter, so assigning individual parts of these chapters could be confusing if the opening of the chapter is not also assigned. Additionally, the first few pages of Chapter 5 refers back to concepts and examples from Chapter 1, but most of this chapter could easily be assigned independently from other parts of the text.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 2

While the interface and modularity of the text are strong, the organization of ideas is somewhat uneven. The author is adept at explaining different parts of the writing process, but the elements of the writing process are scattered across Chapters 2 - 5. For example, Chapter 2 describes how to approach the general writing process, but additional pre-writing strategies such as brainstorming and clustering are not brought up until Chapter 4. It is also unclear what the function of the Appendix is. Some of the responses to the FAQs seem like they could be integrated into Chapters 1 - 5. For example, the response to the question about "good" questions seems like it could be worked into Chapter 2. Within chapters, the flow of ideas is excellent, with smooth transitions from paragraph to paragraph, but the chapters themselves are unevenly structured. For example, Chapter 5 offers extended discussion and examples for composing parts of the paper such as the introduction, yet parts of Chapter 3 skim quickly through more complex issues like evaluating arguments and logical fallacies. Condensing or deleting some of the long, extended examples (esp. those that are heavily narrative/personal) would leave more room for dividing some of the longer chapter sections into smaller, more focused sections with more academic depth added to the discussion.

The text is clear and easy to navigate. Consistency in formatting chapters is strong with all chapters set up in the same format and sections of chapters (learning objectives, exercises, etc.) clearly labeled and arranged in the same order in each chapter. There is only one image (see response to Clarity), but it comes through clearly.

With a few minor exceptions, the grammar throughout the book is correct; however, the book could use some additional proofreading. Some examples of minor grammar corrections to note include the use of plural "students" when the singular is needed (page 100, Appendix), and the need to use "shown" vs. "show" in the first paragraph on page 46. The more pressing issue is the need for additional proofreading to fix a number of minor but distracting errors such spacing between words, correcting repeated text (page 102, Appendix), and double-checking that the correct spelling and forms of specific names and ideas are correct. For example, it seems that Kenneth Burke's pentad heuristic is generally not capitalized. Additional editing would be a quick fix that would reduce distractions for the reader and increase the overall credibility of the text.

There are no overtly offensive elements of the text, and the writing is quite reader-friendly and inviting. However, the examples used often rely heavily on pop culture references to movies and television shows, so some students may have trouble fully understanding the references if they are not familiar with current American culture due to their cultural background or age. Some of these pop culture examples may also quickly become dated. While examples are generally engaging, most are heavily dominated by white males, and wider variety of voices and perspectives would be a welcome revision. Additionally, the text could accommodate a wider range of learning styles by adding in visuals and hyperlinks (see suggestions in the Clarity response). The author's extensive use of his own experience works well when he is relating his experiences in the classroom, but the approach is less successful when there are long descriptions of the author's own writing process or his personal life such as trips to the gym.

With some revisions, I would consider using all or parts of this text in my courses. The tone and approach is similar to other texts I have chosen, and I find the conversational, descriptive style effective in holding students' attention. However, this text errs too far on the side of personal vs. academic. A number of the examples are quite long and based on personal experience/response (either the author's or the reader's), and this approach is reflected in the exercises at the end of each chapter, creating a gap between personal response and the academic approach required in many courses. Refining some of the organization, reducing/replacing extended sections that focus on a personal approach with more academic examples and depth, and revamping the exercises so that a variety of exercises are inserted throughout the chapters to practice or reinforce the writing and analysis concepts would strengthen this text.

Reviewed by Stephen Walton, Assistant Professor of French, Portland State University on 1/7/16

This textbook gives a thorough presentation of the process and steps involved in writing an analytical essay. It provides a general but systematic method for students to use in approaching writing assignments in a number of areas (especially literature, film, media studies) and thoroughly explains the different steps involved in developing a written analysis for a college course, from beginning to end.

It lacks an index, and it even lacks a table of contents. The latter would be helpful for readers and for instructors using it in a class, and would be relatively easy to provide using standard pdf features. The instructor is left to develop his/her own table of contents by going through the book and noting the page numbers of each of the six chapters, and their sub-sections and sub-headings. Fortunately, the book is clearly organized and easy to navigate one's way through, thanks to the chapter titles, sub-headings of major sections, and sub-titles within major sections of each chapter.

The author presents his own approach to teaching analysis and essay writing, so the terms "accurate" or "inaccurate" are not the best. However, based on my own experience dealing with student writing and my knowledge of current approaches to writing and composition, this book seems to be well-informed in its approach. The author's assertions are well-illustrated and based on many years of experience in the field.

I would not say that the text is "unbiased" either, but since the author does not pretend to objectivity and does not think that student writers can or should be "objective", this is not an issue. I would say the author is clear about his own positions, and supports them well.

The content is more or less up-to-date. The author makes many references to popular culture and current technology, and some of the references to television shows such as "Family Guy" or "Friends" are already dated or soon will be, and others may also be dated in a few years. Nevertheless, even if some of the references are not salient for students in a few years, the author provides enough context to make them understandable. It remains to be seen whether in 2020 or afterward students will relate to the cultural content, however.

Very clearly written, as one would expect and hope for in a book about writing by an English professor. The style seems to me attractive and friendly, and very approachable.

Very consistent in terms of its approach, its use of terminology and its organization. The author presents a set of elements that belong in any written analysis, and provides a useful mnemonic for these four elements (AXES: assertions, examples, explanations, significance). (This is all clearly presented initially in the overview in the preface.) Then, in chapters devoted to each one, he explains their importance and presents ways students can approach these elements, and the stages involved in developing them.

One feature of analysis and the writing process that the author emphasizes throughout the text is the recursive nature of writing, and this is a useful theme, as it continually reminds students that the writing process is rarely linear, and prepares them for the real nature of the process.

As stated above, chapters are clearly organized and broken up into sub-sections, which are further broken into subunits with subtitles. Each chapter section states the main topics of that section in outline form at the head of the section and then graphically highlights the key ideas of the section at the end of the section. The graphical layout is simple and uses contrasting color and text boxes effectively: it is easy to follow the structure of each chapter as one progresses through it.

Again, it would be nice if there a table of contents that laid out chapter titles, subsections and their page numbers at the beginning of the book.

Organization is very clear and logical.

Very simple presentation, clear and unobtrusive. Use of html (hyperlinks from a table of contents to each chapter, section and subsection) would make it easier to navigate.

Very well written (again, as one would expect from an English professor).

There are a few typographical errors, and several instances (10-20 of them) where the space that should separate two words is missing, but these are easily deciphered.

There is one section where three paragraphs are repeated (page 102).

Quite relevant. The author shows how analysis is a useful practice to develop in college, but also in one's profession and one's life. The examples he makes use of deal with a variety of personal, political, environmental, social and cultural concerns, and a realistic understanding of the features of college student life pervade the book (e.g., procrastination, boredom, relationships, the role of popular culture). I found these elements to be meaningful and interesting, but it remains to be seen whether students would have the same reaction as the 60-year old academic who is writing these comments.

I found this to be a useful, interesting read. I appreciate the author's organization and his ability to explain his ideas clearly--in short his effective use of the very principles he puts forth for students to follow when they write. There is an openness to his discussion of how to approach writing that is refreshing, and that I believe students would appreciate. He is firm regarding his principles but not dogmatic, and he justifies his assertions in a way that students would, I believe (hope?) find convincing.

There is also a certain level of personal honesty that is refreshing: the teacher in this book is someone that students will get to know to a certain degree, and that seems as if it would be appealing to student readers.

I have not yet decided how I might incorporate this book into my French literature and French composition classes, but there is a great deal of useful material concerning methods and approach to writing that I would like to provide to my students, one way or another.

Reviewed by Jennifer L Foray, Associate Professor, Purdue University on 7/15/14

This book provides a thorough, far-reaching introduction for students in various disciplines, at different stages of their academic careers; the discussions and gudelines contained in this work are specific enough to be helpful yet broad enough for students to adapt them for their own purposes. The book does not contain an index or glossary, and I would have especially liked to see the former, especially as this is an electronic book. Perhaps a summarizing checklist of ideas, strategies, and terms used in the book (such as "assertion" and "working thesis") could be included in a glossary or appendix.

The content itself is largely accurate and clearly-presented. However, there are numerous formatting errors and typos that detract from the text. Spaces between words are missing, and some sentences appear twice (see, for instance, the text after the checklist on page 102). These are not especially egregious but, in the aggregate, they are distracting. Further, I think that, if we implore students to review, self-edit, and proofread their work (as this text rightly does), we need to be especially certain that our own work is free of such issues. On a much more minor note: in his extended discussion of the Wizard of Oz, the author repeatedly refers to the Good Witch as "Glenda," which is incorrect. Her name is "Glinda."

The discussions of analytical reasoning and writing are excellent, and I do not believe they will prove obsolute anytime soon. However, the author frequently cites popular culture references and ideas, and these do run the risk of becoming dated. For instance, today's students will likely be unfamiliar with the Coke and Pepsi slogans discussed on pages 35-36. I imagine that I'd have to explain to my students some of these examples and references.

This book is written in exceptionally lucid, cogent prose; the author avoids jargon and explains all other terminology, ideas, and theories he references. However, I found some of the end-of-chapter excercises to be too abstract and generalized, and, with their overweening focus on feelings and experiences, they veer too far from the realm of academic writing. If students cannot think of a relevant experience or topic from their own lives, they may just ignore the excercise entirely. I'd have liked to have seen excercises that present a particular idea or claim to be discussed so that students can jump right into the task at hand.

The text consistently employs terminology and a clear structure; this is an easy-to-follow text, with each chapter building upon the ideas contained in the previous chapter(s).

I could easily assign sections of this work, although the large size of each chapter, plus the multiiple sections in each chapter, make the chapters appear far more unwieldy than they actually are. The formatting (what appears to be 1 1/2 spaced text) and layout also creates the illusion of larger, bulky chapters; single spaced text would allow more compact, modular chapters and clear divides between sections and chapters.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 3

The text's organization of ideas and topics should pose no problems for students, although, again, the layout and present size of each chapter impedes flow. Some of the examples could be condensed, too, in order to present a more cohesive, concise narrative structure. I'm not sure why the footnotes to cited sources appear at the end of a section, not the chapter as a whole. It's confusing and distracting.

Interface rating: 2

See above comments regarding typos and formatting issues; the lack of an index and glossary; and layout. The book is not as user-friendly as I would have expected from an electronic book.

The text does not contain grammatical errors other than what I presume to be typying/formatting errors.

I do not find any examples or discussions to be offensive or exclusionary, although, as noted above, some of them are dated and will presumably become even more so. Students may not understand the references contained in the book.

In sum, this is a comprehensive, valuable text that demystifies analytical thinking and writing. I plan to assign this book--whether in whole or in part--in my undergraduate courses in history, where it will effectively complement history-specific writing guides and pedagogies. I am confident that the text will help students understand how to craft arguments, formulate assertations, and employ relevant details and examples.

Reviewed by Angelica Duran, Professor, Purdue University on 7/15/14

Comprehensiveness rating: 3 see less

The text was insufficiently comprehensive for me to adopt, although i am interested in seeing it in a future state, so that I can. There was no title page, Table of Contents, glossary, or hyperlinks to navigate readily through the document, which I would need for any text of this type that I would use for the classroom. The text too could use some (but NOT lots) of work of consistency. For example, one of my comments on page 3 is "It would be good to add the titles earlier when mentioning Chapters 1 and 2 above, and final chapter later in this paragraph "It would be good to add the titles earlier when mentioning Chapters 1 and 2 above, and final chapter later in this paragraph."

Content Accuracy rating: 3

The content and organization are very strong. The author uses examples from various media, like books, films, popular culture. The grammatical and syntactical errors as well as plain problems that could be resolved with proofreading need attending to. As for proofreading one comment from page 2 is "earlier use of the singular reader and here the use of singular purpose and audience reflects a set of assumptions I try to avoid" and I noted on page 22 the typo of "Mary Shelly's Frankenstein" (it is Shelley). I am unable to adopt this book because it reflects the sufficiently high level of errors that I want my students to avoid. I would like the text to define its audience a bit more. One comment I wrote at the bottom of page 6 is that I have a "concern regarding grammatical skill of splitting infinitives which is often confusing for non-native speakers. Also see typo in last sentence of this page and later in paragraph."

I very much like the scope of this text and on page 4 wrote "I like this aim of two weeks." Following up on my comment above, the author refers to literary and visual works that have Western cultural endurance. The author also uses pedagogical techniques that will remain important, and he sufficiently shows their foundations.

Expanding upon a comment above, at the top of page 14, one comment was "limited-perspective cultural assumption, as is use of 'American' business paragraph." US universities have more and more international students and even native speakers would benefit from reading texts that model global rhetoric, so this text might benefit immensely from a few changes.The author might be willing to do so as the author does a great job illuminating biases in the pages 31-32 section.

The author's use of sub-titles and repeated sections at the end of chapters is excellent.

I answer this question by referring to page 6. One section that might be added to the beginning of each section or chapter might be tips that may seem obvious but are not, like reading the assignment, asking the instructor about use of formal or informal tone, active peer-reviewing. This could and should be done in brief because one of the very positive points of this text is its brevity.

The author did an excellent job organizing the text, and maintaining the brevity. No easy task.

This does seem relevant overall to this text. However, I did mention above that adding a ToC and glossary that could be linked onto so that it could jump to the appropriate section would be welcome.

There are some that seem due to lack of proofreading or sufficiently carefully editing.

Indeed, this book is not culturally insensitive or offensive, although i do not find it "global" -- not that it should be, but I repeat that the preface should address this more. The author might also add or modify the Exercise sections so that instructors and readers can benefit from the global representation they might have, without disaffecting or being unuseful to classrooms that do not have wide global representation

I am very interested in seeing this book revised/improved and would be willing to share my sticky-note marked chapter to provide more details. This text has great potential to be used by many instructors who teach liberal arts classes that do not have much time to focus on the kinds of matters that this text addresses, but could advise students to review it in brief and bring in completed Exercises to office hours electively or even as required assignments.

Reviewed by Amy Wiley, Lecturer, California Polytechnic State University on 7/15/14

The text covers a number of areas of analytical writing comparable to many other for-sale textbooks. The areas into which the text is divided suggest tremendous usefulness, and I applaud the intent of the book to concentrate on analysis specifically, as that is an area that students in lower- and upper-division courses find especially difficult to perform with any kind of conscious methodology or understanding. They often resort to a kind dart-board approach in which they lob shots at "meaning" without necessarily appreciating the steps required to get to meaningful claims. Unfortunately, I found that, while this text provides a great deal of discourse on the subject and offers many models that could prove useful with the aid of--ironically?--further analysis in a classroom discussion or via exercises, the text lacks fundamental guidance and precision that would help students to replicate the process of analyzing texts, data, or other artifacts. For example, somewhere in the introduction or first few chapters, I would expect to see the term "analysis" explicitly defined, and perhaps discussed in terms of etymology, as understanding the definition and perhaps having some concrete examples of the concept in a variety of contexts would help students to better engage in actual analysis themselves. This text seems geared toward introductory, general composition courses. As such, it appears comparable to many other closed-source texts available and would function as a suitable replacement to many other fore-sale texts of its kind. The fact that it discusses analysis without attempting to provide catchy, current, or not-button readings/sample issues means instructors can supplement readings as they choose, and that flexibility may offset its lack of rigor or explicit, technical treatment of analysis.

There are a few typos--missing spaces, for example--and some usage errors (that/which confusion). In terms of the content, the text did not seem to me to be wrong so much as lacking in rigor.

The content seems general enough that it should not seem dated any time soon. The organization and simplicity of the objectives should make updates relatively simple to implement.

Clarity rating: 3

The book is simply written, aimed toward lower-division students, and seems largely free of technical terminology. Given the topic, however, I'm not sure that's a plus.

The book seems very consistent in content and layout.

The book is very well-organized in terms of modularity.

To my way of thinking, although the modules included do flow logically, the book seems to start a bit in medias res.

The layout and organization are simple in a pleasing, useful way, especially for reading via PDF/electronically.

The text contains some typos and a few imprecise usage errors (that/which, etc).

The text is not culturally insensitive or offensive.

I think this text would prove useful in introduction to composition courses--variants of English 101--more than in a designated critical thinking course or a course in reasoning and argumentation. The book seems most appropriate for those in search of a general composition textbook that would aid students in providing more detail in their essays.

Reviewed by Sari Pinto, Lecturer, California Polytechnic State University on 7/15/14

The text primarily explores analysis of literary and cinematic texts but also, to a lesser extent, some discussion of other objects of analysis: personal, cultural or fictional events and personal or political decisions or policies. Some discussion of close-reading techniques, the composition process, modes of development, finding and using sources and effective use of detailed evidence are included. The importance of prewriting/thinking to allow for depth of analysis is emphasized, and the text encourages research on the topic itself but also on the cultural context in order to explore significance. Analysis is carefully distinguished from other genres of writing such as review, summary, description or tangential response. Each chapter provides learning objectives, examples of student work, an exercise or exercises and key takeaways. No table of contents, index or glossary are provided. Ideally, instructors would assign this text or portions of it during the first two weeks of literature or film course.

Content is accurate and free of errors and demonstrates minimal theoretical or political bias.

Examples are drawn from classical and contemporary texts such as The Wizard of Oz, Office Space, Family Guy and The Tempest, making the concepts accessible to most readers, both faculty and students, but not necessarily immediately relevant to a young twenty-first century audience. No blogs, music videos or other online texts are discussed, and the most current musical reference involves Lennon and McCartney. Updating the discussion with more current examples would require some effort on the teacher's part.

Informal, conversational tone is likely to engage students. Minimal jargon appears in the prose, and ideas are clearly expressed. Some highly abstract content, such as the nature of significance or the distinction between assertion and interpretation, may prove difficult for students without the addition of concrete examples.

Content is theoretically and pedagogically consistent throughout.

Modularity rating: 3

Subsections are clearly marked, so content can be assigned in sections, but focus within sections is occasionally inconsistent (see below, #7). Much of the later portion of the text, especially the last chapter on FAQs--is self-referential, so using the content out of its published sequence could present some challenges.

Chapters and sections are numbered. Content could be more logically organized. Some subsections lack consistent focus and contain content that logically should be placed elsewhere. For example, an argument justifying the study of analysis appears at the end of the composition process section, a survey of the ubiquity of analytical thinking is placed in the section on close reading, and of brainstorming or clustering strategies are explained in the chapter on significance.

No particular problems with layout or display, but the text looks a little like a 1970s textbook: minimal graphic elements such as text boxes, diagrams or illustrations are provided.

Examples are drawn from mostly dead white male authors such as Frank Baum, Mark Twain, Shakespeare, although a few examples from more contemporary white male authors such as Seth MacFarlane (Family Guy) or Mike Judge (Office Space). The author tends to use his own writing and personal thoughts or experiences frequently throughout the text, limiting the appeal for some audiences.

Chapter 1: Analysis for Multiple Perspectives
Chapter 2: Setting the Stage for Writing
Chapter 3: Developing Assertions: From a Close Reading of Examples
Chapter 4: Explanations and Significance: Developing Your Analysis
Chapter 5: The Analytical Essay: Expressing Your Points of View

Ancillary Material

About the book.

The reason why Randall Fallows wrote Exploring Perspectives: A Concise Guide to Analysis is simple: to help give students a better understanding of how to discover, develop, and revise an analytical essay. Here is how his 5 chapter book goes about doing just that:

The first two chapters focus on the nature of an analysis and what's involved in writing an analytical essay.

Randall shows that analysis consists of a balance of assertions (statements which present their viewpoints or launch an exploration of their concerns), examples (specific passages/scenes/events which inspire these views), explanations (statements that reveal how the examples support the assertions), and significance (statements which reveal the importance of their study to personal and/or cultural issues).

