English 1102 Literary Analysis Essay

In an essay of at least 1500 words, argue for a narrowly focused interpretation of Lorraine Hansberry's A Raisin in the Sun.  In addition to the primary source, use at least four recent essays from scholarly sources other than web sites.  (You may use whatever additional sources, including web sites, you choose as long as you have four other scholarly sources.) Be certain to use M.L.A. style citation.

Specifications

1) At least 1500 of your own words (not including any quoted material or citations)

2) At least four sources gathered from GALILEO

3) Proper MLA documentation throughout

4) Language use appropriate for an academic and professional audience

5) Double-spaced 12 point Times New Roman font

6) Grading standards sheet completed by student is included in the posted file

 Keys to success

1) As with other assignments, be sure to fully address the requirements.
2) Create an interesting title narrowly related to the thesis of the paper.
3) Make sure the thesis of the paper is clear.
4) Do not summarize the plot.  Instead, analyze the book (i.e., take it apart to see how  the pieces fit together).

5) When reading works of literature, think about how various aspects such as style, tone, diction, symbolism, character development, and point of view develop the overall theme.
6) Be sure to use prose appropriate for an academic and professional audience that accords with the minimum standards sheet linked to the syllabus. 

7) In M.L.A. style, use the present tense to write about someone else's writing or a work of literature.

8) Please recall from the research paper assignment that all sources do not possess equal credibility. In general, web sites are not peer-reviewed or scholarly. If you are not sure, check with me.

Purpose

The primary purpose of a literary paper is to further hone your analytical, evaluative, research, and close reading skills.  In addition, however, you will exercise critical thinking to a profound degree and learn something about yourself and the human condition.

Audience

The audience for this paper is a group of educated people interested in how you interpret and evaluate ideas about literature and culture.  Remember, you will be presenting your paper to your classmates at the end of the semester.

Steps in the Process

Perhaps more so than in many other kinds of writing, writing about literature is a process of discovery.  Thus a good literary paper is one that has gone through several drafts; writers revise over and over again, refining their thesis and developing their ideas.  In general, below is the process I follow in writing a literary paper:

1) Read the book with a pencil so you can write in the margins.

2) Read ahead and participate in class discussions.

2) Write a journal entry, and try to discover why what you marked in your reading seems important.

3) Reread, and you will find a great deal of additional material to use to develop your essay.

4) Try to develop a tentative thesis. Remember that you are essentially writing an argument about what something might mean.

5) Research, and try to find some peer-reviewed or scholarly sources to give you an idea about what conversation is going on about your topic.  Remember, however, to use primarily examples from the text to develop your argument, not what other people claim in their interpretations.

6) Write a draft.

7) Refine the thesis and revise the paper. In the conclusion of your draft, you may find that you have a much better thesis--put it in the introduction and pull the threads of your new argument through the paper.

8) Revise as many times as you need to in order to refine and develop your ideas. The best papers will likely have gone through several drafts.

Notice that one of the steps is not surfing the web to see what other people have written. I would like to see & hear your original, well-developed thoughts, not the musings of others.