The short story: The Story of an Hour
Key Elements of a Literary Analysis Essay
1.
Introduction: This is where you introduce the book or story you’re analyzing and give a brief overview of what you’ll talk about.
2.
Thesis Statement: Your thesis statement is like the main idea of your essay. It tells the reader what your analysis will be about.
3.
Body Paragraphs: Each body paragraph focuses on one aspect of your analysis, like a character, theme, or symbol. You’ll explain your ideas and use evidence from the text to support them.
4.
Evidence: These are quotes or examples from the book that support your analysis. It’s like proof that what you’re saying is true.
5.
Analysis: This is where you explain what the evidence means and how it supports your thesis. You’ll dig deeper into the text to show why it’s important.
6.
Conclusion: In the conclusion, you’ll wrap up your essay by restating your thesis and summarizing your main points. You might also talk about why your analysis is important or what it adds to our understanding of the book.
With this paper, you will analyze a short story of your choice and divulge the hidden meaning(s) found in the text.
Address the following prompt:
What is the message of the story you chose? What techniques or strategies does the writer use to deliver the message? Please use the worksheet you completed in Learning Activity #1 to help you determine the techniques.
For example, did the author use foreshadowing, figurative language, suspense, etc. to help deliver the message? Did the author use characterization to help deliver the message? Did the author use the sequence of events to deliver the message?
When writing this paper, you need to focus on one or two strategies. The main purpose of this paper is the determine whether you can figure out the story’s central message and find which methods the author used to deliver that message.
Paper Details:
· At least 500 words but no more than 750
· MLA formatted
· In-text citations from the story.