After showing why each feature should be present throughout an essay, he reveals how to "set the stage" for producing one of their own.

He first helps students to evaluate their own views on a subject and to examine how these views emerge from their own experiences, values and judgments.
He, then, shows them how to research what others have said about the subject and provides suggestions for evaluating and incorporating this research into their own perspectives.

Finally, Randall discusses the nature of writing, not as a linear procedure, but as a recursive process where the discovery and clarification of a concept occur simultaneously.

The remaining three chapters reveal more specific advice on how to develop an analytical essay.

Exploring Perspectives: A Concise Guide to Analysis by Randall Fallows is a great text to prepare any student to write analytical essays for the argument and persuasion courses.

About the Contributors

Randall Fallows is a lecturer and writing two coordinator for the Department of Writing Programs at the University of California, Los Angeles. He holds an M.A in Rhetoric and Composition from San Diego State University and a Ph.D. in Literature and Cultural Studies from the University of California, San Diego. He has published articles on composition theory, popular culture, literature and philosophy in The Journal of Popular Culture, Rhetoric Review, The Journal of Popular Film and Television, American Drama, Americana, and contributed to the books Conversation: Theory and Practice, Taking South Park Seriously, and Americana: Readings in American Culture.

Since 1982, he has been teaching courses in writing, composition pedagogy, literature, and American Culture at SDSU, UCSD, and UCLA. He also spent two years teaching at ELTE University in Budapest, Hungary. When he’s not teaching or writing articles, he participates in both standup and improvisational comedy at various venues throughout Los Angeles, and likes to spend his summer traveling with his wife, Tamar Christensen.

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How to Write an Analysis Essay: Examples + Writing Guide

An analysis / analytical essay is a standard assignment in college or university. You might be asked to conduct an in-depth analysis of a research paper, a report, a movie, a company, a book, or an event. In this article, you’ll find out how to write an analysis paper introduction, thesis, main body, and conclusion, and analytical essay example.

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So, what is an analytical essay? This type of assignment implies that you set up an argument and analyze it using a range of claims. The claims should be supported by appropriate empirical evidence. Note that you need to explore both the positive and negative sides of the issue fully.

Analytical skills are the key to getting through your academic career. Moreover, they can be useful in many real-life situations. Keep reading this article by Custom-writing experts to learn how to write an analysis!

❓ What Is an Analytical Essay?

🤔 Getting Started

📑 Analytical Essay Outline

📔 Choosing a Title
💁 Writing an Introduction
🏋 Writing a Body
🏁 Writing a Conclusion

🔗 References

Before you learn how to start an analysis essay, you should understand some fundamentals of writing this type of paper. It implies that you analyze an argument using a range of claims supported by facts . It is essential to understand that in your analysis essay, you’ll need to explore the negative sides of the issue and the positive ones. That’s what distinguishes an analytical essay from, say, a persuasive one.

Begin Your Analysis essay with a Literature Review. Then Make an Outline, Write and Polish Your Draft.

These are the steps to write an academic paper :

Review the literature . Before starting any paper, you should familiarize yourself with what has already been written in the field. And the analytical essay is no exception. The easiest way is to search on the web for the information.
Brainstorm ideas. After you’ve done your search, it is time for a brainstorm! Make a list of topics for your analysis essay, and then choose the best one. Generate your thesis statement in the same way.
Prepare an outline . Now, when you’ve decided on the topic and the thesis statement of your analytical essay, think of its structure. Below you will find more detailed information on how your paper should be structured.
Write the first draft. You’ve done a lot of work by now. Congratulations! Your next goal is to write the first version of your analysis essay, using all the notes that you have. Remember, you don’t need to make it perfect!
Polish your draft. Now take your time to polish and edit your draft to transform it into the paper’s final version.

You are usually assigned to analyze an article, a book, a movie, or an event. If you need to write your analytical essay on a book or an article, you’ll have to analyze the style of the text, its main points, and the author’s purported goals.

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🤔 Analytical Essay: Getting Started

The key to writing an analysis paper is to choose an argument that you will defend throughout it. For example: maybe you are writing a critical analysis paper on George Orwell’s Animal Farm The first and imperative task is to think about your thesis statement. In the case of Animal Farm , the argument could be:

In Orwell’s Animal Farm , rhetoric and language prove to be more effective ways to keep social control than physical power.

The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill gives a great explanation of the thesis statement , how to create one, and what its function is.

But that’s not all. Once you have your thesis statement, you need to break down how you will approach your analysis essay to prove your thesis. To do this, follow these steps:

Define the main goal(s) of your analysis . Remember that it is impossible to address each and every aspect in a single paper. Know your goal and focus on it.
Conduct research , both online and offline, to clarify the issue contained within your thesis statement.
Identify the main parts of the issue by looking at each part separately to see how it works.
Try to clearly understand how each part works.
Identify the links between the various aspects of the topic .
By using the information you found, try to solve your main problem .

At this point, you should have a clear understanding of both the topic and your thesis statement. You should also have a clear direction for your analysis paper firmly planted in your mind and recorded in writing.

This will give you what you need to produce the paper’s outline.

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An outline is the starting point for your work. A typical analytical essay features the usual essay structure. A 500-word essay should consist of a one-paragraph introduction, a three-paragraph body, and a one-paragraph conclusion. Find below a great analytical essay outline sample. Feel free to use it as an example when doing your own work!

Analysis Essay: Introduction

Start with a startling statement or provocative question.

“All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal”. Animal Farm abounds in ironic and provocative phrases to start an analytical essay.

Introduce the work and its author.
Give background information that would help the reader understand your opinion.
Formulate a thesis statement informing the reader about the purpose of the essay. Essay format does not presuppose telling everything possible on the given topic. Thus, a thesis statement tells what you are going to say, implying what you will not discuss, establishing the limits.

In Animal Farm, Orwell uses different irony types to ridicule totalitarianism to manifest its inability to make every member of society equal and happy.

Analysis Essay: Body

The analytical essay structure requires 2-3 developmental paragraphs, each dedicated to one separate idea confirming your thesis statement. The following template should be used for each of the body paragraphs.

Start with a topic sentence that supports an aspect of your thesis.

Dramatic irony is used in Animal Farm to point out society’s ignorance.

Continue with textual evidence (paraphrase, summary, direct quotations, specific details). Use several examples that substantiate the topic sentence.

Animals are unaware of the fact that Boxer was never sent to the hospital. He was sent to the slaughterhouse. However, the reader and writer understand that this is a lie.

Conclude with an explanation.

By allowing the readers to learn some essential facts before the characters, dramatic irony creates suspense and shows how easy it is to persuade and manipulate the public.

Analysis Essay Conclusion

The next four points will give you a short instruction on how to conclude an analytical essay.

Never use new information or topics here.
Restate your thesis in a different formulation.
Summarize the body paragraphs.
Comment on the analyzed text from a new perspective.

📔 Choosing a Title for Your Analysis Essay

Choosing a title seems like not a significant step, but it is actually very important. The title of your critical analysis paper should:

Entice and engage the reader
Be unique and capture the readers’ attention
Provide an adequate explanation of the content of the essay in just a few carefully chosen words

In the Animal Farm example, your title could be:

Get an originally-written paper according to your instructions!

“How Do the Pigs Manage to Keep Social Control on Animal Farm?”

Analysis Essay Topics

Analyze the media content.
Analyze the specifics and history of hip-hop culture.
Sociological issues in the film Interstellar .
Discuss the techniques M. Atwood uses to describe social issues in her novel The Handmaid’s Tale .
Compare and analyze the paintings of Van Gogh and George Seurat.
Analysis of Edgar Allan Poe’s The Black Cat .
Examine the juvenile crime rates.
Describe the influence of different parenting styles on children’s mind.
Analyze the concept of the Ship of Theseus .
Compare and analyze the various views on intelligence .
Analysis of The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman .
Discuss the techniques used by W. Shakespeare in A Midsummer Night’s Dream .
Analyze the biography of Frederic Chopin .
Manifestation of the Chicano culture in the artwork An Ofrenda for Dolores del Rio .
Similarities and differences of Roman, Anglo-Saxon, and Spanish Empires .
Describe the problem of stalking and its impact on human mental health.
Examine the future of fashion .
Analyze the topicality of the article Effectiveness of Hand Hygiene Interventions in Reducing Illness Absence .
Discuss Thomas Paine’s impact on the success of American revolution.
Meaningful messages in Recitatif by Toni Morrison .
Explore the techniques used by directors in the film Killing Kennedy .
Compare the leadership styles of Tang Empress Wu Zetian and the Pharaoh Cleopatra .
Evaluate the credibility of Kristof’s arguments in his article Remote Learning Is Often an Oxymoron .
Analyze genetically modified food .
Examine the influence of Europeans on Indian tribes in The Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson .
Describe the rhetoric techniques used in The Portrait of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde .
The importance of fighting against violence in communities in the documentary film The Interrupters .
Analyze indoor and outdoor pollution .
Analyze the issue of overprotective parenthood .
Explore the connection between eating habits and advertisement.
Discuss the urgence of global warming issue .
Influence of sleep on people’s body and mental health.
Analyze the relationship between Christianity and sports .
Discuss the concept of leadership and its significance for company efficiency.
Analyze the key lessons of the book Rich Dad Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki .
Examine the specifics of nursing ethic .
The theme of emotional sufferings in the short story A Rose for Emily .
Analysis of bias in books for children .
Analyze the rhetoric of the article Public Monuments .
Describe the main messages in Jean-Paul Sartre’s Nausea .
Explore the problem of structural racism in healthcare .
The reasons of tango dance popularity.
The shortcomings of the American educational system in Waiting for Superman.
Analyze and compare Erin’s Law and Megan’s Law .
Analyze the James Madison’s essay Federalist 10 .
Examine symbols in the movie The Joker .
Compare the thematic connection and stylistic devices in the poems The Road Not Taken and Find Your Way .
Describe and analyze the life of Eddie Bernice Johnson .
Explore the social classes in America .
Crucial strengths and weaknesses of the main translation theories .

💁 Writing Your Analytical Essay Introduction

You must understand how to compose an introduction to an analysis paper. The University of Wollongong describes the introduction as a “map” of any writing. When writing the introduction, follow these steps:

Provide a lead-in for the reader by offering a general introduction to the topic of the paper.
Include your thesis statement , which shifts the reader from the generalized introduction to the specific topic and its related issues to your unique take on the essay topic.
Present a general outline of the analysis paper.

Watch this great video for further instructions on how to write an introduction to an analysis essay.

Example of an Analytical Essay Introduction

“Four legs good, two legs bad” is one of the many postulates invented by George Orwell for his characters in Animal Farm to vest them with socialist ideology and control over the animal population. The social revolution on Manor Farm was built on language instruments, first for the collective success of the animals, and later for the power consolidation by the pigs. The novel was written in 1945 when the transition from limitless freedoms of socialist countries transformed into dictatorship. Through his animal protagonists, the author analyzes the reasons for peoples’ belief in the totalitarian regime. In Orwell’s Animal Farm , rhetoric and language prove to be more effective ways to keep social control than physical power.

🏋 Writing Your Analytical Essay Body

The body of the paper may be compared to its heart. This is the part where you show off your talent for analysis by providing convincing, well-researched, and well-thought-out arguments to support your thesis statement. You have already gathered the information, and now all you may start crafting your paper.

To make the body of an analytical essay, keep the following in mind:

Discuss one argument per paragraph , although each argument can relate to multiple issues
Strike a balance between writing in an unbiased tone, while expressing your personal opinion
Be reasonable when making judgments regarding any of the problems you discuss
Remember to include the opposing point of view to create a balanced perspective

The bottom line is: you want to offer opposing views, but you must pose your arguments so they will counter those opposing views and prove your point of view. Follow these steps when constructing each body paragraph:

Choose the main sentence. The main or topic sentence will be the first line in your essay. The topic sentence is responsible for presenting the argument you will discuss in the paragraph and demonstrate how this argument relates to the thesis statement.
Provide the context for the topic sentence , whether it relates to a quote, a specific incident in society, or something else. Offer evidence on who, what, where, when, why, and how.
Give your analysis of the argument and how it adequately proves your thesis.
Write a closing sentence that sums up the paragraph and provides a transition to the following paragraph.

Example of an Analytical Essay Body

Literacy can grant power, provided that there are animals who cannot read or write. In the beginning, the animals’ literacy and intellect are relatively the same. Old Major is the cleverest pig; he is the kind old philosopher, like Karl Marx or Vladimir Lenin. During his retirement, he develops a theory that all humans are the root of evil. His speech was the foundation for the pigs’ assumption of power. They refined his ideas into a new ideology and called it Animalism. They also learned how to read. It allowed the pigs to declare themselves the “mind workers.” Therefore, the pigs’ literacy assured the illiterate animals in their objective superiority.

Meanwhile, as the pigs were the intellectual elite, they were not supposed to work, which raised their social status by itself. Snowball tried to promote education among all the animals, but most of them failed to master the alphabet. This is a metaphor for the general public being predominantly ignorant and easy to manipulate. At the same time, Boxer and other animals that spend most of the day in hard work merely have no time to develop their intellect. Thus, the pigs’ intention to build a school for pig children was highly efficient. Unequal access to education and unequal ability to express one’s thoughts in perspective reinforce the social divide, making the pigs smarter and more powerful and undermining other animals’ self-esteem.

At this point, the pigs resort to propaganda and rhetoric. Squealer uses his oratorical gift to refine the pigs’ message to the other animals. Upon Napoleon’s order, he breaks the Seven Commandments of farm governance. At night, he climbs the ladder to change them, and once even falls from the ladder trying to change the commandment on alcohol. The “proletarian” animals soon forget what the Seven Commandments were like in the first place and are unsure if they have ever been altered. Further on, Minimus writes a poem praising Napoleon. Finally, Squealer replaces the Commandments with a single assertion: “All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others.” Language is no longer used to convince. It is used to control and manipulate.

🏁 Writing Your Analytical Essay Conclusion

The conclusion is short and sweet. It summarizes everything you just wrote in the essay and wraps it up with a beautiful shiny bow. Follow these steps to write a convincing conclusion:

Repeat the thesis statement and summarize your argument. Even when using the best summary generator for the task, reread it to make sure all the crucial points are included.
Take your argument beyond what is simply stated in your paper. You want to show how it is essential in terms of the bigger picture. Also, you may dwell on the influence on citizens of the country.

Example of an Analytical Essay Conclusion

Because of everything mentioned above, it becomes clear that language and rhetoric can rise to power, establish authority, and manipulate ordinary people. Animal Farm is the simplified version of a communist society. It shows how wise philosophers’ good intentions can be used by mean leaders to gain unopposed power and unconditional trust. Unfortunately, this can lead to the death of many innocent animals, i.e., people, as totalitarianism has nothing to do with people’s rule. Therefore, language and oratory are potent tools that can keep people oppressed and weak, deprive them of any chance for improvement and growth, and make them think that there is no other possible existence.

Now you are ready to write an analysis essay! See, it’s easier than you thought.

Of course, it’s always helpful to see other analysis essay examples. The University of Arkansas at Little Rock provides some great examples of an analytical paper .

✏️ Analysis Essay FAQ

A great analytical paper should be well-structured, cohesive, and logically consistent. Each part of the essay should be in its place, creating a smooth and easy-to-read text. Most importantly, the statements should be objective and backed by arguments and examples.

It is a paper devoted to analyzing a certain topic or subject. An analysis essay is all about reviewing certain details of the subject and interpreting them. For example, such an analysis for a poem includes a description of artistic means that helped the poet convey the idea.

Writing an analytical essay on a book/movie/poem start with an outline. Point out what catches the eye when reviewing the subject. See how these details can be interpreted. Make sure that you refer to the main idea/message. Add an appropriate introduction and a logical conclusion.

Being more analytical in writing can be essential for a student. This is a skill that can be self-taught: try to start noticing subtle details and describe them. As you write, interpret the facts and strive to draw conclusions. Try to be as objective as possible.

Elements of Analysis
How Can I Create Stronger Analysis?
How to Write a Literary Analysis Essay: Bucks.edu
Essay Structure | – Harvard College Writing Center
Analytical Writing: Looking Closely (Colostate.edu)
Analytical Thesis Statements – University of Arizona
Writing an analytic essay – UTSC – University of Toronto
Organizing Your Analysis // Purdue Writing Lab
How to Write an Analytical Essay: 15 Steps (with Pictures)
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How to Write a Film Analysis Essay: Examples, Outline, & Tips

A film analysis essay might be the most exciting assignment you have ever had! After all, who doesn’t love watching movies? You have your favorite movies, maybe something you watched years ago, perhaps a classic, or a documentary. Or your professor might assign a film for you to make a...

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Chapter 1 Analysis for Multiple Perspectives

1.1 the nature of analysis, learning objectives.

Define analysis .
Show how we use analysis in everyday situations and in academic writing and discussion.
Understand the components of analysis ( assertions, examples, explanations, significance ), and explain why each is a necessary part of any analysis.
Show how too much attention to one particular component of analysis makes an essay seem like a different type of writing.

Jeff is not happy. His clock shows 2 a.m., but his computer screen shows nothing. For the last four hours he has tried to get started on an essay on William Shakespeare’s The Tempest , but he just doesn’t know where to begin. “It’s Professor Johnson’s fault I’m in this mess,” he thinks to himself. “My other teachers always told me exactly what and how to write, but Professor Johnson asked us to focus on what each of us finds important about the play. She even told us that no one knows Shakespeare’s real intentions, and that a million ways to analyze the play are possible.” Jeff slams his hand down on the table. “If this is true, how do I know when I’ve found the right interpretation?” And Professor Johnson made it even more difficult for Jeff by instructing her students not to summarize the plot or give unsupported opinions, but to come up with their own interpretations, show why they are important, and justify them through close readings of particular scenes. “No one has ever shown me how to do this,” Jeff grumbles to himself as he gulps down his third cup of coffee.

In actuality, Jeff already possesses the ability to write an analytical essay. He would have realized this if he had considered the discussions and activities he engaged in during the previous week. In planning a date, and in thinking of the best way to convince his parents to send him more money, Jeff had to carefully evaluate a variety of situations to develop a point of view that he then had to justify and show why it mattered. In each of these instances, he made plenty of assertions Statements that present an interpretation of a particular piece, event or issue. , statements which present points of view; used examples Specific passages, scenes, events, or items that inspire our assertions. , specific passages, scenes, events, or items which inspire these points of view; gave explanations Statements that reveal how the examples support or complicate the assertions. , statements which reveal how the examples support and/or complicate the assertions; and provided significance Statements that reveal the importance of the analysis to personal and cultural concerns. , statements which reveal the importance of the analysis to our personal and/or cultural concerns.

Analysis A way of examining a subject by expressing, supporting, examining and showing the importance of our opinions on it. is a way of understanding a subject by using each of these elements, expressing an opinion (making assertions), supporting that opinion (including examples), justifying that opinion (explaining the examples), and showing why the opinion matters (extending the significance). The second letter in the second component (examples) helps create the acronym AXES An acronym for analysis that reminds us to include each of the four components: assertions, examples, explanations, and significance. , which is the plural form of both axe and axis . This acronym provides a way not only to remember the four components but also to visualize them working together. Like an axe, analysis allows us to “chop” our subjects into their essential components so that we can examine the pieces more thoroughly, and, like an axis, analysis inspires insights that become the new reference points around which we rearrange these pieces.

Though a complete analysis always needs to use these elements, the reasons for engaging in it may vary widely. For instance, sometimes the goal is to persuade the reader to accept an interpretation or to adapt a course of action, and other times the goal is to explore several possible interpretations or courses of action without settling on any one in particular. But whether the goal is to persuade, explore, or enlighten, analysis should always spring from a careful examination of a given subject. I always tell my students that they do not need to convince me that their points of view are correct but rather to reveal that they have thought about their subject thoroughly and arrived at reasonable and significant considerations.

