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Literary Analysis
Assignment: You will write a literary analysis based off of ONE of the prompts below. Please include which number prompt you are answering in your header.
*When writing a literary analysis, you are NOT summarizing and giving a report about the story. Instead, you are to analyze and create an argument about the author’s purpose for writing the story.
-Things to ponder:
– why did the author write this
– what argument am I making
– what historical relevance does this hold
– where is there textual evidence to support the argument I’m making
– are there symbols, theme, metaphors, similes, characters, etc that are
supporting the argument I’m making as well as the author’s purpose
Prompts (choose ONE – label the number in the header on your paper):
1. “The Yellow Wallpaper” (choose one):
◦ a. Look at “The Yellow Wallpaper’s” conclusion. How is the ending of the story to be understood? Why did the author cut it at that specific moment? Brainstorm these questions and try to figure out what would be the best interpretation. Don’t forget to support your opinion with fair arguments.
◦ b. Explore different literary devices that are used to highlight the issue of depression in “The Yellow Wallpaper”. Analyze what the narrator writes about her state and find the literary devices that Gilman uses to relate to it. For instance, repetition points out the confusion on the one hand and hopelessness on the other.
2. “This Is What It Means to Say Phoenix, AZ” (Alexie):
• How does setting affect or contribute to the meaning of the story?
3. “The Lesson” (Bambara):
• Write an essay in which you argue if “The Lesson” ends optimistically and why or why not.
4. “The Lottery” (Jackson):
• The role of traditions. Think why traditions and customs play an important role in a human’s life and how they are used within this story. What are some benefits or downfalls of tradition? Prove your point of view using quotes from the novel.
5. “A Rose for Emily” (Faulkner):
• Even though there is a lot of foreshadowing in William Faulkner’s “Rose for Emily,” how does he manage to keep the reader in suspense, maybe even surprised at the ending?
◦ consider whose point of view the story is being told from (it is an unusual point of view); is it a reliable narrator? why or why not?
◦ thinking about that narrator again, how does it affect the plot (order of events) in the story, and is it done logically/reasonably?
Outline for this essay (this is a good guideline to follow – do not use ‘I, you, us, we, our’):
Introduction:
General Statement: give a general sentence about the topics to be discussed in this essay but do not start talking about the story or the author yet
Background/Context (what is the time frame, what historical significance is happening, etc)
Introduce the title of the story and the author’s full name – give a brief 1-2 sentence summary of the story
Thesis: go back to the prompt you chose and answer it – this should be an argumentative statement
Body Paragraphs (1-3):
Topic Sentence: give a sentence that directly connects to a point that you are making from your thesis statement
Claims/Arguments: give some reasons/arguments to support the thesis
Evidence: support your arguments with a quote from the story
Analysis: what is this quote saying, what’s the deeper meaning, any why does it matter in connection to the bigger picture/message that the author is trying to make?
Conclusion:
Re-state the main points
Drive home the argument being made
How is this still relevant today?
Requirements to be eligible for an A or B paper:
• 3 ½ – 4 pages
• Arguable Thesis
• MLA formatted
• Use textual evidence (direct quotes) in each body paragraph to support your thesis
• Works Cited page (you need to include the story you are analyzing
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