Course: Writing through LiteratureDecide on a focus Literary Text (A literary text is a piece of written material, such as a book or poem, that has the. purpose of telling a story or entertaining, as

Literary Analysis Outline

Introductory Statement: Your chance to get the reader’s attention and display your awareness of the world around you.

Transitional Ideas: Connect your opening idea to the text (two + sentences).

Identify Author and Title: As an additional transition sentence.

Basic Background of Text: One to two sentences

Thesis Statement: Remember, this has to take a position about the text that can be supported by events in the text.

Topic Sentence: Identifies focus of the paragraph; should clearly connect to / develop / support the thesis statement.

Examples from the Text: This can take the form of two to three short examples or one extended example. Introduce Example:

Example: Use quotations from the text or briefly paraphrase an event. Do not just summarize the plot. Avoid excessively long quotations unless absolutely necessary.

Commentary: Follow example with explanation of its connection to the topic sentence/thesis.

Repeat for each example/quotation used

Closing Sentence: “Clincher” to end this paragraph and wrap-up the idea.

Topic Sentence: Establish that you have reached the end of the essay, perhaps by echoing the idea of the thesis statement. Do not use trite expressions like “in conclusion” or “to sum up.”

Reflect on Your Ideas: Make it clear to the reader why your paper was important. Stress what was unique about your interpretation. Give the reader something to think about that connects to the world around.

Closing Statement: Wrap-up this discussion of your topic. Let the reader know the essay is at an end, and leave him or her with something to think about.