The structure and form of an analysis can vary as widely as the many reasons for producing one. Though an analysis should include attention to each of the four main components, it should not be written in a formulaic manner, like those tiresome five-paragraph essays you might recall from high school: “I spent my summer vacation in three ways: working, partying and relaxing. Each of these activities helped me in three aspects of my life: mentally, physically and psychologically.” At best, formulaic essays serve as training wheels that need to come off when you are ready for more sophisticated kinds of writing. Rigorous analysis doesn’t rely on formulas or clichés, and its elements may occur in different orders and with various emphases, depending on your purpose and audience. In fact, individual elements may sometimes blend together because a section may serve more than one function. With practice, you won’t even need to recall the acronym AXES when producing an analysis, because you will have mastered when and how to express each of its components.

Though it would be impossible to outline all the possible manifestations and combinations of these elements of analysis, this book will help you to create, balance, and express each of them with precision, clarity, and voice. The first task is to make certain all these elements are present to some degree throughout your paper, because when any one is missing or dominates too much, the essay starts to drift from analysis to a different mode of writing. Consider, for instance, how Jeff might have gotten off track when trying to respond to the following speech from The Tempest, when the character Prospero becomes morose as the play he is putting on within the play becomes interrupted:

Our revels now are ended. These, our actors,

As I foretold you, were all spirits and

Are melted into air; into thin air.

And, like the baseless fabric of this vision

The cloud capped towers, the great globe itself,

Yea, all which it inherit, shall dissolve,

And like this insubstantial pageant faded,

Leave not a rack behind. We are such stuff

As dreams are made on, and our little life

Is rounded with a sleep

(Act IV, Scene 1: 148-57).

Response 1: Review (assertion emphasis)

This is a very famous speech about how our lives are like dreams. No wonder Shakespeare is such a great playwright. He continuously and brilliantly demonstrates that he knows what life is about; this is why this is such a great speech and I would recommend this play for everybody.

Assertions are necessary to communicate your points of view, but when you make only declarative statements of taste, your essays will seem less like analyses and more like reviews. A review can be useful, especially when considering whether a movie might be worth spending money on, but in an analysis you should not just state your opinions but also explain how you arrived at them and explore why they matter.

Response 2: Summary (example emphasis)

First Prospero gets angry because his play was interrupted, causing his magical actors to disappear. Next, he shows how everything will dissolve in time: the sets of his theater, the actors, and even “the great globe itself.” He concludes by comparing our lives to dreams, pointing out how both are surrounded by sleep.

Like a review, a summary can sometimes be useful, especially when we want the plot of a piece or basic arguments of a policy described to us in a hurry. However, a summary stops short of being an analysis because it simply covers the main aspects of the object for analysis and does not provide any new perspective as to why it is significant. Though you need to provide examples, you should select and discuss only those details that shed the most light on your points of view. Always remember that people want to read your essay to learn your perspective on what you are analyzing; otherwise, they could just examine the piece for themselves.

Response 3: Description (explanation emphasis)

In Prospero’s speech, Shakespeare points out how life, plays, and dreams are always being interrupted. He makes a lot of comparisons between these different areas of existence, yet makes them all seem somewhat similar. I never really thought about how they are all so similar, but Shakespeare helps me consider ways they all kind of fit together.

Though you should explain how you derived your assertions from your examples and not just let the piece speak for itself, you should not do so in too general a manner. You do not want to give the impression that you are trying to remember the details of a piece that you are too lazy to pull out and reconsider, but that you are engaging in a close reading or a careful consideration of all the aspects of an issue. Your analysis should seem like it was a challenge for you to write, and not something that you pieced together from vague recollections.

Response 4: Tangent (significance emphasis)

This speech reminds me that life is short. My father keeps telling me that life is over before you even realize it, and he should know because he’s getting pretty old (he’s in his late 40s!). I think it also shows that it’s important to be careful about what you dream of because these dreams may affect the way you choose to live your life. I dream about being a famous surfer and that’s what makes me try hard to be one.

If an essay had no significance, the reader might constantly think, “So what?” You might provide a very close reading of the piece, but unless you have a reason for drawing our attention to it, your essay will not leave the reader with anything new or important to consider. Be careful, however, not to leave the piece completely behind when discussing why it matters, or your essay will seem less like an analysis and more like an excuse to deliver a soapbox speech or to write about something that is easier for you to discuss.

Response 5: Analysis (attention to each aspect)

In The Tempest , William Shakespeare connects plays, lives, and dreams by showing that while each contains an illusion of permanence, they’re all only temporary. The “baseless fabric of this vision” of “cloud capped towers” may immediately refer to the painted sets contained within the “great globe itself,” the name of Shakespeare’s theater. Yet when we measure time in years rather than hours, we can see that most of the real “cloud capped towers” of the Seventeenth Century have already faded and at some point in the future even the globe we live on will disappear and “leave not a rack behind.” Likewise, it is not just the actors who are “such stuff as dreams are made on,” but all of us. We are unconscious of the world before we are born and after we die, so our waking lives mirror our sleeping lives. Thinking of it this way leaves me with mixed feelings. On the one hand, I find it a bit disturbing to be reminded that neither we nor our world are permanent and all that we do will dissipate in time. On the other hand, it inspires me to enjoy my life further and not to worry too much about my inability to accomplish every one of my goals because nothing I do will last forever anyway.

Had Jeff not waited until the last minute to write his essay, he might have come up with a paragraph like this last one that gives adequate attention to each of the elements of analysis. The main assertion that our dreams, our lives, and our creative works only provide an illusion of permanence sets the analytical stage in a compelling fashion. The examples are well chosen and intelligently explained. For instance, the analysis shows that whether we see the “cloud capped towers” as actually existing or as paintings on the sets of the stage, they both have succumbed to time. Finally, it reveals the significance of the author’s perspective without coming to a trite conclusion or skipping off on a tangent. In general, the analysis reflects the thoughts of a writer who is engaged enough with the text to take the time to carefully consider the quote and reflect on its implications. Though the paragraph could use a more thorough development (especially of the significance) and a more deliberate style, it certainly reveals a more compelling analysis than the previous four paragraphs.

So is it a waste of time to write paragraphs that mostly consist of summaries, opinions, descriptions, or tangents? Absolutely not. Thinking and writing are not separate processes but occur simultaneously, and we often need to produce responses that focus on one of these simpler rhetorical modes before we can understand the underlying complexity that allows us to develop a more thorough analysis. And Jeff will experience essentially the same thinking and writing process when he switches from his Shakespeare essay to the ones he’s composing for his courses in history, political science, and psychology. Understanding an event, an issue, or an aspect of human nature requires careful attention to the details of what happened and to the arguments and theories that make up a particular perspective. But before Jeff can develop his own point of view on any of these subjects, he first needs to consider what might influence the way he sees them, a process that will require him to look at his culture and his experiences while consulting the points of view of others. In the following chapter, I will discuss how to set the stage for analysis by bringing together all of these factors.

Write about a time you tried to persuade a friend to see a creative work, issue or subject in the way that you do. What assertions did you make? What examples did you use to back them up? How did you explain how you saw the examples? How did you reveal the lasting significance of the decision that you wanted your friend to make? How did these components take a different form the next time you tried to persuade your friend to see a different subject in a new light?

Key Takeaways

We use analysis many times throughout the day, especially when trying to persuade others to see our points of view.
Analysis consists of four main components: assertions (our points of view), examples (evidence that supports these points of view), explanations (justifications of these points of view), and significance (discussions of why these points of view matter).
These components need to be present for an effective analysis, but not in a strictly formulaic manner; they can appear throughout an essay to various degrees and in various orders.

How To Write a Critical Perspective Essay

When you are faced with an essay title that incorporates the phrase “deliver a critical perspective on…”, the temptation can be to think that this means finds fault with a concept. However, in academic terms, taking a critical perspective means being able to demonstrate knowledge of different attitudes, interpretations, and viewpoints on the subject, and from this, being able to deliver a considered and informed opinion. In effect, a critical perspective essay requires to you to be able to show that there may be multiple ways to approach the main subject under discussion, but also to pick out, through analysis, which is the most viable perspective.

Sounds easy enough doesn’t it? If you follow our guide to producing the perfect critical perspective essay than yet it really is easy. An easy way to understand critical examination and thus arrive at a critical perspective is to remember that critical examination or evaluation picks out what is relevant or noteworthy to ensure understanding of how a thing (framework, hypothesis, phenomenon) works.

The aim of a persuasive essay is to convince your reader that your opinions and perspectives are correct. This can be done with a combination of emotive language and hard evidence to back up your viewpoint. You have to make the reader believe in the value of your opinion or standpoint, and sometimes to make the reader act. Fortunately, there are a number of techniques and approaches that can be used to ensure your persuasive essay presents a coherent, logical argument that cannot be denied by the reader.

In terms of structure, persuasive essays are relatively simple. Your arguments or opinions need to be clearly stated, reinforced, and backed with facts and evidence. Your summation, or conclusion should ensure that the reader is very clear about where you stand on the issue, so you need to be consistent throughout.

Planning your critical perspective essay

Stage one is identifying what it is you are being asked to critically evaluate and then take a perspective on. Typical essay titles include, “Discuss critical perspectives on the role censorship in modern music”, “Critically evaluate the main perspectives on the impact of social media on body image and state your own views on the subject”. In both cases, you are being asked to look at both sides of the argument and identify your own views.

Stage two requires identifying the key sources that will form the framework and rationale for your perspective. Whilst a critical perspective essay is essentially your own viewpoint, it is important to demonstrate how you have arrived at that view, based on research, evaluation of the evidence and an objective assessment of the facts.

Stage three draws up an outline of the arguments /points you wish to make in your essay and put them in a logical order. Chronologically works well but so does giving greater importance to key themes and then moving into sub-themes.

Writing your Critical Perspective Essay

Introduction.

Your introduction should be clear and unambiguous in stating the topic under question. Frequently a good essay will use either a clear statement (declarative) or a question which reflects the essay title. This tells the reader what you are discussing. The second part of the introduction should draw in your reader and motivate them to read more, as well as a clear statement of your own perspectives and how you intend to prove that they are correct (a thesis statement). Your introduction should conclude with a brief background to the topic and current views in the area. What this achieves is placing your work and perspective into a clear context for your reader.

The body text of your essay should have a focus of one paragraph per point / argument or topic so that the flow of information and argument is consistent. This is where an effective plan can help you clearly structure your essay. For each paragraph, you should introduce the main point/theme you are discussing before moving on to an explanation of your perspectives and why they are accurate in terms of the context of the work.

The explanation should then be followed by presentation of evidence that backs up your point of view. Here you can use quotes, statistics and other illustrative evidence but always ensure that your sources are credible and from trustworthy sources, as well as being correctly cited in the text and listed at the end of the work. An important element of every paragraph, and one most frequently missed by students is the linking of paragraphs, both to the opening statement and to the next point. Without linking the paragraphs an essay lacks cohesion and logical flow.

There are some key tips for critical perspective essay writing that help to reinforce the view you are trying to put across. These include repetition, which means making similar points in a range of ways, with different evidence. Repetition of points is not appropriate, but re-stating or reaffirming a perspective is crucial to ensuring that the reader comes to the same opinion as you.

A further valid approach is to indicate understanding of opposing perspectives. These should be stated, again with appropriate evidence from reliable sources. However, you should also add in reasons, backed by evidence as to why these perspectives are incorrect, which again reaffirms your own critical perspective.

The conclusion of your critical perspective essay should deliver a summation of all the points, bringing them together and reaffirming your original statement of opinion. A strong conclusion can ensure that your readers will be swayed by your arguments and thus take the same perspective on the issue that you have evidenced as being accurate.

Some Key phrases for a critical perspective essay

To ensure your essay is clearly persuasive, include some of the following words and phrases:

I am certain that…
It clearly follows that…
Regardless…
Although it may seem…
Considering…. this clearly indicates that …….
I believe that…
By the same token…
Furthermore…

How to Write a Perspective Essay?

Understanding the Importance of Perspective Essays

A perspective essay is a powerful tool that allows individuals to express their thoughts and opinions on a particular topic from their unique standpoint. Unlike other types of essays, a perspective essay requires a deep understanding of the subject matter and the ability to convey personal experiences, observations, and beliefs effectively. By sharing different perspectives, individuals contribute to a diverse and inclusive society where ideas are valued and respected.

Choosing a Compelling Topic

When selecting a topic for your perspective essay, it's important to choose something that you are passionate about and have a strong opinion on. Whether it's a social issue, political ideology, or personal experience, your topic should resonate with your audience and make them eager to read your insights. Research the chosen topic thoroughly to ensure you have a solid foundation of knowledge to build upon.

Gathering Evidence and Conducting Research

Before diving into writing your perspective essay, it's crucial to gather relevant evidence to support your claims and arguments. Conduct thorough research using credible sources such as books, scholarly articles, and reputable websites. Take notes, highlight important information, and carefully analyze different viewpoints to strengthen your own perspective.

Structuring Your Perspective Essay

The structure of a perspective essay is similar to other types of essays. It consists of an introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion. The introduction should grab the reader's attention and provide a brief overview of the topic and your stance. The body paragraphs, which are the core of your essay, should present your arguments, supporting evidence, and counterarguments. Finally, the conclusion should summarize your main points and leave the reader with a thought-provoking closing statement.

Writing with Clarity and Coherence

When writing your perspective essay, aim for clarity and coherence. Use clear, concise, and precise language to articulate your ideas. Structure your paragraphs logically, ensuring a smooth flow of thoughts. Support your arguments with relevant examples, anecdotes, or statistics to engage your audience and strengthen your position. Remember to acknowledge and address opposing viewpoints respectfully, demonstrating open-mindedness and critical thinking.

Formatting and Stylistic Considerations

While the content of your perspective essay is crucial, don't overlook the importance of formatting and style. Use appropriate heading tags, such as H2 or H3, for each section and subsection to improve readability and assist search engines in understanding the structure of your content. Enhance the visual appeal of your essay by using bullet points or numbered lists to break down complex information into digestible chunks. Incorporate relevant keywords naturally throughout the text to optimize your chances of ranking higher in search engine results.

Editing and Proofreading

Once you've completed your perspective essay, take the time to review, edit, and proofread it carefully. Pay attention to grammar, spelling, punctuation, and sentence structure. Ensure your ideas flow smoothly and coherently. Remove any unnecessary repetition or tangential information. Consider seeking feedback from peers, teachers, or online communities to gain valuable insights and improve the overall quality of your essay.

Example Perspective Essay: The Power of Empathy

The following is an example of a perspective essay on the power of empathy:

Empathy, the ability to understand and share the feelings of others, is a remarkable human trait that holds immense power. In a world filled with turmoil and division, empathy acts as a bridge, fostering understanding, compassion, and connection. It enables us to step into someone else's shoes, see the world through their eyes, and recognize their struggles and challenges.

When we embrace empathy, we break down barriers and cultivate a sense of unity. It allows us to transcend our personal biases and preconceptions, opening our minds to a multitude of perspectives. Empathy promotes inclusivity and acceptance, nurturing a society where diversity is celebrated and everyone feels valued.

One powerful aspect of empathy is its ability to spark positive change. By understanding the experiences of others, we become motivated to take action and address social injustices. Through empathy, we recognize the need for equality, justice, and human rights. It fuels our determination to create a better world for ourselves and future generations.

In conclusion, writing a perspective essay is an opportunity to express your thoughts, opinions, and experiences in a unique and compelling way. By following the steps outlined in this guide, you can confidently tackle the task of writing a perspective essay. Remember to choose a captivating topic, conduct thorough research, structure your essay effectively, and write with clarity and coherence. By sharing your perspectives, you contribute to the rich tapestry of ideas that shape our society.

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Literature Perspectives and Close Analysis Guide

August 26, 2020

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1. What are Literary Perspectives?

2. What are you expected to cover? (Literary Perspectives criteria)

3. Approaching the Task

4. SACs, Exams, and Allocated Marks

5. How to Prepare/Improve?

What are Literary Perspectives?

This is the task that takes the longest time for all lit students to wrap their heads around. Not only is it difficult to understand what a literary perspective is but also what the essay requires you to do, so hopefully this article can help clear it all up for you!

Put simply, literary perspectives are various different lenses used for looking at all texts. Different lenses reveal, highlight and emphasise different notions in each text. To take a simple example, a Marxist might look at ‘The Great Gatsby’ how our capitalistic system underscores the motivations of Gatsby? A feminist might look towards the role of women in the text; are they only supporting characters, or do they challenge traditional gender roles? Perhaps an experienced literature student might think this is an oversimplification, but it’s a good way to start thinking about perspectives. We will explore a little more of how to integrate and research different literary perspectives in our ‘Approaching the Task’ section.

In short, literary perspectives wants you to consider:

How does a text change, to the reader and the writer, when we examine it through different backgrounds/perspectives?
Can we understand the assumptions and ideas about the views and values of the text?

What are you expected to cover/do? (Literary Perspectives Criteria)

1. Structure and Cohesion

The structure of the essay and the task itself is more familiar than the close analysis essay. You respond to a topic (yes, there is only one) and you have a more “typical” essay structure with an introduction, three body paragraphs and a conclusion.

Cohesion comes from how well you can develop your overall argument. The way I like to think about it is: do my paragraphs build/relate to each other or do they have nothing to do with each other? Providing a cohesive argument and interpretation is essential, and not just for literature, this is something that will definitely be enhanced as you continue your literature journey!

2. Develop an overall Interpretation/perspective for each text

This requires a lot of research and critical readings of the wealth of criticism around the text. When you read the text, a few notable themes and ideas should be jumping out at you right away, this will be the springboard into understanding the perspectives around the text.

For example, in ‘The Great Gatsby’, Gatsby and Buchanan are greedy and money-hungry in a world of excess and economic prosperity. Fitzgerald asks readers to consider the backbone that drives a blind devotion to the accumulation of wealth. This should remind you of Karl Marx and his comments on capitalism and communism which will then open up a large wealth of research on Marxism!

Remember, that whilst VCAA specifies that one must analyse and respond to one underlying literary perspective of the text in Section A of the exam, this isn’t as narrow as you might think. So I lied a little, sunglasses as perspectives might be a bit misleading. Because whilst you can’t wear multiple sunglasses, you can have multiple interpretations that form one perspective. It’s important to remember that what constitutes a perspective is not just one school of thought, it is your understanding, perspective and ideas. Which means that if you want to blend a Marxist and Psychoanalytic perspective, you absolutely can, BUT you need to make sure they are incorporated well together. This is because perspectives and literary ideas don’t exist in a vacuum, they work together, bounce off each other and grow over time. Greed could be something that is perpetuated by a capitalistic, market centered system but it could also be something ingrained in the human psyche. See! You’ve now turned two perspectives into one blended idea, of course it needs a lot of cultivation but you can see how these ideas begin to coexist.

Furthermore, if you begin to understand how your text through multiple coexisting lenses’, you’ll broaden your horizon so you’ll be ready to approach any topic. In 2017, VCAA gave the topic: “To what extent is Conrad’s Heart of Darkness an indictment of colonialism?”. What happens if you didn’t choose colonialism/post-colonialism as your perspective and chose feminism instead? You would probably be freaking out in the exam. But if you understood that colonialism was motivated by the need for economic dominance (Marxist ideas) or the West’s hunger for power (psychoanalytical notions), the topic isn’t so daunting after all.

In sum, developing an interpretation is a rocky, complex and difficult ride but have patience, it will all pay off in the end. Stick around and we will give you a few tips below on how to interpret and continue to develop your interpretation! PS. Here’s a video that might be helpful if you need the extra advice: What are literary perspectives .

