Student Writing Handbook Fifth+Edition

Literary Analyses / 249

Revise your statement of purpose (as written in Step 1) so that you have a well-written
topic or thesis sentence.

STEP 4: Prewriting—Doing Research

If your assignment requires outside sources, use the statement of purpose to guide your
reading. Take careful notes so that you can document accurately. Be certain to enclose
any words not your own in quotation marks. Such precautions will help you avoid pla-
giarism in your final work. [See plagiarism in the Glossary. Also see Research Paper, Pré-
cis, and Paraphrase (chapters 34, 33, and 32, respectively) for additional help as needed.]

STEP 5: Writing—Following the Plan

Now you are ready to write the first draft of your analysis. Begin with an introduc-
tory statement or an introductory paragraph. Include in the introductory segment
the following specifics:

•    title of the work

•    author’s name

•    specific kind of work within the genre [see the list of Characteristics earlier in

this section]

•    perhaps an indication of the work’s importance within the literary world or

within the author’s career

Next, include the topic or thesis sentence you developed in Step 3.

Develop the subtopics in your paragraph or the supporting body paragraphs in your
full-length paper. As you do, try to include the following content:

•    sufficient examples to clarify your ideas

•    supporting details taken from the work, either quoted or paraphrased

•    specific supporting detail, if necessary, from outside sources, either quoted or

paraphrased and accurately documented

•    transitions that connect one supporting idea with another and one main idea

with another [see transition in the Glossary]

Finally, add a conclusion that refers to your topic or thesis statement and makes some
general statement about the work as it represents the genre. Limit the general state-
ment, of course, to only those matters discussed in your paragraph or longer paper.

STEP 6: Revising—Improving the Content

As you read your draft, use these questions to pinpoint areas of possible weakness:

•    Have I included the necessary information in the introduction?

•    Does the introduction give the reader a reason for reading the analysis?