Introduction
The process of studying does not require only the passive perception of information. Actually, it is supposed to instruct people how to learn and originate their ideas throughout their life. The world is ruled by people who think critically and do not blindly follow by others’ arguments. Basing on this fact, learning and developing analytical skills is one of the greatest tasks for students. For this purpose, they are giving different types of assignments that include writing textual analysis and lots of others. Such assignments refer to all the variety of subjects including both technical and humanitarian like English literature.
A textual analysis essay is one of the most common assignments students are given to develop their skills in analyzing information. However, if you are a student, you probably can claim of having completed your essay with great difficulty. In this article, you can find clear explanations and instructions that will help you to cope with your problem.
Textual Analysis Essay Structure
You probably know that each creation should have a defined structure. Writing a textual analysis is not an exception. Making an outline and understanding which parts your essay will consist helps you to make the process of accomplishing your assignment faster. It is an extremely important step that requires your time to think about it and accomplish, but it allows making the process of writing smoother and the paper more readable.
A literary, textual analysis essay is a kind of composition that should be written according to the strict scheme. It should involve the introduction part, the main body, and the conclusion. Following this simple scheme and knowing what to include in each part will benefit you with creating a perfect essay.
The introduction part
The introduction is the first paragraph in your textual analysis and its main goal is to attract the reader’s attention and make him involved in the content. While writing a textual analysis, you are probably wondering how to start in a proper way to make your paper absolutely interesting to the audience. It is not a secret that the beginning is the main hook that gives the reader a general view of the whole essay.
There are different ways for beginning an introductory paragraph. You can start with a question or add a quote from the book you are discussing. This part of the textual analysis is supposed to state a definite position of the author and the main themes of the whole paper. In other words, your readers should clearly see what you are going to talk about by exploring your thesis statement. Additionally, you are supposed to explain why it is so meaningful to be discussed. It is highly recommended to accomplish an introductory part after you have completed your essay. It will enable you to make an interesting and appealing beginning.
The main body
Writing a main body of the textual analysis is one of the most complicated tasks as it is the part that consists of your thesis and main idea. Do not forget about writing in academic English as this is a significant aspect. But the main point you should keep in mind is to create an argumentative structure for the textual analysis where each your thesis will fit a proper place. There is a strict scheme of how to do a structure that will allow you to explain your ideas in a persuasive way.
This part of an essay should be divided into several paragraphs each with a specific topic sentence. They are obligatorily regarded to the thesis statement given in the introductory and depict its subtopics. Creating your textual analysis, do not go from one topic to another but stick to the defined theme explaining the only stated idea. The topic sentence of the paragraph is your own idea and to sound persuasive, you are supposed to support it with examples from the book. You can place a quote to explain why your position is right.
Including quotes in the text do not forget about quotation marks. It is an important aspect if you want your paper to be perfectly organized and edited. Quotation marks allow the reader to see whether you used original text and discuss how it explains your own idea.
The conclusion section
When your main bodies are ready, you think how to conclude your textual analysis. It is the last point in the process of writing but an extremely meaningful one. Be aware that it is not only about summarizing what was included in the main body. If you are wondering how to end your textual analysis, you should remember two things: your goal is to remind the position of the author and main ideas of his discussion and at the same time, finish an essay appropriately with a sense of closure. Be careful not to include new data in this part and omit using any quotes.
Textual Analysis Essay Sample
Without any doubt, it is always easier to study theory together with its practical use. In such cases, you do not only accept information but clearly follow how they are applied in practice. If you are looking for good examples of textual analysis, you can look through the given literary sample outline.
- Introduction
- Thesis statement
Emily Bronte creating her Wuthering Heights pictures the characters and things brightly using symbolism in her explanations.
- Main body
- Topic sentence
Characters in the novel are described with the help of nature symbols.
Example:
Speaking about her attitude to two men Linton and Heathcliff, the main heroine of the book describes them in different ways. He pictures her love for Linton as leaves on the tree. The author and main characters give a parallel of feelings and leaves explaining that this feeling is not forever the same. The time will pass and as winter changes the tree the love for Linton will be changed. The opposite is a love for Heathcliff, and it is compared to the rock. This feeling is unattractive and plain from the first view but stable and stark.
- Two other topic sentences with supporting examples, written in the same way
- Conclusion
Emily Bronte applies various techniques and devices to create a vivid and attractive picture of their characters. One of the most commonly used is symbolism. The author provides parallels to their characters with nature symbols clearly explaining their traits, peculiarities and even the reasons for their behavior.
Conclusion
After having read this article you definitely see how important it is to know how to write a textual analysis. Textual analysis is one of those types of writing that is supposed to teach you reason analytically and critically. If you want to accomplish it perfectly, you need to follow the strict structure and include all needed constituents. Your essay should include an introduction, the main body paragraphs, and the concluding one. An important step is about choosing one theme to discuss and stick to it throughout the paper. Your thesis statement that is written in an understandable and confident way clearly expresses your main idea. Another significant point is to support your arguments with book examples, providing quotes or episodes.
Creating an analysis essay is not a difficult task if you follow the instructions and have some practice!