3. Understanding and analysis of the text through textual evidence

This should be self-explanatory at this point; everyone has been taught this since year 7: never say anything if you can’t back it up! It’s easy to get lost in your perspective when your writing, this is just a gentle reminder to never forget to use quotes and actual evidence from the text. Here’s a helpful video on how to incorporate quotes.

4. Control and effectiveness of language

Having control and effective use of language is a criteria present in both sections of Literature (and in English)! I won’t go into too much depth, but this video provides 6 great tips on improving your expression!

Approaching the Task

So how do you best tackle the exam and the SAC?

Aforementioned, the exam will only give you one topic to respond to and your SACs will do something similar (we’ll get into this later). Here are some tips on handling lit perspectives on the exam and SAC.

When you first see the topic, there are a few things you can do to help approach the task.

1. Highlight key words!

Again, pretty self-explanatory. It absolutely essential that you respond to the whole topic. It’s so easy to get caught up in the first half of the topic when you see a key word that you like/don’t like. But pay attention to what the topic is actually asking you to do, not just the central theme/idea that is contained within the topic.

Find all the key close textual examples that you’d like to use. Make sure to choose ones that enhance your overall interpretation. Remember, that just because it isn’t a close analysis essay doesn’t mean you shouldn’t include close textual examples.

Planning is a very individual task so it’s up to you to find out what works for you, but it is an essential part of the writing process. If you want a coherent interpretation, you need to know where you’re going as you write. If you fail to plan, you plan to fail!

3. Develop/Establish your interpretation in your introduction

By now, you know the importance of establishing a strong interpretation of your text. This needs to be established in your introduction (and that includes all the buzzwords of your interpretation).

What I mean is, a lot of perspectives have a lot of jargon that is not always easy to read… Part of your job in your introduction is precisely to clarify some of these key jargons, it does not have to be super detailed, just give a simple definition of some of the key terms you are working with.

SACs, Exams, and Allocated Marks

This SAC comprises 50% of Unit 4 and in my opinion, was the most difficult to wrap my head around. The breakdown is as follows:

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To simplify, it’s essentially like the literary perspective essay in the final exam; however, you need to “compare and analyse two pieces of literary criticism reflecting different perspectives”. Remember how I mentioned that one perspective can be a mix and blend of two different perspectives? Well this SAC is trying to teach you just that. You’ll be tasked with finding two different perspectives, but that doesn’t mean they have to be opposing at all. The example from before: “Greed could be something that is perpetuated by a capitalistic, market centered system but it could also be something ingrained in the human psyche” is just one way in which you can take two different pieces of literary criticism reflecting different ideas and bring them together in this SAC.

This SAC also asks you to research rigorously the literary discourse around the text, so that will be your first starting point. Find what you want to talk about and then figure out how to talk about it!

This may be classified as ‘Section A’ on the exam, but it does not have to be completed first, this is up to you! Each essay in the exam is worth 20 marks and will be double marked. The score that each examiner gives you will be added together, so both your final essays will be out of 40.

How to Prepare (and Improve!) for your Close Analysis SAC and Exam

Everyone’s heard the phrase “practice makes perfect”, but nobody really tells you how to practice? What does practicing mean in a Lit Perspectives context? Here are a few recommendations and guidelines about how to ACE your next lit perspectives essay:

1. Read and Re-read your text (or re-watch your film)

You’ll have heard this hundreds of times but it’s absolutely essential, who knows, you might change your mind? Meanwhile you can find good quotes you like and potentially spot techniques or language devices you might have missed on the first or even second read!

Each time you re-read, go in with fresh ideas and perspectives and search for examples that either contradict or support your interpretation. Critical reading is what us lit kids do!

2. Find buzzwords for your text or your perspective

Aforementioned, jargon and buzzwords populate the modern literature discourse for any text and perspective. It’s important that you have a firm grasp of these words and phrases. Here are some examples of a few:

Communism/capitalism
Superstructure
Institutions

Psychoanalysis:

The unconscious
ID, ego and superego

3. Talk to your friends and teachers, bounce ideas off each other!!!

Two minds are better than one. Not revolutionary, but unequivocally true. Whenever you are stuck in a rut, talk to your friends about what you think and maybe they can help challenge your ideas. Don’t be afraid to argue your point and be open to criticism, challenging your ideas will only help refine and enhance it. It’ll also make you consider some ideas you might not have thought about it.

4. Write specific examples

This is the same advice for close analysis (and any other essay for that essays). Practice writing doesn’t mean you have to write a full essay every time, this can be both draining for you and your teacher to mark. Plus, most of the time, you’ll make the same mistakes/the feedback will be same throughout the entire essay. Try little snippets of examples, paragraphs or introductions instead.

5. Utilise all available resources

Teachers are a hub of intelligence, ask them for questions, advice and feedback. Have a look at online resources including critical articles on your texts (not just lit charts articles). There are a bunch of different articles linked throughout this article but here are a summary of a few more articles written by some very smart LSG tutors!

Breaking down the VCE Literature Exam Criteria

Common Mistakes in VCE Literature

The Dont's of VCE Literature

Get our FREE VCE English Text Response mini-guide

Now quite sure how to nail your text response essays? Then download our free mini-guide, where we break down the art of writing the perfect text-response essay into three comprehensive steps. Click below to get your own copy today!

Access a FREE sample of our Literature study guide

Focused on Developing Interpretations and Close Analysis , both of which you need for your exam
Covering what it means to ‘interpret a text’, how to breakdown critical essays, different Close Analysis structures and more
Includes sample A+ essays with EVERY essay annotated and broken down on HOW and WHY past authors achieved A+
Essays written by multiple authors all scoring 40+ so you can learn different strategies and implement the advice that resonates with you most

‍ We’ve explored creative writing criteria, literary elements and how to replicate the text over on our The Ultimate Guide to VCE Creative Writing blog post . If you need a quick refresher or you’re new to creative writing, I highly recommend checking it out!

Creative Responses in VCE Literature

This was my favourite SAC in Literature; it allows so much creative freedom in creating and recreating a literary work. When else will you be able to depart from the (admittedly rather boring) standard essay structure?!

In your adaptations and transformations SAC (see my blog post about this literature assessment here !), you learnt how the meaning of the text changed as the form changed. Here’s your opportunity to change the meaning of the text, maybe emphasising a particular thematic idea, or perhaps recreating a completely new perspective. Remember – you have almost complete creative licence in this assessment…use it to your advantage!

But don’t forget that the most important part of this task is that you must have a highly convincing connection between the original text and your creative response . There must be a tangible relationship present, through an in-depth understanding of the original text’s features. These features include characterisation (what motivates these characters), setting, context, narrative structure, tone and writing/film style. Establishing a clear nexus between the original text and your creative piece does not mean you need to replicate everything of the text; you can stylistically choose to reject or contrast elements of the original text – as long as these choices are deliberate and unambiguous. Therefore, your creative response must demonstrate that you read your original text closely and perceptively by acknowledging these features of the text.

You can establish this relationship by:

Adopting or resisting the same genre as the original text : e.g. an epistolary genre (written in letters) – do letters make an appearance in your text? Is that something you want to highlight? What about writing a monologue or a script if the text is a film or a play?
Adopting or resisting the author’s writing/language style : does your writer characteristically write plainly or with great descriptive detail? What about irony or humour? Consider the length and style of sentences. Are there frequent uses of symbols or metaphors?
Adopting or resisting the text’s point of view : do you want to draw readers’ attention to another thematic idea that was not explored in the original text? Will you align with the author’s views and values or will you oppose them? (See my views and values blogpost here!)
Adopting or resisting the original setting, narrative structure or tone
Writing through a peripheral character’s perspective : give a voice to a minor character that didn’t have a detailed backstory. Find a gap in the text and create and new perspective.
Developing a prologue, epilogue or another chapter/scene : what new insight can you add with this addition and extension of the text? It must add something new – otherwise it is a redundant addition.
Rewriting a key event/scene from another character’s point of view : does this highlight how important narrative perspective is?
Recontextualising the original text : by putting the same story or characters into a completely different context, for example in the 21st century with technology, how does the meaning change in the narrative?

I chose to write a creative piece from the perspective of an inanimate object that followed the protagonist’s journey throughout the entire film, providing an unexpected point of view of the text. Be original and most importantly, enjoy it!

If you're doing a creative piece - whether for English or Literature - you'll find the following blogs super helpful:

The Ultimate Guide to VCE Creative Writing

‍ 5-Step Recipe for Creative Writing

How To Achieve A+ in Creative Writing (Reading and Creating)

Updated 23/09/2020.

‍ One of the most prominent questions I receive from students is this: “do I need to write an introduction?”. This is usually followed with “how do I write an introduction?”.

Firstly, yes, I believe all students should be writing introductions as they are an excellent way to showcase your ability to provide an insight into your personal “reading” of the text, interpret the passages and allow you an avenue through which to begin your discussion of the material. In this guide, I will be explaining two of the key elements to be utilised to create a strong introduction.

When constructing introductions, it is important to note that the VCAA Literature Exam Criteria is as follows:

understanding of the text demonstrated in a relevant and plausible interpretation
ability to write expressively and coherently to present an interpretation
understanding of how views and values may be suggested in the text
analysis of how key passages and/or moments in the text contribute to an interpretation
analysis of the features of a text and how they contribute to an interpretation
analysis and close reading of textual details to support a coherent and detailed interpretation of the text

What you need to include in your Close Analysis introduction

Considering these points, your introduction should feature these 2 elements: your personal reading of the text and your interpretation of the passages.

Your personal reading is simply your perception of the text. Though the key facets of the text such as the plot and the characters are generally viewed by the majority in a similar fashion, each student will have their own opinions of the text. This can range from resonating with particular scenes or placing a greater emphasis on a certain concept or relationship.

Your interpretation of the passages is the way in which you view the excerpts given to you. Akin to your personal reading, the core aspects of the passages will likely be viewed similarly by most students, however your point of difference will come from how you perceive the passages suggest views and values and how features and moments contribute to an interpretation (factors coming from the criteria).

In terms of structure, try to begin with a sentence or two explaining your personal reading of the text. The key to doing so in a manner befitting Close Analysis however, is to utilise quotes from the passages to supplement your assertion.

Here is a sample written about George Bernard Shaw’s “Pygmalion”:

George Bernard Shaw’s “Pygmalion” contrasts the absence of morality in the titled upper class of 19th century England who dehumanise common citizens as “pebbles on the beach” and the under privileged but morally conscious lower class, “intimidated” by the socio-economic chasm, but living with “middle class morality”.

This highlights my personal reading of Pygmalion as a whole, supported by quotes from the passages I was provided.

To build on this, proceed by writing a sentence or two that demonstrates your interpretation of the passages and how they discuss views and values and create meaning.

Though Shaw implies that one can ascend the ranks through Doolittle’s “lecturing them blue in the face” and Eliza’s gradual self-actualisation, ultimately Shaw quashes any prospect of one permanently invading the upper class by deploying the repetitive “I will” catchphrase throughout Eliza’s ventures. The indefatigable delivery ironically conveys the notion that in spite of Eliza’s effort, she “won’t” achieve.

In these sentences I have commented briefly on the events within the passages and utilised them to exemplify how they are utilised to delve into views and values and create meaning in the overall context of the text. These factors encompass my interpretation of the passages .

Introductions which contain these two key features will score well as they directly target numerous parts of the assessment criteria . This allows students to explicitly outline their overall reading of the text in a style which will efficiently show off your writing skills. Here's the introduction altogether:

Sample A+ Introduction

George Bernard Shaw’s “Pygmalion” contrasts the absence of morality in the titled upper class of 19th century England who dehumanise common citizens as “pebbles on the beach” and the under privileged but morally conscious lower class, “intimidated” by the socio-economic chasm, but living with “middle class morality”. Though Shaw implies that one can ascend the ranks through Doolittle’s “lecturing them blue in the face” and Eliza’s gradual self-actualisation, ultimately Shaw quashes any prospect of one permanently invading the upper class by deploying the repetitive “I will” catchphrase throughout Eliza’s ventures. The indefatigable delivery ironically conveys the notion that in spite of Eliza’s effort, she “won’t” achieve.

How Genre Works

We’re not supposed to judge a book based on its cover, but for some reason, we just can’t help it. Sure, we may not be able to tell if we’re going to enjoy the book, nor can we tell what exactly it’s about, but we can tell the tone, set our expectations, and most importantly, guess at the genre. Look at these three book covers and note how they perfectly show their genres - Sci-Fi, Horror and Life Drama, respectively.

Genre is a way of categorising media. We split books, film and music into genres in order to better talk about them and because humans have a strange desire to sort and categorise things. Within whatever medium, genres display certain structures, characters and tropes that audiences expect from that genre . Audiences like to be able to tell the genre of a text because it’s comfortable. If I go to see a superhero movie I expect wacky costumes, cliche dialogue and a final battle scene that the heroes win - were these expectations not to be met, I would likely be a little bit peeved off.

But why should you care about genre in VCE Literature? It’s not on the study design?

Well, not explicitly. In each AoS of the study design, you must engage with ‘the ways the literary forms, features and language of texts affect the making of meaning’ , and/or ‘the ideas of a text and the ways in which they are presented’ . Genres are a feature of texts and are one of the ways that a text will present its ideas. Horror is the most notable example of a genre that uses its tropes to send a message - It Follows is a horror where the monster stands in for sexually transmitted disease, Carrie uses horror to show the horrors of high school, Frankenstein is a criticism of those who would ‘play god’. In the Literature study design, the horror genre is represented by Bram Stoker’s 1897 masterpiece, Dracula.

For an overview of the Literature study design, check out The Ultimate Guide to VCE Literature .

Dracula + The Gothic

I invite you to think hard about the horror films you’ve seen and to try to place Dracula into our modern view of horror. It’s hard to put Stoker’s vampire on the same stage as the Babadook , Annabelle or even the ‘70s slasher craze. This gives us an incredible opportunity to consider how audiences engaged and continue to engage with genres. In order to analyse genre, it is essential to recognise what the audience’s expectations were of a genre, and how the author has utilised those expectations for their own ends. Let’s consider Dracula in context .

‍ Dracula is a horror novel. But, we usually don’t think about those uptight Victorians reading texts that were designed expressly to scare. The Victorian era was actually one of the golden ages of horror literature though. But, it is distinctly different from our modern understandings of horror as defined by trailblazers like Stephen King. So, why is it different? It is here we must consider the sub-genre. If you have read anything about Dracula , you’ll note that it is referred to as a ‘gothic horror’ . The gothic genre of literature encapsulates some of the 19th century and certainly the Victorian period’s (1837-1901) best literature. Dracula of course belongs to this group, but it blows up around 1818 with Mary Shelly’s Frankenstein . Edgar Allen Poe, with his short stories and poetry, is widely lauded as the ‘Father of American Gothic’, with ‘The Fall of the House of Usher’ published in 1839. Note the dates here. Stoker published Dracula in 1897, a good 79 years after Frankenstein began haunting readers. Which means he had an established and large genre to work with. So, how did Stoker use the gothic in Dracula?

Tropes of the Gothic

1) the gothic monster.

The vampire myth used by Stoker is turned into the quintessential gothic monster. Dracula existed in the Victorian mind alongside Frankestein’s monster, Mr. Hyde, and Poe’s mixture of humans made monstrous and surreal monsters like that in ‘The Masque of the Red Death’. The defining feature of the gothic monster is its role in the story as a representation of something wrong with society, whether it’s increasingly amoral medicinal science, human greed or perverted desire.

2) The Creepy Castle

The creepy castle doesn’t have to be a castle. It can be a mansion, a university or the graveyards of London. The important thing is that the setting of the gothic novel should always be - by default - terrifying and evoke a sense of danger. You can never get comfortable in Dracula’s castle, nor in Seward’s asylum, and neither can the characters.

3) Damsel/s in Distress

For sure an outdated trope, but a constant in the gothic. It’s a quick and simple way to show that the innocence of young women is threatened by a malignant force. In Dracula , look to Mina, Lucy and Mrs. Westenra. But what happens when the damsel saves herself?

4) Omens, Portents, Visions

Visions in dreams? Random wild animals escaping from ships? Ships docking with a completely dead crew? Random changes in the weather? You might be dealing with a gothic villain, or going mad. In either case, Renfield, Dracula, Mina and Jonothan all deal with portents and visions.

And This Is Important Because…

Stoker has followed the predominant tropes of the gothic horror genre. Why is this important for our analysis of Dracula ? The ways in which authors use genre and other stylistic elements like form, voice or plot relate directly to their intentions. If we investigate the particular aspects of Stoker’s use of the gothic, we may better understand the views and values that he is promoting. For instance, let’s take Dracula as the gothic monster. Since the gothic monster is always a way to reflect society back onto itself, how is Stoker doing that? A feminist analysis might take Dracula as a reflection of sexual deviancy, which then ties into his constant threat towards women. A post-colonial analysis might question the foreignness of Dracula, and view him as a part of the intrusiveness of foreigners in English society. Either way, you’re touching on a view or value presented by Stoker, and tying it to an aspect of the gothic genre in a way that conveniently also touches on characterisation.

Let’s complicate things a little more. The ‘Damsel in Distress’ trope is clearly evident in Dracula , but what view or value is Stoker commenting on by its inclusion? The simplest answer is that, by showing that women cannot save themselves, Stoker is saying that women are inherently weak and need to be saved by men. But this answer isn’t sufficient for a number of reasons. Firstly, what are the women weak to? Is it a physical mismatch between the women and Dracula, keeping in mind that Dracula is also stronger than the novel’s men? Or is it a symbolic weakness to some aspect of Dracula’s character, be it sexuality or magic? Secondly, and more importantly, are all the women victimised by Dracula the same? Well, obviously not.

It could very well be argued that Stoker is subverting the ‘Damsel in Distress’ trope by actually giving us a woman who is able to be her own saviour (which is actually becoming a trope in itself nowadays!). The dichotomy between Lucy and Mina is a crucial aspect of the text, and the way that Mina’s character doesn’t quite fit into the ‘Damsel in Distress’ archetype is a major interpretative dilemma. By considering the genre tropes, Lucy is clearly a ‘Damsel in Distress’ who cannot save herself and is unduly victimised by Dracula. It can be argued that her implicit promiscuousness is punished through her murder, but in whatever case, she is distressed and must be saved. Mina, however, has an entirely different view of her distresses. Not only does Mina take on a caring role towards Jonothan - in which Jonothan becomes a ‘Master in Distress’ - she actively supports the attempts to save her and kill Dracula. By compiling the journals, letters and newspaper clippings into the epistolary that we the audience are reading, and using herself as a window into Dracula’s mind through their psychic connection, Mina proves to be a means by which to save herself from her distress. So, the question of what Stoker actually thinks about women is still quite open: Lucy is seemingly punished for her character flaws, which indicates a misogynist view of women’s sexuality, but Mina is praised for her use of masculine qualities like leadership and stoicism. Is Stoker saying women should be more masculine? Less masculine and more traditionally feminine? This entire discussion revolves around how and why the ‘Damsel in Distress’ trope is being followed or subverted.

Using Genre in VCE

Whilst a genre-based analysis (or a structural analysis) can be a fantastic way to open up discussion and leads to important questions about views and values , the way I have presented it may appear to be another useless and long-winded thing you have to try to shove into an essay when you already have to balance so much in Literature! Fear not, because there are a couple of really easy ways to fit genre into essays without taking up loads of space.

Option one is to use a genre trope as the basis of a paragraph. If your essay contention is that…

‍ ‘Stoker presents the dangers of foreign immigration to England at the height of its colonial empire’

…then you can easily write a paragraph discussing that…

‍ ‘Stoker employs the gothic trope of a supernatural monster in Dracula, using this vampire as a stand-in for foreigners in England’.

