English 10 / Unit 9: Literary Analysis and Research Writing
9.2 Writing the Analysis Essay
Notes
A literary analysis essay is organized by ideas, not by plot order.
- Each body paragraph makes one point that supports the thesis, with evidence and commentary.
- Write about literature in the literary present tense: "Hamlet hesitates," not "Hamlet hesitated."
- Format titles: italics for long works (novels, plays, epics, films); "quotation marks" for short works (poems, short stories, essays, songs).
- Use the author's last name after the first full mention: "Mary Shelley" then "Shelley."
- Cite plays by act, scene and line (3.1.56); poems by line number, with a slash (/) marking line breaks in a quoted passage.
Practice
Which sentence correctly uses the literary present tense?
Literary analysis describes events in the present tense.
Which title is formatted correctly?
Short works go in quotation marks; long works like plays, epics and novels are italicized.
A citation reads (2.2.33). This most likely refers to:
Plays are cited by act, scene and line.
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