Literary Analysis Writing
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what is a literary analysis essay
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an academic essay that presents the reader with the writer's in-depth study and analysis of a piece of literature
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what are the audience, purpose, style and tone when writing a literary analysis essay
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audience=teachers and peers purpose=to analyze, to inform, to explain style and tone=formal, academic, analytical, authoritative, direct
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what is the "candy wrapper" model for writing
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An effective way to organize and structure your ideas and information to most effectively present your ideas
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how does the "candy wrapper" model work/what are its parts
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Top: introduction: goes from broad (beyond the novel) to specific; start beyond the novel, introduction to the novel and author, preview of main points, then thesis statement Middle: evidence and quotes; where body paragraphs are found End: goes from specific to broad; first restate thesis, then review main points, finally broad (beyond the book, should relate to first sentence of essay)
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what is the rationale for learning/teaching the 5 paragraph model for writing
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"traditional," organized, has introduction paragraph, three body paragraphs, and concluding paragraph
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how should you decide on the number of body paragraphs for your essay
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based on what makes sense for your information; enough to completely support your thesis; take into account the audience; enough to fully develop your ideas
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in what tense is a literary analysis essay written
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Present tense (often called literary present)
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what are the exceptions for the tense a literary analysis is written in
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-when a direct quotation contains past tense -when something that is referenced in the novel happened prior to the action of the story -when the historical context of the setting, author's life, etc. are being described
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which words or types of words should you avoid when writing a literary analysis
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-Words that express your own opinion or feelings -Slang - First person pronouns such as --I --me --my --we --us --our --you --ourselves --yourselves
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what words can you use instead (of the words you should avoid when writing a literary analysis)
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-elevated, formal version of your everyday vocabulary -one -the reader -readers -people -humans
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list and explain what should be included in the introduction of a literary analysis essay and in what order
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-general introduction -engage your audience in your topic -go from broad to specific (think of the "candy wrapper" model) -orient your reader by introducing your novel and author -preview your evidence -present the thesis statement in the final sentence of the paragraph
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what is a thesis statement
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-a single, declarative sentence at the end of your first paragraph -focused on a particular analytical claim for which you are going to provide evidence -able to answer not only the question of What? but also How? and/or Why? -clear and unambiguous -relative to the specific focus of your entire paper
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where is the thesis statement found in a literary analysis essay
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The last sentence of the introductory paragraph (1st paragraph)
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what is the thesis statement's purpose
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-to capture what you think and what you have to say about your topic -to provide direction for your whole paper
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how will your body paragraphs relate to your thesis statement
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The body paragraphs will contain evidence and specific examples that support your thesis statement
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how does one know when to end a paragraph and begin another
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when you have said all the information needed on that particular support
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where should you include transitions
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-between paragraphs -wishing paragraphs
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what should be included in the conclusion of a literary analysis essay
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-summary of essay -broad statements
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what should not be included in the concluding paragraph
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-evidence (such as quotations, statistics, etc.) -new ideas
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what should your conclusion do
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-leave an impression on the reader -stress the importance of the thesis statement -reiterate the main ideas of the essay -give the essay a sense of completeness -go from specific to broad -be of an equal lengthy and weight of your introductory paragraph
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why is the conclusion important
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Because it is the last thing that the reader reads, therefore what the reader remembers the most