This paragraph would discuss Dracula’s characterisation, and the settings of Transylvania and London, whilst investigating Stoker’s views on England’s colonialism and race. In a Developing Interpretations or Close Analysis essay, you’ve just touched on several key criteria, including the author’s views and values , your own credible interpretation of the text and how the text presents its messaging (through characterisation and setting). You can do all these things without mentioning genre, but by explicitly using the language of genre analysis you are likely separating yourself from the student next to you - who had a similar idea but described it in a less interesting way. This is the utility of understanding genre, it gives you the words and concepts necessary to improve your writing and interpretation. The ‘Gothic monster’ is an easy way to describe an otherwise GIANT concept.

Another way is to add it to other analyses in passing. Instead of saying “ Dracula presents Lucy and Mina as foils to demonstrate the ways in which modern women’s promiscuity is ultimately harmful”, you can say “the presentation of Lucy and Mina as two ‘damsels in distress’ in dichotomy with each other demonstrates the differing ways in which Victorian women could doom or save themselves” . The latter sentence has not significantly changed the content of the first, still referring to the women’s opposition to each other, but by phrasing it with ‘damsels in distress’ I leave open the possibility of discussing not just Lucy’s promiscuity, but also Mina’s conservative womanhood.

Finally, you need not even mention genre or its tropes in the essay, just use it as a thinking tool. If you go back through the previous section of this blog, you’ll see just how many questions I am asking about the tropes and ideas I am discussing. By using the trope as a jumping-off point for a series of questions, I can develop a nuanced understanding of multiple views and values and the ways in which they interconnect. Take a trope like the ‘creepy castle’ and ask:

“Why would Stoker put Dracula manor in the text?”

“Because it sets up the ‘otherness’ of Dracula.”

“Why do we need to know that Dracula is the other?”

“Because he represents a supernatural foreignness that we need to be scared of.”

“Okay, but why is it right at the start, why is it from Jonothan’s perspective?”

All of these questions offer ways of breaking down the text and they will naturally lead to questions about structure, characterisation and views and values. In doing this, you can start to come up with ways to turn those questions, or the order of those questions into an essay structure. Moreso, this type of questioning is what your teacher, tutors and top-tier Literature students are doing. It is a constant process of asking, answering, reconsidering, reasking and synthesising. And genre is an easy way to start the process.

The big trap students doing both English and Literature fall into is the habit of writing Close Readings like a Language Analysis essay. In essence, the two of these essays must tick the same boxes. But, here’s why analysing texts in Literature is a whole different ball game – in English, you want to be focusing on the methods that the author utilises to get their message across, whereas Literature is all about finding your own message in the writing.

In a Language Analysis essay, the chances are that most students will interpret the contention of the writer in a similar fashion and that will usually be stated in the introduction of the essay. Whereas in Literature, it is the formulation of your interpretation of the author’s message that is what really counts. In a typical Language Analysis essay, the introduction is almost like a summary of what’s going to be talked about in the next few paragraphs whereas in a close reading, it is the fresh ideas beyond the introduction that the markers are interested in.

For this reason, every Close Reading that you do in Literature will be unique. The overarching themes of the text you are writing from may be recurring, but for every passage from the text that you are given, what you derive from that will be specific to it.

From my experience, this is what stumps a lot of students because of the tendency is to pick up on the first few poetic techniques used in the passages and create the basis for the essay from that. This usually means that the student will pick up on alliteration (or another technique that they find easy to identify) used by the author and then try and match it to an idea that they have discussed in class. Whilst this can be an effective way to structure paragraphs, many students aren’t consciously utilising this approach and instead are doing it ‘by accident’ under time pressure, or a lack of understanding of other ways to get a point across.

In general, there are two main approaches that can be followed for body paragraphs in a literature close reading analysis:

1. Start wide and narrow down.

What does this mean? So, as I mentioned before, each of your close readings should be very specific to the passages in front of you and not rehearsed. However, it’s inevitable that you are going to find some ideas coming back more often. So, after reading through the passage, you will usually get a general understanding of the tone that the author has utilised. This will indicate whether the author is criticising or commending a certain character or social idea. Using this general overview to start your paragraph, you can then move closer and closer into the passage until you have developed your general statement into a very unique and clear opinion of the author’s message (with the support of textual evidence of course).

This is the essay approach that is generally preferred by students but is often used poorly, as without practice and under the pressure of writing essays in exam conditions, many students revert back to the old technique of finding a literary device that they are comfortable with and pushing forth with that.

The good thing about this approach is that when you understand the general themes that the author covers, you will become better and better at using that lens to identify the most impactful parts of the passage to unpack as you scrutinise the subtle nuances of the writer’s tone.

2. Start narrow and go wide.

You guessed it - it’s basically the opposite of the approach above. However, this is a more refined way of setting out your exploration of the author’s message as opposed to what was discussed earlier (finding random literary devices and trying to go from there). Using this approach does not mean that you have no direction of where your paragraph might end, it just means that you think the subtle ideas of the author can be used in culmination to prove their wider opinion. For example, if you get a passage where the author describes a character in great detail (Charlotte Brontë students, you might be familiar!) and you think there is a lot of underlying hints that the author is getting at through such an intricate use of words, then you might want to begin your paragraphs with these examples and then move wider to state how this affects the total persona built around this character and then maybe even a step further to describe how the writer’s attitude towards this character is actually a representation of how they feel towards the social ideas that the character represents.

The benefit of this approach is that if you are a student that finds that when you try and specify on a couple of key points within a large theme, you end up getting muddled up with the potential number of avenues you could be writing about, this style gives a bit of direction to your writing. This approach is also helpful when you are trying to link your broader themes together.

The main thing to remember in the structure of your body paragraphs – the link between your examples and the broader themes that you bring up should be very much evident to the marker. They should not have to work to find the link between the examples you are bringing up and the points that you are making. Remember, a Close Reading is all about the passage that is right in front of you and its relation in the context of the whole text and the writer’s message. Be clear about your opinion, it matters!

Happy writing!

To the Lit kids out there, you already know that VCE Literature is a whole different ball game – You’re part of a small cohort, competing against some of the best English students in the state and spots in the 40+ range are fairly limited. So how can you ensure that it’s your essay catches the assessor’s eye? Here are some tips which will hopefully give you an edge.

Constantly refer back to the language of the passages

Embed quotes from the passages into both your introduction and conclusion and of course, throughout the essay. Don’t leave any room for doubt that you are writing on the passages right in front of you rather than regurgitating a memorized essay. A good essay evokes the language of the passages so well that the examiner should barely need to refer back to the passages.

Here’s part of a sample conclusion to illustrate what I mean:

In comparison to Caesar, who sees lands, the “’stablishment of Egypt,” as the epitome of all triumphs, the lovers see such gains, “realms and islands,” as “plates dropp’d from his pocket.” It is dispensable and transient like cheap coins, mere “dungy earth” and “kingdoms of clay.” This grand world of heroic virtue is set in the past tense, where the lover once “bestrid the ocean,” once “crested the world,” but it is the world which will arguably endure in our hearts.

So, you can see that analysis of the language does not stop even in the conclusion and yet it still ties into the overall interpretation of the text that I have presented throughout the essay.

If appropriate, include quotes from the author of the text

A good way to incorporate views and values of the author in your writing is to quote things they have said themselves. This may work better for some texts than others but if you find a particularly poetic quote that ties in well with the interpretation you are presenting, then make sure to slip it in. It shows that you know your stuff and is an impressive way to show off your knowledge of the author’s views and values.

Here’s a sample from an introduction on Adrienne Rich poetry which includes a quote from her essay, “When We Dead Awaken.”

Adrienne Rich’s poetry is the process of discovering a “new psychic geography” (When We Dead Awaken) with a language that is “refuse[d], ben[t] and torque[d]” not to subjugate but as an instrument for “connection rather than apartheid.”

Memorise quotes throughout the text

Yes, there are passages right in front of you, but don’t fall into the trap of not memorizing significant quotes from the text as a whole. Dropping a relevant quote in from another section of the text demonstrates that you understand the text as a whole.

The originality of your ideas and the quality of your writing come first and foremost, but these are little ways in which you can add a little extra something to your essay.

So there’s approximately a month to go before the Literature exam. Nervous? Confident? Over it?! You might be thinking that they best way to study up until the exam is to just churn out essays after essays after essays. This is a common misconception, and may even hurt your chances for the exam. You want your essays to be ‘fresh’ with original insight, not stale pieces that sound like you’ve written this a hundred times and you’re getting bored. Here are a few tips on how to study for the exam while still keeping your mind activated about Literature!

Critique critical commentary

Google critical commentary on your text. You might pick up a new insight or perspective that you’ve never thought of. These can help you inform your own original and individual interpretation of the text. It is important to note that while reading critical commentary is incredibly useful in providing ‘clever’ interpretations, examiners are really looking for your own interpretation – not a regurgitated version of other people’s analyses. Rather than passively reading critical commentary, critique it yourself! Acknowledge and file away its good points, but also form your own stance with whether you agree or disagree with that point of view. Ask yourself why that is your perspective. Developing this critical analysis skill is extremely valuable, and will put you in the mindset for the exam to provide your own original interpretation that pushes the boundaries and the envelop e.

Choose random passages and annotate

Close your eyes and pick a random a couple of passages from your text. Photocopy them, print them, however you like, but the most important thing is to spend time annotating them in as much detail as possible. Focus on analysing the language for how the author constructs the text to create meaning. Note sentences that can link to the wider text. This really forces you to analyse the most random passage in the text in extreme detail, which you might have skipped over in class or in your own reading, because it might not have seemed important at the time. Who knows, the exam could throw in a surprise passage that students might not have thought to study in great detail, and you have because you’ve been analysing passages at random – not just the major key events!

Examiner reports and word bank

Look through VCAA examiner reports for sample excerpts from high scoring responses. Highlight words and phrases that sound ‘good’ – and adapt them to use yourself! There’s nothing wrong with drawing inspiration (stealing) from the examiner reports essays… after all they’re there for you to learn from. Key: you’re drawing inspiration from words, not ideas or sentences – otherwise that’s just plagiarism and won’t help at all. Create a word bank of vocabulary that suit your texts, which can be a great prompter when you’re struggling to think of a word that accurately expresses on paper what you want to say in your mind.

Timed conditions

The biggest issue with every literature student in the exam is timing . There’s always so many things you want to write and include, that it is simply not possible to include everything. Time yourself. Practice writing in timed conditions. Be disciplined with your time – going over time for the first essay to include maybe one more good point, is to sacrifice finishing your second essay.

Exams are without a doubt a stressful period of time for all VCE students, and it can be easy to get caught up and overwhelmed with expectations, wanting to prove yourself and balancing the workload of your other exams. Find time to do small things to benefit yourself for the exam without compromising your mental power (after a very long marathon). Good luck and believe in yourself!

Introduction

Arguably one of the greatest modern playwrights of our time, Tennessee Williams produced some of the best post-war 1950’s American plays that have now engrained themselves as classics. After the conclusion of the second world war, America was pervaded with hypermasculinity, deep levels of insecurity and a desperate need to regain the pre-war success of the 1920s. During the 1950s, the United States began to regain its economic success and spirits were high as ever; however, this may only have been ostensible. Beneath the surface of such success lurked unshaken expectations on both men and women and deep-rooted bigotry.

In this article, we will get to know how these concepts are explored in ‘Cat on a Hot Tin Roof’ and examine why this text is important in the context of Lit Perspectives and Close Analysis. ‍

Characters Analysis

Brick is too numb to feel much of anything any more; he is a drunk and cold shell of what he once was. Since the death of his friend Skipper, Brick has retreated into solitude and emotional aloofness, and the only emotions that he can express are disgust and boredom. The other characters can only coax an emotional response out of him when they mention Skipper

Maggie is a traditional 1950’s beauty, she is lively, gorgeous and has a deeply sexual presence. She spends the majority of the play trying to get Brick to sleep with her- both to satisfy her own needs, and to allow her to conceive a baby. This which would guarantee her share of the Pollitt family wealth.

Big Daddy, like Brick, gets a lot of undeserved attention and love; this is because he sits upon the Pollitt wealth he built. He worked hard for economic success, and now he wants to enjoy it. He is uninterested in Big Mama and treats her with little affection or respect.

She is an older version of Maggie - more dramatic, needier, having let herself go. She loves her husband unconditionally despite his cruelty and indifference to her. Like Big Daddy, she cannot help but prefer Brick to Gooper because he is so much like Big Daddy.

Brick’s older brother but has lived in his shadow since the day he was born. While Brick got the attention with looks and football, Gooper married into society and became a successful lawyer. But the unfair attention and focus on Brick has made Gooper vengeful and petty, and so it is out of both greed and spite that he actively campaigns for control of Big Daddy’s estate.

Gooper’s wife who has all of his greed and sourness, without any of his justifying history. She taunts Maggie’s lack of motherhood by parading her plethora of children around the house.

Concepts and Concerns

TIP: Concepts and concerns should form the basis of your analysis whether you are doing a close analysis or a literary perspectives essay!

MENDACITY VS TRUTH ‍

The central tension in the play is underscored by mendacity, lying and deception. The repressed truth is constantly on the verge of being unleashed and it is the “inadmissible thing” that pervades the family. The two primary sources of mendacious repression are Brick’s homosexual desires and Big Daddy’s imminent death from cancer. Ironically, it is these two who value integrity and honesty the most.

When Big Daddy finally finds out the truth about his impending death he exclaims: “By all the goddam lies and liars that I have had to put up with, and all the goddam hypocrisy that I lived with all these forty years that we(big mama) been living together”

In a final moment of existential dread and disgust, Brick resignedly claims that “mendacity is a system that we live in. Liquor is one way out and death is another”. These are the fates that are destined for Brick and Big Daddy respectively.

The truth (if there can be such a thing) is that both Brick and Big Daddy are loved so ardently by their partners, but they blinded by their dishonesty to themselves. It is because Brick cannot come to terms with his own sexuality and Big Daddy cannot fathom his inevitable death that lies, and deceit is perpetuated in the text.

MASCULINITY AND HOMOSEXUALITY

Williams himself was gay and lived in a society that constantly repressed and shamed it as a deeply sinful practice and associated it with failed masculinity. Thus, he explores the deep turmoils of homosexuality in the 1950s and its implications on manliness, bigotry and society.

Whilst not stated explicitly, it is implied that Skipper confessed his love to Brick; whilst Brick felt the same way, he knew this would not be accepted by society. Consequently, he shuts Skipper down and later that night, Skipper commits suicide. Brick cannot admit the truth to himself because in his mind “purity” and “homosexuality” are mutually exclusive, due to his own internalized homophobia and even when Big Daddy makes Brick face his desires and the guilt that pervades him; he cannot escape the bigoted societal norms imbued within him

Williams paints an image of distress, pain and grief caused by the prevailing homophobia of the 1950s. Brick is crippled both by his failure as a man and his failure to be true to himself.

THE AMERICAN DREAM

Back in the 1950s, the American Dream was the dream that everyone was expected to aspire for was much more conservative. It included a traditional family with a stay at home mother, hard-working and masculine father, 2-3 children, a home and money, lots of it!

The Pollitt family truly embodied the American Dream. With their self-made fortune, successful sons (though Brick is now a mess) and even grandchildren. In many aspects, Gooper and Mae fulfil the expectations of the American Dream much more than Brick and Maggie do; they have children, success and ambition. They attempt to use this to their advantage in their bid to win over Big Daddy’s estate but even that fails to sway Big Daddy’s favouritism for Brick.

Brick is as resigned and aloof to the idea of wealth and tradition as he is to his wife Maggie. His repressed homosexuality already divorces him from the ingrained social expectation of the American Dream and it disappoints him to pretend to desire the same things his brother Gooper does. This, ironically, only makes him more favoured by his parents.

In a world of strict expectations and immovable bigotry, there is no room for homosexuality, and this disappoints no one more than Brick himself. In his world, the very essence of his being contradicts the dream that everyone is taught to value. Williams asks readers to consider the consequences of such restrictive beliefs, he questions the American dream at a fundamental level by asking: so why do we all have to want the same thing?

MOTHERHOOD AND FEMININITY

What does it mean to be a woman? For Mae, that means being a loving housewife and being able to bear children. In the petty feud for Big Daddy’s will, she insults Maggie’s childless state, she is less of a woman because of it. Of course, the reason Maggie cannot have children is that Brick is unwilling to sleep with her. Again, even though Mae has provided Big Daddy and Big Mama with a plethora of grandchildren, they still prefer Maggie’s young and sensual energy.

Williams attempts to undermine the characteristics that were supposed to define women as feminine through Maggie. Moreover, women were supposed to be passive players in the family, to do their husbands bidding and to be polite and proper at all times. Maggie is none of these things. She is unapologetically sexual, unwaveringly ambitious in her pursuit of the Pollitt family wealth and determined to cement herself as Brick’s partner although she knows of his homosexual desires. In a society where women were not supposed to have dreams let alone pursue them, Maggie is a “cat on a hot tin roof”, chasing her dreams with careless disregard of established hetero norms.

Literary Perspectives

Now we get into the tricky stuff! This is one part of your exam and is the Unit 4 Outcome 1 SAC so it’s important that you get a competent grasp of the task! TIP: Follow this link to get an overview of the literary perspectives task (I’m thinking of linking the ultimate lit perspectives guide here, let me know what you think)

Some prevalent perspectives should jump out at you immediately just by looking at the Concepts and Concerns. Remember that you don’t have to choose just one perspective, it’s more important that you develop an overall interpretation of the text and incorporate the buzzwords that reflect your perspective. Use your perspective/interpretation as a lens to the concepts and concerns mentioned above as a springboard for your analysis

Now we get into the tricky stuff! This is one part of your exam and is the Unit 4 Outcome 1 SAC so you must get a competent grasp of the task! TIP: Follow this link to get an overview of the literary perspectives task (I’m thinking of linking the ultimate lit perspectives guide here, let me know what you think)

Here are some general perspectives that you might want to think about:

Think about the role the women in this text play and how they are portrayed. You have three vastly different women who all reflect the social standards that defined the 1950s in varying degrees.

Maggie does not seem to care much about what Brick wants as much as she cares about her own needs proven when she attempts to force him to do things he doesn’t care much for (pretending he remembered Big Daddy’s birthday or sleeping with her). She stands in diametric opposition to Big Mama and Mae who are both stereotypical women of their times, always forgoing their own desires for their husbands’. In this sense, our sympathy for Maggie only confirms Williams’ notion that women should be able to freely chase their ambitions and break free of restrictive stereotypes.

These societal standards that reinforce traditional gender roles, heterosexuality and the pervasive male gaze form what literary critics call heteronormativity. This is a key notion in feminism and extends this perspective to more than just an analysis of women in society. It also asks us to question how these hetero norms may influence overarching definitions of masculinity. We can see how these hetero norms have forced Brick into an empty cripple whose only clutch is alcohol and the “click” of peace he drinks for.

TIP: Heteronormativity can also be linked to Marxism as it forms part of the superstructure (institutions and culture considered to result from and reflect the economic system underlying society) that perpetuates the belief that men must be the breadwinner to support their housewives and children. In other words, if you are not supporting your family financially, you are not considered a true man.

Some might argue that the central conflict in the play comes down to who will inherent Big Daddy’s wealth after his death and is only inflamed by Brick’s repressed sexuality. The American Dream is literally underscored by the chasing of money!

Consider how the class impacts the tension in the story. Because of their high social status, Brick’s sexuality is only more scandalous. Funnily enough, despite the fact that Maggie knows he does not love her, she could not care less. As I’ve probably hammered in enough by now, she has more regard for the money than Brick (though she does love him). Furthermore, Gooper’s job as a lawyer, in his mind, only further cements him claim to the Pollitt family throne because it pays well and is highly respected.

