What is a Literary Analysis Essay?
In essay writing, a literary analysis essay is the one that focuses on the detailed analysis of a piece of literature work.
A literary analysis essay is used to explain the author's reasons for writing a story with a specific theme. It can also be used to examine the characters, themes, literary devices, figurative language, and settings in the story.
This type of essay encourages students to think about why the author wrote the book or short story. The author has made choices for a reason, so it's important to think about what those reasons might be.
You will be breaking the essay down into various parts. This will help you understand the idea better. The essay should explain the author's choices and point of view, as well as your answers and personal analysis.
Types of Literary Analysis Essay
Following are the major types of a literary analysis essay.
- Close Reading - Close reading is a way to read and analyze something in depth. You don't need to be creative for a close reading essay. Or you should not know a lot about the topic still, you can write this essay.
- Theoretical - In this type of essay, you will use theories to back up your points about the topic.
- Historical - This type of essay is about history. Sometimes you need to write about history to explain what happened.
- Applied - This type of essay involves analyzing a specific issue from a practical perspective.
Comparative - In comparative writing, you compare two or more alternatives. - Comparative - In comparative writing, you compare two or more alternatives.
What is the Purpose of Literary Analysis Essay?
A literary analysis essay helps students understand the important elements of fiction. It is a way to present the details and analysis of a specific piece of literature.
To understand a literary analysis essay, first, it is advised to learn about the fundamentals of literature.
Following are some of the most prominent literature elements:
- Plot
The plot of a story is important. It tells you how the story unfolds. It also talks about the events that happen in the story.
Some authors tell stories using flashbacks or future events to make them more interesting. While you are writing a literary analysis essay, you need to pay attention to this point.
- Point of View
In literature, it is important to have a point of view. This is the perspective of the story that the author has chosen. This part of the essay tries to explain why the author made this choice.
- Setting
The setting in a story highlights the time and place where the characters are living and working.
Just like characters, settings are also important to analyze. As the author expresses his thoughts about a character, they might also have opinions about places that can be provocative.
- Characters
They are important in any story. They help the story to develop. You need to think about how the characters change and how they are shown in the story.
- Imagery
The author uses imagery to create a picture in the reader's mind. This is important because it helps the reader understand the story better. In your literary analysis essay, you should discuss how the imagery affects the story, its development, and the characters.
- Symbolism
It is another way writers can communicate ideas in their stories. It is when an object represents something more than itself. This might be done through words, but it can also be communicated through different means.
- Irony
It is a powerful tool in writing that can create a lasting impression on readers. It is the unexpected opposite of what is expected or desired by characters and readers.
- Foreshadowing
The author often provides hints about the future or what might happen through their descriptions. This is called foreshadowing. The writer gives readers hints about what to expect from the characters or the story’s plot. Present your point of view and analysis of such an incident to impress your teacher.
Now, after discussing the elements of literature, let us move to the writing process of a literary analysis essay.
How to Write a Literary Analysis Essay
How do you start a literary analysis essay? The answer is quite simple. You need to follow the guidelines given below to write a successful essay. It is a 5 paragraph essay like any other and you can write it easily by following the following steps.
- Literary Analysis Essay Introduction
The essay introduction is meant to provide a context for readers and give them some background information on the topic.
In order to do that, you need to introduce the author of the literary work and its title. The introduction should be effective in grabbing the reader's attention so that they want to continue reading.
- Literary Analysis Essay Body
When writing the body paragraphs of a literary analysis, it is important to create a summary of the story. Additionally, you should develop your own ideas and observations about the text and aim to write around thousand words.
When writing the body section of your essay, be sure to base your observations on evidence and use your own unique writing style.
The body of your essay should be divided into three paragraphs. Each paragraph should have one strong argument and use facts related to the thesis statement. When writing each paragraph, start with a topic sentence and use transition words when moving to the next paragraph.
- Literary Analysis Essay Conclusion
In conclusion, the author effectively employs a variety of literary texts to develop the characters and advance the plot. The use of symbolism and metaphor is particularly effective in highlighting the emotional journey. Overall, a conclusion must be well-written.
This section will not provide any new information. It will just restate the main points that you made earlier. You should also provide a short description of your arguments and end with your supporting details.
Here is an outline of a literary analysis essay for your better understanding.
Literary Analysis Essay Examples
If you do not have experience in writing essays, it will be difficult to write a good essay. In that case, it is important to research the topic before narrating. There are two important things to remember when writing a literary analysis essay.
- First, make sure you pick a topic you're interested in. This will help keep your reader's attention and answer the question you are dealing with in your essay.
- Second, the topic should also reflect the main idea of your essay and express your point of view.
Now for your understanding, let us take some examples of a literary analysis essay. Following are some among the list.
Literary Analysis Essay Topics
Many literary analysis essays are based on artistic works like books, movies, and paintings. However, most students choose to write about novels and books.
Below listed are some amazing topics of literary analysis essay:
- Discuss Ajax as a tragic hero.
- The Judgement of Paris: Analyze the Reasons and their Consequences.
- Describe the Oedipus complex and Electra complex in relation to their respective myths.
- Betrayal is a common theme of Shakespearean tragedies. Discuss
- Analyze the theme of identity crisis in The Great Gatsby.
- Analyze the writing style of Emily Dickinson.
- Role of the Three Witches in flaming Macbeth’s ambition.
- Analyze the themes of the Play Antigone,
- Oedipus Rex: A Doomed Son or a Conqueror?
- The use of multiple narrative voices in Bleak House
- How does the family structure influence youth crime?
- The wrongs of the modern society in Fight Club by Palahniuk
- Identify and analyze the traits of history in T.S Eliot’s ‘Gerontion’.
- Analyze the purpose of the play.
- The importance of memory in 1984
After reading this now, the theme of a literary analysis essay must be clear in your mind. As a reader, you have to examine the narrative voice of an author what actually he wants to say.
The process of writing a literary analysis essay can help you better understand the piece that you are reading. If this sounds like something that you wouldn't be able to try your hand at, reach out to SharkPapers.com for assistance. We have expert essay writers who can help you craft an outstanding paper on any topic.
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