Psychoanalysis

Pain, trauma, guilt, desire, gaze and the unconscious. All these things come into play when thinking about psychoanalysis. Popularised by Sigmund Freud who believed (and I’m simplifying here) that psychological theories and techniques could help people better understand their unconscious thoughts, feelings and desires. This is turn, would help them explain their behaviours.

The best way to start a psychoanalysis of ‘Cat on a Hot Tin Roof’ is to think about what each character wants, how they are behaving and how their past might influence this. Brick’s homosexuality and the guilt he feels at Skipper’s death is a great place to start. This is also a great way to integrate to touch on other perspectives if you think about the ways in which heteronormativity or social status may have influenced his decisions back then.

Close Analysis

TIP: Just because it’s close analysis, doesn’t mean you can forego an overall interpretation!! Remember the Concepts and Concerns of the author! Here is a link to help you out with more general close analysis advice (again same idea as previous section, to

Some might argue that the central conflict in the play comes down to who will inherit Big Daddy’s wealth after his death and is only inflamed by Brick’s repressed sexuality. The American Dream is underscored by the chasing of money!

Consider how the class impacts the tension in the story. Because of their high social status, Brick’s sexuality is only more scandalous. Funnily enough, even though Maggie knows he does not love her, she could not care less. As I’ve probably hammered in enough by now, she has more regard for the money than Brick (though she does love him). Furthermore, Gooper’s job as a lawyer, in his mind, only further cements him claim to the Pollitt family throne because it pays well and is highly respected.

The best way to start psychoanalysis of ‘Cat on a Hot Tin Roof’ is to think about what each character wants, how they are behaving and how their past might influence this. Brick’s homosexuality and the guilt he feels at Skipper’s death is a great place to start. This is also a great way to integrate to touch on other perspectives if you think about how heteronormativity or social status may have influenced his decisions back then.

TIP: Just because it’s close analysis, doesn’t mean you can forego an overall interpretation!! Remember the Concepts and Concerns of the author! Here is a link to help you out with more general close analysis advice (again same idea as the previous section, to link the ultimate guides)

The close analysis essentially wants you to analyse the nitty-gritty of your text. Demonstrate to VCAA that you understand how language creates meaning and can support the overarching values of the author. Questions of form, structure, language devices and literary techniques all come in to play when thinking about how Tennessee Williams created meaning in the play. Think of yourself as a detective who must find the most forensic examples in supporting your overall perspective. Here are a few things you might want to consider when closely analysing ‘Cat on a Hot Tin Roof’.

The Form – Play

The Play as a form is one of the most distinct types. It is a show for an audience and does not have as much intimacy as a novel. It has stage directions that the audience does not see and even minute punctuation that must be portrayed by actors. It is important that you can demonstrate you understand this!

Different stage directions will impact the audience in a multitude of ways. For example, Williams had detailed ‘Notes for the Designer’ that closely depicted the setting and atmosphere of the play. In it, he detailed the story of “Jack Straw and Peter Ochello, a pair of old bachelors” who were rumoured to be gay. This instantly establishes homosexuality as a backdrop of the play, it is woven into the setting.

Or you might want to analyse the stage directions that constantly punctuate Brick’s dialogue; every time he speaks it is “absently”, “dreamily” or “vaguely”, which further emphasises his cool and aloof nature. This is in contrast to when he speaks about Skipper in which he suddenly becomes defensive; his dialogue graduates from resigned one-liners to profuse emotional rants.

Structure – The Acts, the Setting, characters, timeframe

Whilst the form of a play is unique in itself, there are certain aspects of ‘Cat on a Hot Tin Roof’ that differentiates it from others.

For example, the play in its entirety occurs within one day. This emphasises the extent to which the Pollitt family had already been teetering on the edge of unleashing the secrets of the family. The confirmation of Big Daddy’s death only opens this up further and unwinds the atmosphere of secrecy, denial and mendacity in merely a few hours.

This is only heightened by the fact that the entire play occurs in one room, the “bed-sitting-room” of the plantation home. Therefore, no matter how hard the family tries to escape the truth, the claustrophobia created by having so many of them in one room together acts as a catalyst for the truth to be revealed.

Also, consider how these characters are established! What has been said explicitly and what has been alluded to. For example, it is never explicitly said that Brick is gay or that Big Daddy will die (to his face at least). In some ways, despite the fact that everyone knows the truth, it is still a truth too difficult to bear and speaking it out loud will only confirm what they have been in denial about for so long.

Imagine a friend tells you eerie accounts of her witnessing a ghostly presence in her home. You scoff and condescendingly humour her. But as her stories begin to manifest itself in her gaunt appearance, you alarmingly notice how she truly believes in the apparitions she recounts. You begin to doubt her sanity, you begin to doubt the certainty with which you dismissed her supernatural visions and now, you begin to doubt yourself. THE SUSPENSE BUILDS.

But let’s say this friend filmed the ghostly apparitions and showed them to you. Sure – the evidence of this ghost is frighteningly scary. But the suspense that was built in the doubt, uncertainty and ambiguity of your friend’s tale is now lost. The ghosts caught in film acts as another eyewitness and another medium to validate your friend’s narrative. Your friend is no longer the only person who sees these ghosts, shattering all doubt within you of the ghost’s existence. THE SUSPENSE – is gone.

Notice how the form and genre of the spoken word in the first example was meaningful in its the effect on the reader? But when the form changed to a film, the meaningful suspense and ambiguity that was unique and crucial in the original text, changed , and was no longer as pronounced. Yes – the film itself may be terrifying. But the very doubt and suspense around not knowing if your friend was a lunatic for seeing ghosts or if she was telling the truth all contributes to the meaning derived from the form of the ‘text’ in an unreliable first person narrative. This is the crux of adaptations and transformations, and what you need to identify and analyse – how the meaning is changed/altered when the form of the text is changed .

Here are 7 lucky tips for how to tackle the SAC:

Identify the unique conventions in the construction of the original text – characterisation, genre, tone, style, structure, point of view/narration (or any devices employed in constructing the text e.g. cinematic devices in a film such as camera angles, framing, lighting, costumes, interior/exterior settings, sound)
Now do step 1 with the adapted/transformed text
How do the two text forms differ ? How are they the same ? However, be sure you do not simply compare and contrast. The most crucial step is what meaning can be derived from the similarities and differences? How does the meaning change?
Note additions and omissions (and even silences) – do they change how readers/viewers perceive the narrative and alter your opinions and perceptions of the text?
Historical context and setting – what significance does the context have on the narrative? Has the adaptation/transformation been re-contextualised? Does that alter the meaning of the original text?
How does the change in form impact you as the reader/viewer ? Analyse your own reactions and feelings towards each text form. Do you sympathise with a character more in the original text? How are we positioned to feel this way? Why do you lack the same level of sympathy for the adapted/transformed text?
Incorporate pertinent quotations from both forms of text to substantiate and support your ideas and key points.

Final questions to ponder

Most importantly is to share your original interpretation of what meaning and significance you can extract from the text, and how you believe it changes once the form alters.

What makes the text in its original form interesting or unique?

Is that quality captured in its adaptation/transformation?

As always with Literature, this task is designed for you to critically analyse and actively engage with the text, understanding its nuances inside and out in order to decipher its meaning. Be individual in comparing and contrasting the two texts – avoid the obvious similarities/differences everyone in your class will also notice. It is the insightful analysis of the subtleties of how meaning is altered that will help you stand out!

The idea of critical lenses in literary perspective essays can often be tough to fully grasp. Is sticking to just one ok? Are there enough examples in the text to support a purely feminist viewpoint? Or a Marxist one? What about post-colonialism? Sometimes it’s difficult to find a clear through line, especially when the concepts you’re attempting to discuss are so complex.

Luckily when it comes to Shakespearean texts, Twelfth Night in particular, a lot of people throughout history have already studied these ideas and critical lenses, and there are many more resources out there for you to utilize than you might think.

Thus, we are faced with the extremely helpful nature of published critical readings. These critical essays are pieces often published by university professors or scholars which offer an in-depth analysis and examination of a given text. While much of the language is complicated and a bit overwrought at times, the content within the essays can give you helpful ideas and can help you gather a repertoire of vocabulary and evidence for your own literary perspectives essay. In fact, if you type in “Twelfth Night critical readings” into your google search tab, there will be pages of valuable content at your disposal.

Literary perspectives

For instance, the critical essay Rethinking Sexuality and Class in Twelfth Night by Nancy Lindhiem, gives insight into both the Marxist and the queer lens.

Here is an extract from Lindhiem’s reading in which she discusses the idea of “androgyny” and sexuality (noted specifically in the bolded words):

“While Viola is barely male except in attire, the dual aspect of Sebastian’s androgyny is carefully explored. The Elizabethan audience’s first, external, impression – he looks like his sister! – is reinforced ‘internally’ in his conversation with Antonio. His exquisite sensitivity to the quality of his friend’s feelings and the obligation it lays upon him might well be seen as a woman’s trait. ”

After reading Lindhiem’s discussion of the “androgynous” twins within the play and how this displays a disparity between gender identity, this student then decided to expand on in a similar idea in a part of their paragraph below (queer lens). In the first part of the sentence, the student outlines the idea of androgyny (shown in bold) specific to the character of Viola. Later on, the student also explores the idea of different behaviours contributing to certain gender traits much like Lindhiem’s notation of it in the above paragraph (shown in bold in the last sentence), however concludes on a broader outline of sexuality as a whole, rather than focussing on just female traits.

Viola’s mediatory role between Olivia and Orsino’s households, coupled with her androgynous performance as a woman playing a man (adding further confusion to the Elizabethan stage convention of a male actors playing women on stage) evokes a form of genderbending and identity perplexity that pervades the play’s dramatic trajectory and opens up what is possible, if not overtly permissible, on a spectrum of sexuality.

Another way of making use of these critical readings is to draw from some of their sophisticated vocabulary. The following is an example of how a student was able to adjust and expand her vocabulary specific to their chosen lens by reading critical essays.

After studying a couple of feminist and queer critical essays to Twelfth Night , the student highlighted some repetitive language and terms used within the essays, and was able to use them within their own essay.

Casey Charles’ Theatre Journal exert Gender Trouble in Twelfth Night uses the phrasing

“ the phenomenon of love itself operates as a mechanism that destabilizes gender binarism and its concomitant hierarchies”.

The student went on to use the term gender binarism in one of her essay’s sentences:

In all, Twelfth Night delineates the true fluidity within gender binarisms as well as the way in which societal structures are enforced and reiterated…

Alternatively, the critical essay Gender Ambiguity and Desire in Twelfth Night by Maria Del Rosario Arias Doblas makes use of the terms “homoerotic” and “heterosexual” throughout its text - “homoeroticism residing in theatrical transvestitism… and homosexual allusions and so on pervade the play to create the “most highly intricate misunderstandings”’ - thus outlining the type of high-level language specific to a queer reading of the play that the student was able to implement in their own work:

In fact, Shakespeare oscillates between reinforcing patriarchal ideology and heterosexual language, and the deconstruction of such romantic ideals, simultaneously closeting and disclosing the queer possibilities typical to conservative societies that use violence to repress homosociality and police the safe expression of homosexual exploration within heterosexual norms.

As you can see, the student’s language is now specified to the type of lens they are using in their literary perspectives essay, and is also of a high register.

External or Contextual references

Another benefit of going through critical readings is the external or contextual references they make. An example of this is in Rethinking Sexuality and Class in Twelfth Night by Nancy Lindhiem, where the author makes reference to Narcissus, a character from Metamorphoses – a Latin narrative poem from 8 AD:

“For all the likelihood that both Olivia and Sebastian are seduced by a visual perception, we probably feel that Olivia succumbs mainly to Cesario’s way with words.9 Several critics have commented on the allusion to Ovid’s Echo in Cesario’s ‘babbling gossip of the air’ (1.5.277)”

Noticing this reference as a motif in many other critical readings too, this student decided to insert it into their own essay here:

These central relationships therefore reapply the idea of self-reflexivity while blurring the structured boundaries of identity stability, central to the Narcissus myth of which Echo from Ovid’s Metamorphosis forms a part ; “a very echo to the seat/ where love is throned” invokes a doubling motif, as well as the troubling foundation of representation over reality.

See how the student was able to discuss it in their own way? Referencing external texts in your literary perspectives essay can prove very useful if done once or twice, as it demonstrates that you are able to apply the values within the chosen text to wider elements of society and culture.

Getting started

One of the most efficient ways of going through these sorts of essays (which are often quite elaborate and at times difficult to understand fully) is to print them out, grab a highlighter and pen and skim through as much as possible. Highlight words, terms or phrases which spark your intrigue, or ones you feel you may be able to manipulate as evidence to support your own essay.

Overall, reading as many of these expert-written critical essays as possible can be extremely beneficial in developing a greater understanding of the critical lenses, the ideals and context of the Elizabethan theatre, and the way both dialogue and staging can be used as evidence in your own essays.

The more you know about the play, the more you’ll be able to write about it. So, get reading!

Links to the readings:

Rethinking Sexuality and Class in Twelfth Night, Nancy Lindheim

Gender Ambiguity and Desire in Twelfth Night, Maria Del Rosario Arias Doblas ‍

Gender Trouble in Twelfth Night, Casey Charles

Updated for the new 2023-2027 Study Design!

AoS 1: Adaptations and Transformations

Aos 2: developing interpretations.

AoS 1: Creative Responses to Texts

AoS 2: Close Analysis

This is your ultimate guide to everything you need to know to get started with VCE Literature. We will be covering all the sections within Units 3 and 4, and have included resources that will help improve your skills and make you stand out from the rest of your cohort!

Scope of Study

Here's what the VCAA study design states...

'The study of VCE Literature fosters students’ enjoyment and appreciation of the artistic and aesthetic merits of stories and storytelling, and enables students to participate more fully in the cultural conversations that take place around them. By reading and exploring a diverse range of established and emerging literary works, students become increasingly empowered to discuss texts. As both readers and writers, students extend their creativity and high-order thinking to express and develop their critical and creative voices.'

'Throughout this study, students deepen their awareness of the historical, social and cultural influences that shape texts and their understanding of themselves as readers. Students expand their frameworks for exploring literature by considering literary forms and features, engaging with language, and refining their insight into authorial choices. Students immerse themselves in challenging fiction and non-fiction texts , discovering and experimenting with a variety of interpretations in order to develop their own responses.'

...but don't worry if the above is vague, we'll take you through exactly what you need to know for Year 12 Literature! Let's get into it! ‍ ‍

In Unit 3, students consider how meaning is created through form, and how different interpretations may be developed out of a singular text. First, students understand how writers adapt and transform texts, and how their interpretation of the text impacts this transformation into a different form. Secondly, students use another text to develop their own interpretations of a text with regard to its context , and views and values . Unit 3 School-Assessed Coursework is worth 25 per cent of your total study score!

This task is designed for you to critically analyse and actively engage with the text, understanding its nuances inside and out in order to decipher its meaning. Be individual in comparing and contrasting the two texts – avoid the obvious similarities/differences everyone in your class will also notice. It is the insightful analysis of the subtleties of how meaning is altered that will help you stand out!

Here are some important aspects to consider and questions to ask yourself while tackling this SAC:

Identify the unique conventions in the construction of the original text
Now do Step 1 with the adapted/transformed text
How do the two text forms differ ? How are they the same ? The most crucial step is what meaning can be derived from the similarities and differences? How does the meaning change? ‍
Note additions and omissions (and even silences) ‍
Historical context and setting ‍
How does the change in form impact you as the reader/viewer ?
Incorporate pertinent quotations from both forms of text to substantiate and support your ideas and key points.

Most importantly, share your original interpretation of what meaning and significance you can extract from the text, and how you believe it changes once the form alters.

Also ask yourself these questions:

‍ What makes the text in its original form interesting or unique?

‍ For more detailed explanations on these 7 aspects, you might want to check out Adaptations and Transformations Lit SAC: A How To Guide.

Developing interpretations is an AoS that focuses on investigating the meaning and messages in texts, as evidenced by the text itself, it’s author and their context . As per the study design:

'Students first develop their own interpretations of a set text, analysing how ideas, views and values are presented in a text, and the ways these are endorsed, challenged and/or marginalised through literary forms, features and language. These student interpretations should consider the historical, social and cultural context in which a text is written and set. Students also consider their own views and values as readers.'

Following this, you investigate a supplementary reading which will offer another interpretation of the text, which may enrich or challenge your interpretation by agreeing or disagreeing with your interpretation. Using this supplementary reading, you reconsider your initial interpretation and apply your new understanding of the text to key moments.

The SAC for Developing Interpretations is a little bit weird. It’s worth 50% of unit 3 (or 25% of your total study score), but is split into two parts:

Part A: An initial interpretation of the text’s views and values within its historical, social and cultural context.
Part B: A written response that compares/interweaves and analyses an initial interpretation with a subsequent interpretation, using a key moment from the text.

Your teacher might do the two parts together, or separately. In any case, Part B will include the use of a passage from the set text that you must engage with. How does the passage help you to interpret the text, and how does that interpretation agree or disagree with the interpretation presented in the supplementary reading?

The most difficult part of the SAC for this AoS is balancing your interpretation, the textual evidence, and the alternative interpretation of the supplementary reading. It is vital that if you are doing Literature this year, that you know your 3.2 text like the back of your hand, and that you practice writing loads and loads. It is also worth trying to make your interpretation incredibly specific, so that you can go in-depth into one idea, rather than simply skimming over 3 or 4 big ideas.

For more on Developing Interpretations, you might want to check out VCE Literature Study Design (2023-2027): A Guide to Developing Interpretations which explains in detail what the new AoS is about and what you need to do.

And, if you're studying Alias Grace you'll find our Developing Interpretations SAC Guide on interpreting Alias Grace especially helpful.

‍ Unit 4: Interpreting Texts

Aos 1: creative response & reflective commentary.

The most important part of this task is that you must have a highly convincing connection between the original text and your creative response .

There must be a tangible relationship present, through an in-depth understanding of the original text’s features. These features include characterisation (what motivates these characters), setting, context, narrative structure, tone and writing/film style.

You can establish this relationship by: ‍

Adopting or resisting the same genre as the original text
Adopting or resisting the author’s writing/language style
Adopting or resisting the text’s point of view
Writing through a peripheral character’s perspective
Developing a prologue, epilogue or another chapter/scene
Rewriting a key event/scene from another character’s point of view: Does this highlight how important narrative perspective is?
Recontextualising the original text

For detailed explanations on how to establish these relationships, read "Creative Response To Text" Ideas .

The VCAA Literature Study Design also determines that students must submit a ‘close analysis of a key passage’. This aspect of the assessment counts for 20 of the 60 marks available for the Create Response outcome. The study design elaborates that students must produce:

‘A close analysis of a key passage from the original text, which includes reflections on connections between the creative response and the original text.’

In short, VCAA wants you to not only analyse the original text and use it as the basis for your Creative Response, they want you to be able to closely analyse a section of the original text, and link it to and reflect upon your creative response. This is different from previous years and the same task in English, the Reflective Commentary. You must use the skills of close analysis in this task. To include these things, look to the key knowledge and skills outlined in the study design.

Key Knowledge:

Understanding of the point of view, context and form of the original text
The ways the literary form, features and language convey the ideas of the original text
Techniques used to create, recreate or adapt a text and how they represent particular views and values

Key Skills:

Discuss elements of construction, context, point of view and form particular to the text, and apply understanding of these in a creative response
Analyse closely the literary form, features and language of a text
Reflect on how language choices and literary features from the original text are used in their adaptation

As you write, ensure you are discussing how the author uses point of view, context, form, elements of construction and stylistic features in their text. It is imperative that you describe how you have similarly used such device in your creative response. Ensure that you also discuss how you are involving the ideas and themes of the text in your creative piece, and how you are discussing them further, or exploring them in greater depth. Obviously only talk about those that are relevant to your creative response!

To read a sample Reflective Commentary, check out Elly's blog post on how to Score 10/10 On The Reflective Commentary ‍

From the VCAA study design:

'In this area of study students focus on a detailed scrutiny of the language, style, concerns and construction of texts. Students attend closely to textual details to examine the ways specific passages in a text contribute to their overall understanding of the whole text. Students consider literary forms, features and language, and the views and values of the text. They write expressively to develop a close analysis, using detailed references to the text.'

In plain words, your teacher (and eventually examiner in the end of year exam) will give you 3 passages from your text. You'll be asked to read each of these passages, identify key ideas or themes present in each of the passages, and write an essay in response.

Writing the Introduction

Introductions are an excellent way to showcase your ability to provide an insight into your personal “reading” of the text, interpret the passages and allow you an avenue through which to begin your discussion of the material.

When constructing introductions, it is important to note that the VCAA Literature Exam Criteria is as follows: ‍

Understanding of the text demonstrated in a relevant and plausible interpretation
Ability to write expressively and coherently to present an interpretation
Understanding of how views and values may be suggested in the text
Analysis of how key passages and/or moments in the text contribute to an interpretation
Analysis of the features of a text and how they contribute to an interpretation
Analysis and close reading of textual details to support a coherent and detailed interpretation of the text
Considering these points, your introduction should feature these 2 elements: your personal reading of the text and your interpretation of the passages.
In terms of structure, try to begin with a sentence or two explaining your personal reading of the text. The key to doing so in a manner befitting Close Analysis however, is to utilise quotes from the passages to supplement your assertion.

Head over to Jarrod's blog to read a sample introduction: VCE Literature Close Analysis: Introduction ‍ ‍

Extra Resources

Views and Values

VCE Literature Essay Approaches - Not a Language Analysis

What is Authorial Intent in VCE English and Why Is It Important?

The Importance of Context in Literature ‍

Study Techniques: How To Approach a Text That You Hate

Why Genre Matters in VCE Literature: An Analysis of Dracula

Developing Interpretations SAC Guide: Interpreting Alias Grace

For an overview of the Literature Study Design as a whole, be sure to check out our Ultimate Guide to VCE Literature .

What’s Changing?

The largest change is that the Literary Perspectives area of study has been removed and replaced with an area of study called ‘Developing Interpretations’. Literary Perspectives introduced you to literary theories like marxism, feminism and post-structuralism. These might still be relevant if your teacher decides to use them, but for the most part, they have been cut.

Developing Interpretations (Unit 3.2) is about differing opinions of texts. You are being asked to develop an interpretation of your text and to use the evidence available to you to support that understanding of the text. This process is difficult, and TBH is something that teachers, tutors and scholars of literature (and humanities) take for granted. It requires understanding the text, its form, its context, the author, the views and values, the aspects of texts and (if that isn’t enough) to be able to understand how they all connect together , before writing an essay that makes your understanding of all of that stuff coherent.

This new AoS also asks you to take your interpretation and consider it alongside another interpretation, because you get to read a supplementary text ! This supplementary text is heavily implied to be a piece of academia. The supplementary reading is supposed to offer an interpretation of the text, and you need to consider how that changes your interpretation. Does it? Was an idea fundamental to your interpretation debunked? Was there something you overlooked? Does the addition of a theoretical framework (like post-colonialism or feminism) impact your understanding?

What Do I Need To Do?

According to the study design, Developing Interpretations involves ‘develop[ing] interpretations of a set text informed by the ideas, views and values of the set text and a supplementary reading’. This means there are two key sections , first is the development of an interpretation, and second is the reconsideration of that initial interpretation. Let’s look at each section in turn:

Developing an Interpretation

2008’s Ironman, directed by John Favreau, is the story of a billionaire weapons dealer who, after a life-altering event, dismantles his weapons-manufacturing business in order to use his genius-level intellect to construct a suit of armour and become a superhero.

Ironman demonstrates the evils of the American war machine whilst showing that moral individuals are capable of redirecting resources and energy into genuine ways of improving people's lives.

Let’s not pretend that Ironman is the pinnacle of modern storytelling. But what we can see in the statement above is an example of an interpretation. We can offer an opposing interpretation that’s a bit more critical:

Ironman demonstrates, falsely, that the altruism of one ‘good guy with a gun’ can compensate for a systemic ravaging of the Middle East by the American colonial war machine.

Both of these interpretations deal with the same text and the same aspects of that text. They both comment on Ironman ’s exploration of weapons-dealing, and the protagonist’s response to that issue. The first interpretation is - arguably - the message the screenwriters, Fergus, Ostby, and Marcum intended for us to take away from the story. The second interpretation is considering the efficacy of that take-home message: Is Ironman actually the good guy, or is there a larger systemic issue at play, beyond the morals of one man?

To come up with an interpretation, you must consider views and values , aspects of texts and the context the text was created in. Aspects of texts like genre and characterisation demonstrate how the author views a certain issue or idea, and these issues or ideas are usually aspects of the author’s context. At this stage of developing an interpretation, VCAA wants you to focus on close analysis of the text, so ask questions about how a certain motif might reveal something about the author’s views and values. Or, how does a minor character relate to a historical figure that is contextually relevant to the text? For an excellent example of such an analysis and interpretation, I highly recommend the Coraline Bug Theory by Karsten Runquist (YouTube).

For an in-depth look at how to combine views and values, textual features, and context, check out LSG’s A Killer Literature Study Guide .

The Supplementary Reading

So, you’ve developed a unique and plausible interpretation of your text using the evidence available to you, the context , and the author’s views and values . At this stage, you might have a SAC where you defend your interpretation. No matter how the SAC is done, after developing the interpretation, you will be given a supplementary reading . This can take multiple forms, being a piece written by your teacher, an ‘explication of a literary theory’ or an academic article. The ‘explication of a literary theory’ basically means a work explaining a literary theory, like Marxism, feminism or post-modernism.

After you have read and considered the supplementary reading in class, you will have to see how your initial interpretation holds up, and either adapt or defend your interpretation in light of the new information. If you’re struggling to rethink your ideas, try these steps:

1) Free your mind, dude. Be open to the possibility that you were wrong. Be willing to abandon ideas that you thought were really interesting. They probably were really interesting and different, but unfortunately, they just might not hold up in light of the new piece.

2) Rebut the article. If your ideas are being completely dunked on by the article, can you dunk on the article? Don’t be egregious, but there may be things where you feel that your argument is stronger, why? What has the author missed about a character or event that actually helps to better support your argument?

3) Make room for nuance. You might have an article that mostly agrees with you but helps you to see where you might have been too absolutist. Sure, the text’s views and values are pretty homophobic, and your supplementary reading agrees, but maybe the text is showing that homophobia in a way you hadn’t initially realised.

Pro Tips for Reading Academic Articles

One of the options for the supplementary reading is academic articles (also known as critical readings/articles/essays). These are the kinds of essays that incredibly well-educated and fancy university people with monocles write, and as such, they can be quite difficult to read, especially if they are new to you. Because academia is likely new to you in Years 11 and 12, we want to give you some pro tips for reading and understanding these articles, which will help you all the way into university!

When you’re first given your supplementary reading, it can be really daunting. The most important thing to remember here is to take it slow. You will not understand it immediately, and no one is expecting you to. Here are some cheat codes to be able to understand academic articles faster.

1) Read the Whole Thing

Front to back. Including and especially the abstract, introduction and conclusion. You will not understand a word, but maybe some things will jump out; nice phrases or sentences that kinda feel like something. It might be as simple as a statement like: ‘Mina Harker not only escapes the fate of the other women: she is also largely responsible for the capture and ultimate destruction of Dracula.’ (Senf 1982, p. 34). This statement isn’t Senf’s entire point in the article, but it does help me to interpret Mina’s character in Dracula .

While you’re reading, look up words you don’t understand and write their meaning in the margin. Whilst some might suggest doing this on a second read, it really makes no difference, so you might as well get it out of the way here.

2) Re-read the Introduction and Conclusions

And read them closely. Where is the author commenting on previous peoples’ work, and when are they making their own argument? The introduction usually does a few things:

1) Introduces the text

2) Does a literature review wherein the author looks at previous works of academia and considers their merits

3) Introduces their main argument and their supporting arguments

The conclusion does what your conclusions should be doing! It restates the core arguments and supporting arguments, connecting them in a way that leads to a clear interpretation.

Reading the intro and conclusion helps you understand the whole piece because it’s the same arguments without all the extraneous wordiness and verboseness of the actual body paragraphs. It lacks some nuance and the logic behind the arguments, but it signposts what the author is actually saying.

3) Try to Summarise the Author’s Interpretation

After reading the article a couple of times and focusing heavily on the intro and conclusion, discuss with your classmates what they got from the piece. Try to state or write down the core argument of the author and the ways they defend that contention. This is a practice that you will do all the way to university, so it’s worth getting some practice in! Most articles use the same structure you do at school, which is an introduction, three arguments and a conclusion. It’s just that those three arguments are a lot more complex and long-winded. If you’re lucky, the author has used subheadings to separate the arguments.

4) Read More Academic Articles

This is a little bit of a cheat, and definitely more effort, but trust me: it pays off . The best Literature students are well-read. Reading fiction (especially the classics) allows you to see how your text fits into the wider literary world. Things like genres, literary movements, historical ideas and pop culture references can only be gleaned from a text if you have the knowledge of other texts: It’s really hard to watch the later Avengers movies without having seen Ironman ! Same goes for Literature. Academic authors do the same thing - How does Dracula compare to Edgar Allen Poe? How does Alias Grace fit into a wider feminist discourse in the late 90s?

Reading more academic articles gives you a way to practice engaging with academia and to repeatedly expose yourself to the language, forms and ways of thinking that are common in academics. If the best Literature students read loads of fiction, imagine what reading loads of university-level academia could do!

The SAC for Developing Interpretations is a little bit weird. It’s worth 50% of Unit 3, but is split into two parts:

1) Part A and Part B are assessed in separate tasks

Part A is assessed after sustained study of the set text. Students are invited to explore a key idea or value in the text and consider how the text has presented and represented that concern or value. They could, for example, explore the ways a text has presented and represented isolation or power or marriage.

Part B is assessed after students consider the supplementary reading. Students revisit the key concern or value through a passage from the set text and provide an enhanced interpretation informed by the supplementary reading.

2) Part A and Part B are assessed as one task

Students are provided with a passage from the set text and a specific question that relates to one of the text’s key ideas. Students engage with a close reading of the passage based on the key idea, offering an interpretation drawn from the language of the text and from the views and values of the text. They then build on that initial interpretation by engaging with the ideas and/or position they have considered through the supplementary reading.

The most difficult part of the SAC for this new AoS is balancing your interpretation, the textual evidence and the alternative interpretation of the supplementary reading. It is vital that if you are doing Literature this year, that you know your 3.2 text like the back of your hand, and that you practice writing loads and loads. It is also worth trying to make your interpretation incredibly specific so that you can go in-depth into one idea, rather than simply skimming over 3 or 4 big ideas.

Check out our Developing Interpretations SAC Guide: Interpreting Alias Grace blog post for more. Even if you're not studying Alias Grace, this blog post will further clarify what to expect from the Developing Interpretation SAC.

Going Forward

I highly recommend that you begin engaging in interpretative and analytical exercises that you can apply to your everyday life. As a Literature student, there is an assumption that you’re interested in Literature (obviously!), film and visual media, history, current affairs and even visual arts. In the wonderful age of the internet there are unlimited free resources that can support your engagement with these fields in interesting ways. I like to say to my Llit students that analysis should be something you can’t turn off - you should be watching TV and disassembling the ways in which Love Island manufactures drama and keeps you engaged. Why does this advertisement make me want to eat KFC? How has this author made me cry after this character’s death? To develop strong interpretations of literature, you need to be cognizant of the history, construction and theories of literature, and so engaging with as many texts as possible supports your ability to recognise things like genre, historical literary and artistic movements and emotionally manipulative language.

These resources should help you see how skilled literary and media critics analyse fictional worlds.

Death of the Author by Lindsay Ellis (YouTube). Discusses authorial intent and whether we can view ‘the art without the artist’. Ellis also has fantastic interpretations of film and TV.

Nerdwriter (YouTube). Likely one of the best examples of closely analysing text. Check out his video on Shakespeare’s Sonnet 116 , and on how Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders answer questions.

literarydevices.net . Literally my favourite website. A database of every imaginable literary device, how they function, and popular examples. Invaluable for the lit student.

Databases. Go to your school library and ask your librarian what Arts and Humanities databases your school has access to. JSTOR, ProQuest and AusLit, are all databases that host the kinds of articles you should be exposing yourself to. If you are tutoring with Lisa’s Study Guides , then your tutor may be able to help you gather resources from some databases.

Film and Television

Pop Culture Detective (YouTube) especially his videos on the Marvel Universe and the status quo , and misogyny in the Big Bang Theory (CW: discusses sexual assault).

Super Position by David Grueber (Article). Referenced in Pop Culture Detective’s MCU episode and interprets the narrative form of the superhero genre.

The Coraline Bug Theory by Karsten Runquist (YouTube). An excellent example of developing an interpretation of a text and using a minor textual element to explore that interpretation.

CineFix (YouTube) especially their “What’s the Difference” and “Top 10” series. Although presenting film ‘for the masses’, their Top 10 lists constantly consider how an idea (like family or cars ) contribute to the messaging of the film.

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Breaking Down Themes & Key Quotes in The Erratics by Vicki Laveau-Harvie

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This is the table of contents for the book A Guide to Perspective Analysis (v. 1.0). For more details on it (including licensing), click here .

This book is licensed under a Creative Commons by-nc-sa 3.0 license. See the license for more details, but that basically means you can share this book as long as you credit the author (but see below), don't make money from it, and do make it available to everyone else under the same terms.

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Normally, the author and publisher would be credited here. However, the publisher has asked for the customary Creative Commons attribution to the original publisher, authors, title, and book URI to be removed. Additionally, per the publisher's request, their name has been removed in some passages. More information is available on this project's attribution page .

For more information on the source of this book, or why it is available for free, please see the project's home page . You can browse or download additional books there. To download a .zip file containing this book to use offline, simply click here .

A Guide to Perspective Analysis

Table of contents, about the author, acknowledgments, exploring perspectives: a concise guide to analysis, chapter 1: analysis for multiple perspectives.

The Nature of Analysis

Chapter 2: Setting the Stage for Writing

Considering your own subjectivity
Consulting Other Sources
An Overview of the Writing Process

Chapter 3: Developing Assertions: From a Close Reading of Examples

A Close Reading of the Details
From Interpretations to Assertions

Chapter 4: Explanations and Significance: Developing Your Analysis

Explaining Your Perspective
Considering the Broader Significance

Chapter 5: The Analytical Essay: Expressing Your Points of View

Focusing, Developing, and Synthesizing
Creating an Effective Style

Appendix: Frequently Asked Questions About Analysis

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Small stories as a new perspective in narrative and identity analysis

2008, Text & Talk

In this article, we depart from our recent work on ‘small stories’, which we propose as an antidote to canonical narrative studies, and we advance our argumentation by sketching out a five-step analytical operation for tapping into small stories as sites of identity work. These steps grow out of the model of positioning (as put forward by Bamberg 1997, and elaborated in Bamberg 2004a; cf. also Georgakopoulou 2000) that succeeds in navigating between the two extreme ends of fine-grained micro analysis and macro accounts. We will work with positioning in the close analysis of a small story event (as part of a moderated group discussion involving ten-year-old boys in an American school) in which we will show how the teller's announcement of the story, the subsequent withdrawal, and the pre-telling negotiation with the interlocutors are as integral parts of our analysis as the actual telling. We will also demonstrate how viewing story content as a function of interactional engagemen...

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Text & Talk - An Interdisciplinary Journal of Language, Discourse Communication Studies

This article focuses on the inter-relations between storytelling and micro and macro contexts. It explores how narrative activity is shaped by and shapes in unique ways the local context of interaction in a community of practice, an Italian American card-playing club, but also illustrates how the storytelling events that take place within this local community relate to wider social processes. The analysis centers on a number of topically linked narratives to argue that these texts have a variety of functions linked to the roles and relationships negotiated by individuals within the club and to the construction of a collective identity for the community. However, the narrative activities that occur within the club also articulate aspects of the wider social context. It is argued that, in the case analyzed here, local meaning-making activities connect with macro social processes through the negotiation, within the constraints of local practices, of the position and roles of the ethnic...

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Abstract In this paper I propose reframing the study of all narrative construction—big or small—as a goal-oriented value-laden intentional process. Narrative construction of identity serves various purposes at different times. Both situational and trans-situational factors present a host of competing viable alternatives, attractive possibilities, and multiple constraints with regards to identity construction. The individual must navigate these and exercise choice in order to construct a particular manifestation of identity with narrative means.

A l e x a n d r a G e o r g a k o p o u l o u In this chapter I present the main rationale, methods and analytical tools for extending small stories research, a narrative and identities analysis paradigm, to social media. I show what methods can be used and how we can extend the vocabulary of small stories to online contexts. I specifically introduce two key concepts that aid the analysis of stories on social media platforms, namely narrative stancetaking and rescripting. I illustrate these two concepts with reference to my analysis of data from Facebook and YouTube. Finally, I sketch certain avenues for further development of the paradigm, stressing the need for a critical agenda.

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Gaza: World court issues fresh measures for Israel as crisis deepens

The International Court of Justice delivers its ruling in the case of South Africa v. Israel in The Hague in January. (file)

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The International Court of Justice (ICJ) on Thursday issued new provisional measures for Israel as the humanitarian situation in bombarded and besieged Gaza continues to deteriorate.

The world court issued the new order in response to a recent request made by South Africa, which submitted a case in December accusing Israel of genocide in Gaza, based on its continuing offensive following Hamas-led attacks in southern Israel which left almost 1,200 dead and more than 240 taken hostage.

Since then, more than 32,000 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli strikes and attacks, according to figures from Gaza’s health ministry.

Israel to ensure aid deliveries

The ICJ provisional measures state that Israel, “in view of the worsening conditions of life faced by Palestinians in Gaza, in particular the spread of famine and starvation”, shall take “all necessary and effective measures to ensure, without delay, in full cooperation with the United Nations, the unhindered provision at scale by all concerned of urgently needed basic services and humanitarian assistance to Palestinians throughout Gaza”.

The measures outline that the required aid includes food, water, electricity, fuel, shelter, clothing, hygiene and sanitation requirements, as well as medical supplies and medical care.

Orders to open more land crossings

The fresh ICJ order also calls on Israel, as a signatory to the Genocide Convention , to undertake those measures, “ including by increasing the capacity and number of land crossing points and maintaining them open for as long as necessary”.

Additional measures call for Israel to ensure “with immediate effect that its military does not commit acts which constitute a violation of any of the rights of the Palestinians in Gaza as a protected group” under the Genocide Convention.

This includes “by preventing, through any action, the delivery of urgently needed humanitarian assistance”, according to the ICJ.

The court also decided that Israel shall submit a report to the ICJ on all measures within one month.

UN: All Member States must abide by ICJ decisions

UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric reminded journalists at his daily briefing that the ICJ operates independently.

“We do believe as a matter of principle that all Member States abide by decisions of the court,” he said.

The ICJ was established by the UN Charter as the principal judicial organ of the UN.

Read our explainer on the ICJ here .

Share full article

Supported by

David Brooks

What Would You Have Israel Do to Defend Itself?

Several Israeli soldiers, seen from behind.

By David Brooks

Opinion Columnist

There seems to be a broad consensus atop the Democratic Party about the war in Gaza, structured around two propositions. First, after the attacks of Oct. 7, Israel has the right to defend itself and defeat Hamas. Second, the way Israel is doing this is “over the top,” in President Biden’s words. The vast numbers of dead and starving children are gut wrenching, the devastation is overwhelming, and it’s hard not to see it all as indiscriminate.

Which leads to an obvious question: If the current Israeli military approach is inhumane, what’s the alternative? Is there a better military strategy Israel can use to defeat Hamas without a civilian blood bath? In recent weeks, I’ve been talking with security and urban warfare experts and others studying Israel’s approach to the conflict and scouring foreign policy and security journals in search of such ideas.

The thorniest reality that comes up is that this war is like few others because the crucial theater is underground. Before the war, Israelis estimated Hamas had dug around 100 miles of tunnels. Hamas leaders claimed they had a much more expansive network, and it turns out they were telling the truth. The current Israeli estimates range from 350 to about 500 miles of tunnels. The tunnel network, according to Israel, is where Hamas lives, holds hostages, stores weapons, builds missiles and moves from place to place. By some Israeli estimates, building these tunnels cost the Gazan people about a billion dollars, which could have gone to building schools and starting companies.

Hamas built many of its most important military and strategic facilities under hospitals, schools and so on. Its server farm, for example, was built under the offices of the U.N. relief agency in Gaza City, according to the Israeli military.

Daphne Richemond-Barak, the author of “Underground Warfare,” writes in Foreign Policy magazine: “Never in the history of tunnel warfare has a defender been able to spend months in such confined spaces. The digging itself, the innovative ways Hamas has made use of the tunnels and the group’s survival underground for this long have been unprecedented.”

In other words, in this war, Hamas is often underground, the Israelis are often aboveground, and Hamas seeks to position civilians directly between them. As Barry Posen, a professor at the security studies program at M.I.T., has written , Hamas’s strategy could be “described as ‘human camouflage’ and more ruthlessly as ‘human ammunition.’” Hamas’s goal is to maximize the number of Palestinians who die and in that way build international pressure until Israel is forced to end the war before Hamas is wiped out. Hamas’s survival depends on support in the court of international opinion and on making this war as bloody as possible for civilians, until Israel relents.

The Israelis have not found an easy way to clear and destroy the tunnels. Currently, Israel Defense Forces units clear the ground around a tunnel entrance and then, Richemond-Barak writes, they send in robots, drones and dogs to detect explosives and enemy combatants. Then units trained in underground warfare pour in. She writes: “It has become clear that Israel cannot possibly detect or map the entirety of Hamas’s tunnel network. For Israel to persuasively declare victory, in my view, it must destroy at least two-thirds of Hamas’s known underground infrastructure.”

This is slow, dangerous and destructive work. Israel rained destruction down on Gaza, especially early in the war. Because very few buildings can withstand gigantic explosions beneath them, this method involves a lot of wreckage, compounding the damage brought by tens of thousands of airstrikes. In part because of the tunnels, Israel has caused more destruction in Gaza than Syria did in Aleppo and more than Russia did in Mariupol, according to an Associated Press analysis .

John Spencer is the chair of urban warfare studies at the Modern War Institute at West Point, served two tours in Iraq and has made two visits to Gaza during the current war to observe operations there. He told me that Israel has done far more to protect civilians than the United States did in Afghanistan and Iraq. Spencer reports that Israel has warned civilians when and where it is about to begin operations and published an online map showing which areas to leave. It has sent out millions of pamphlets, texts and recorded calls warning civilians of coming operations. It has conducted four-hour daily pauses to allow civilians to leave combat areas. It has dropped speakers that blast out instructions about when to leave and where to go. These measures, Spencer told me, have telegraphed where the I.D.F. is going to move next and “have prolonged the war, to be honest.”

The measures are real, but in addition, Israel has cut off power in Gaza, making it hard for Palestinians to gain access to their phones and information and, most important, the evacuation orders published by Israel. Israel has also destroyed a vast majority of Gaza’s cellphone towers and on occasion bombed civilians in so-called safe areas and safe routes. For civilians, the urban battlefield is unbelievably nightmarish. They are caught between a nation enraged by Oct. 7 and using overwhelming and often reckless force and a terrorist group that has structured the battlefield to maximize the number of innocent dead.

So to step back: What do we make of the current Israeli strategy? Judged purely on a tactical level, there’s a strong argument that the I.D.F. has been remarkably effective against Hamas forces. I’ve learned to be suspicious of precise numbers tossed about in this war, but the I.D.F. claims to have killed over 13,000 of the roughly 30,000 Hamas troops. It has disrupted three-quarters of Hamas’s battalions so that they are no longer effective fighting units. It has also killed two of five brigade commanders and 19 of 24 battalion commanders. As of January, U.S. officials estimated that Israel had damaged or made inoperable 20 to 40 percent of the tunnels. Many Israelis believe the aggressive onslaught has begun to restore Israel’s deterrent power. (Readers should know that I have a son who served in the I.D.F. from 2014 to 2016; he’s been back home in the States since then.)

But on a larger political and strategic level, you’d have to conclude that the Israeli strategy has real problems. Global public opinion is moving decisively against Israel. The key shift is in Washington. Historically pro-Israeli Democrats like Biden and Senator Chuck Schumer are now pounding the current Israeli government with criticism. Biden wants Israel to call off its invasion of the final Hamas strongholds in the south. Israel is now risking a rupture with its closest ally and its only reliable friend on the U.N. Security Council. If Israel is going to defend itself from Iran, it needs strong alliances, and Israel is steadily losing those friends. Furthermore, Israeli tactics may be reducing Gaza to an ungovernable hellscape that will require further Israeli occupation and produce more terrorist groups for years.

Hamas’s strategy is pure evil, but it is based on an understanding of how the events on the ground will play out in the political world. The key weakness of the Israeli strategy has always been that it is aimed at defeating Hamas militarily without addressing Palestinian grievances and without paying enough attention to the wider consequences. As the leaders of Hamas watch Washington grow more critical of Jerusalem, they must know their strategy is working.

So we’re back to the original question: Is there a way to defeat Hamas with far fewer civilian deaths? Is there a way to fight the war that won’t leave Israel isolated?

One alternative strategy is that Israel should conduct a much more limited campaign. Fight Hamas, but with less intensity. To some degree, Israel has already made this adjustment. In January, Israel announced it was shifting to a smaller, more surgical strategy; U.S. officials estimated at the time that Israel had reduced the number of Israeli troops in northern Gaza to fewer than half of the 50,000 who were there in December.

The first problem with going further in this direction is that Israel may not be left with enough force to defeat Hamas. Even by Israel’s figures, most Hamas fighters are still out there. Will surgical operations be enough to defeat an enemy of this size? A similar strategy followed by America in Afghanistan doesn’t exactly inspire confidence.

A second problem is that the light footprint approach leaves power vacuums. This allows Hamas units to reconstitute themselves in areas Israel has already taken. As the United States learned in Iraq, if troop levels get too low, the horrors of war turn into the horrors of anarchy.

Another alternative strategy is targeted assassinations. Instead of continuing with a massive invasion, just focus on the Hamas fighters responsible for the Oct. 7 attack, the way Israel took down the terrorists who perpetrated the attack on Israeli Olympians in Munich in 1972.

The difference is that the attack on Israelis at Munich was a small-scale terrorist assault. Oct. 7 was a comprehensive invasion by an opposing army. Trying to assassinate perpetrators of that number would not look all that different from the current military approach. As Raphael Cohen, the director of the strategy and doctrine program at the RAND Corporation, notes : “In practical terms, killing or capturing those responsible for Oct. 7 means either thousands or potentially tens of thousands of airstrikes or raids dispersed throughout the Gaza Strip. Raids conducted on that scale are no longer a limited, targeted operation. It’s a full-blown war.”

Furthermore, Hamas’s fighters are hard to find, even the most notorious leaders. It took a decade for the United States to find Osama bin Laden, and Israel hasn’t had great success with eliminating key Hamas figures. In recent years, Israel tried to kill Mohammed Deif, the commander of Hamas’s military wing, seven times , without success.

The political costs of this kind of strategy might be even worse than the political costs of the current effort. Turkey, a Hamas supporter, has made it especially clear that Israel would pay a very heavy price if it went after Hamas leaders there.

A third alternative is a counterinsurgency strategy, of the kind that the United States used during the surge in Iraq. This is a less intense approach than the kind of massive invasion we’ve seen and would focus on going after insurgent cells and rebuilding the destroyed areas to build trust with the local population. The problem is that this works only after you’ve defeated the old regime and have a new host government you can work with. Israel is still trying to defeat the remaining Hamas battalions in places like Rafah. This kind of counterinsurgency approach would be an amendment to the current Israeli strategy, not a replacement.

Critics of the counterinsurgency approach point out that Gaza is not Iraq. If Israel tried to clear, hold and build new secure communities in classic counterinsurgency fashion, those new communities wouldn’t look like safe zones to the Palestinians. They would look like detention camps. Furthermore, if Israel settles on this strategy, it had better be prepared for a long war. One study of 71 counterinsurgency campaigns found that the median length of those conflicts was 10 years. Finally, the case for a full counterinsurgency approach would be stronger if that strategy had led to American victories in Afghanistan and Iraq, which it did not.

A fourth alternative is that Israel should just stop. It should settle for what it has achieved and not finish the job by invading Rafah and the southern areas of Gaza, or it should send in just small strike teams.

This is now the official Biden position. The national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, has argued that Israel can destroy Hamas in Gaza without a large invasion but “ by other means ” (which he did not elaborate on). The United States has asked Israel to send a delegation to Washington to discuss alternative Rafah strategies, which is good. The problem is that, first, there seems to be a budding disagreement over how much of Hamas needs to be destroyed to declare victory and, second, the I.D.F. estimates that there are 5,000 to 8,000 Hamas fighters in Rafah. Defeating an army that size would take thousands of airstrikes and raids. If you try to shrink the incursion, the math just doesn’t add up. As an Israeli war cabinet member, Benny Gantz, reportedly told U.S. officials, “Finishing the war without demilitarizing Rafah is like sending in firefighters to put out 80 percent of a fire.”

If this war ends with a large chunk of Hamas in place, it would be a long-term disaster for the region. Victorious, Hamas would dominate whatever government was formed to govern Gaza. Hamas would rebuild its military to continue its efforts to exterminate the Jewish state, delivering on its promise to launch more and more attacks like that of Oct. 7. Israel would have to impose an even more severe blockade than the one that it imposed before, this time to keep out the steel, concrete and other materials that Hamas uses to build tunnels and munitions, but that Gazans would need to rebuild their homes.

If Hamas survives this war intact, it would be harder for the global community to invest in rebuilding Gaza. It would be impossible to begin a peace process. As the veteran Middle East observers Robert Satloff and Dennis Ross wrote in American Purpose, “Any talk of a postwar political process is meaningless without Israel battlefield success: There can be no serious discussion of a two-state solution or any other political objective with Hamas either still governing Gaza or commanding a coherent military force.”

So where are we? I’m left with the tragic conclusion that there is no magical alternative military strategy. As Cohen wrote in Foreign Policy: “If the international community wants Israel to change strategies in Gaza, then it should offer a viable alternative strategy to Israel’s announced goal of destroying Hamas in the strip. And right now, that alternate strategy simply does not exist.”

The lack of viable alternatives leaves me with the further conclusion that Israel must ultimately confront Hamas leaders and forces in Rafah rather than leave it as a Hamas beachhead. For now, a cease-fire may be in the offing in Gaza, which is crucial for the release of more hostages.

Israel can use that time to put in place the humanitarian relief plan that Israeli security officials are now, at long last, proposing (but that the country’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has not agreed to so far). Israel would also have to undertake a full-scale civilian evacuation of Rafah before any military operation and then try to take out as much of Hamas as possible with as few civilian casualties as possible. Given the horrors of this kind of tunnel-based urban warfare, this will be a painful time and painfully difficult. But absent some new alternative strategy, Biden is wrong to stop Israel from confronting the Hamas threat in southern Gaza.

Finally, like pretty much every expert I consulted, I’m also left with the conclusion that Israel has to completely rethink and change the humanitarian and political side of this operation. Israel needs to supplement its military strategy with an equally powerful Palestinian welfare strategy.

Israel’s core problems today are not mostly the fault of the I.D.F. or its self-defense strategy. Israel’s core problems flow from the growing callousness with which many of its people have viewed the Palestinians over the past decades, magnified exponentially by the trauma it has just suffered. Today, an emotionally shattered Israeli people see through the prism of Oct. 7. They feel existentially insecure, facing enemies on seven fronts — Gaza, West Bank, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Yemen and Iran. As Ross has noted , many often don’t see a distinction between Hamas and the Palestinians. Over 80 percent of West Bank Palestinians told pollsters they supported the Oct. 7 attack.

As the columnist Anshel Pfeffer wrote in the Israeli paper Haaretz, “The very idea that Israel needed to take any responsibility whatsoever for the place from which those who had murdered, raped and pillaged had emerged was seen as a moral abomination.”

Pfeffer continued that because of this attitude, “the government’s policy on humanitarian supplies to Gaza is a combination of vengeance, ignorance and incompetence.” He quoted unnamed I.D.F. officials who acknowledged that of course Israel is responsible for the welfare of the people in the area it controls but that the civilian leaders refuse to confront this.

On occasions when Israel has responded to world pressure and shifted policy, it has done so in secret, with no discussion in the cabinet.

An officer whose duties specifically include addressing the needs of civilians told Pfeffer that he didn’t have much to do except for some odd jobs.

Israel is failing to lay the groundwork for some sort of better Palestinian future — to its own detriment. The security experts I spoke with acknowledge that providing humanitarian aid will be hard. As Cohen told me: “If the Israeli military takes over distributing humanitarian aid to Gaza, they will likely lose soldiers in the process. And so Israelis are asking why should their boys die providing aid to someone who wants to kill them. So the United States needs to convince Israel that this is the morally and strategically right thing to do.”

For her book “How Terrorism Ends,” the Carnegie Mellon scholar Audrey Kurth Cronin looked at about 460 terrorist groups to investigate how they were defeated. Trying to beat them with military force alone rarely works. The root causes have to be addressed. As the retired general David Petraeus reminded his audience recently at the New Orleans Book Festival, “Over time, hearts and minds still matter.”

Israel also has to offer the world a vision for Gaza’s recovery, and it has to do it right now. Ross argues that after the war is over, the core logic of the peace has to be demilitarization in exchange for reconstruction. In an essay in Foreign Affairs, he sketches out a comprehensive rebuilding effort, bringing in nations and agencies from all over the world, so Gaza doesn’t become a failed state or remain under Hamas control.

Is any of this realistic given the vicious enmity now ripping through the region? Well, many peace breakthroughs of the past decades happened after one side suffered a crushing defeat. Egypt established ties with Israel after it was thoroughly defeated in the Yom Kippur War. When Israel attacked Hezbollah in southern Lebanon in 2006, the world was outraged. But after the fighting stopped, some Lebanese concluded that Hezbollah had dragged them into a bloody, unnecessary conflict. The Hezbollah leader, Hassan Nasrallah, was forced to acknowledge his error, saying he didn’t know Israel would react so violently. The Lebanese border stabilized. Israel’s over-the-top responses have sometimes served as effective deterrents and prevented further bloodshed.

Israel and the Palestinians have both just suffered shattering defeats. Maybe in the next few years they will do some difficult rethinking, and a new vision of the future will come into view. But that can happen only after Hamas is fully defeated as a military and governing force.

The Times is committed to publishing a diversity of letters to the editor. We’d like to hear what you think about this or any of our articles. Here are some tips . And here’s our email: [email protected] .

Follow The New York Times Opinion section on Facebook , Instagram , TikTok , WhatsApp , X and Threads .

David Brooks has been a columnist with The Times since 2003. He is the author, most recently, of “How to Know a Person: The Art of Seeing Others Deeply and Being Deeply Seen.” @ nytdavidbrooks

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1.1: The Nature of Analysis

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Learning Objectives

Define analysis .
Show how we use analysis in everyday situations and in academic writing and discussion.
Understand the components of analysis ( assertions, examples, explanations, significance ), and explain why each is a necessary part of any analysis.
Show how too much attention to one particular component of analysis makes an essay seem like a different type of writing.

In actuality, Jeff already possesses the ability to write an analytical essay. He would have realized this if he had considered the discussions and activities he engaged in during the previous week. In planning a date, and in thinking of the best way to convince his parents to send him more money, Jeff had to carefully evaluate a variety of situations to develop a point of view that he then had to justify and show why it mattered. In each of these instances, he made plenty of assertions , statements which present points of view; used examples , specific passages, scenes, events, or items which inspire these points of view; gave explanations , statements which reveal how the examples support and/or complicate the assertions; and provided significance , statements which reveal the importance of the analysis to our personal and/or cultural concerns.

Analysis is a way of understanding a subject by using each of these elements, expressing an opinion (making assertions), supporting that opinion (including examples), justifying that opinion (explaining the examples), and showing why the opinion matters (extending the significance). The second letter in the second component (examples) helps create the acronym AXES , which is the plural form of both axe and axis . This acronym provides a way not only to remember the four components but also to visualize them working together. Like an axe, analysis allows us to “chop” our subjects into their essential components so that we can examine the pieces more thoroughly, and, like an axis, analysis inspires insights that become the new reference points around which we rearrange these pieces.

Our revels now are ended. These, our actors,

As I foretold you, were all spirits and

Are melted into air; into thin air.

And, like the baseless fabric of this vision

The cloud capped towers, the great globe itself,

Yea, all which it inherit, shall dissolve,

And like this insubstantial pageant faded,

Leave not a rack behind. We are such stuff

As dreams are made on, and our little life

Is rounded with a sleep

(Act IV, Scene 1: 148-57).

Response 1: Review (assertion emphasis)

Response 2: Summary (example emphasis)

Response 3: Description (explanation emphasis)

Response 4: Tangent (significance emphasis)

Response 5: Analysis (attention to each aspect)

Exercise \(\PageIndex{1}\)

Key takeaways

We use analysis many times throughout the day, especially when trying to persuade others to see our points of view.
Analysis consists of four main components: assertions (our points of view), examples (evidence that supports these points of view), explanations (justifications of these points of view), and significance (discussions of why these points of view matter).
These components need to be present for an effective analysis, but not in a strictly formulaic manner; they can appear throughout an essay to various degrees and in various orders.

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3a. Synthesizing Multiple Perspectives

What is synthesis?

“Make it work!”

How do I synthesize?

Synthesis: Example Paragraphs

From: “The Persistent Myth of the Narcissistic Millennial” by Brooke Lea Foster for The Atlantic

From: “Working Out the Meaning of ‘Meaningful’ Work” by Katherine Moos for Vitae

Worksheet – Synthesis Table

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Exploring Perspectives: A Concise Guide to Analysis

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Table of Contents

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How to Write an Analysis Essay: Examples + Writing Guide

❓ What Is an Analytical Essay?

📑 Analytical Essay Outline

🔗 References

🤔 Analytical Essay: Getting Started

Analysis Essay: Introduction

Analysis Essay: Body

Analysis Essay Conclusion

📔 Choosing a Title for Your Analysis Essay

Analysis Essay Topics

💁 Writing Your Analytical Essay Introduction

Example of an Analytical Essay Introduction

🏋 Writing Your Analytical Essay Body

Example of an Analytical Essay Body

🏁 Writing Your Analytical Essay Conclusion

Example of an Analytical Essay Conclusion

✏️ Analysis Essay FAQ

Chapter 1 Analysis for Multiple Perspectives

Response 1: Review (assertion emphasis)

Response 2: Summary (example emphasis)

Response 3: Description (explanation emphasis)

Response 4: Tangent (significance emphasis)

Response 5: Analysis (attention to each aspect)

Key Takeaways

How To Write a Critical Perspective Essay

Planning your critical perspective essay

Writing your Critical Perspective Essay

Some Key phrases for a critical perspective essay

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