The Literary Essay is an insightful, critical interpretation of a literary work.

It is not a summary of plot, a description of the characters or other elements of fiction in any given literary work.

What is a literary What is a literary essay?essay?

…you provide your own formal interpretation and/or opinion of the topic

…you use the literary work to prove or substantiate your understanding of the topic

What will you be What will you be doing?doing?

…try to prove the plot – we know how the series of events unfolded because we read the book

…need to prove that the characters, setting, or themes existed in the literary work

YOU DO NOTYOU DO NOT

…provide an interpretation of the plot, setting, character, conflict, and themes as they relate to the topic you are discussing

…develop elements that will prove your argument

YOU DOYOU DO

In order to be complete, your essay must include the following :

The Literary EssayThe Literary Essay

…clearly introduces the topic, the literary

work, and the author.

Example:

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee presents

prejudice and discrimination of African Americans.

The introduction allows you to give the reader the clear and specific direction of your essay.

The IntroductionThe Introduction

…states the main purpose of the essay

…is often stated in the LAST sentence of

your introduction

…answers the question: What will you prove/show through this

essay about the literary work under

discussion?

The ThesisThe Thesis

…is divided into paragraphs

…is composed of paragraphs which

begin with a topic sentence that

clearly introduces the topic in the

paragraph and end with linking

sentences that introduce the next

paragraph

The BodyThe Body

…serves to provide proof to PROVE your thesis

NOTE:

In order to prove your thesis, you must develop and expand on the topic using examples and citations (quotes) from the literary work to validate your statements and find information from outside sources to also support.

Once a quote is cited, you must provide an interpretation, not a summary, about how this quote is relevant to the development of the topic and thesis

The BodyThe Body

…is where you develop your ideas and claims about the topic

…is where you provide your own ideas by

answering the following questions:

1. What is the topic? How is the topic relevant?

2. How does the topic relate to the literary work?

3. How does topic affect the development of the literary work as a whole?

The BodyThe Body

4. What is my understanding of the topic and the literary work?

5. How does the setting affect the development of the topic?

6. How do the characters assist in the development of the topic?

You DO NOT write your essay in

a “question & answer” format. It must flow

like the literary work itself.

The BodyThe Body

Use the questions only as a GUIDE.

They will help you interpret

instead of summarize!

The BodyThe Body

The first sentence of the conclusion is a restatement of your THESIS.

Do not introduce any new information in the conclusion.

Restate your most important points as a means of bringing your argument to a close.

The conclusion is your last chance to prove your opinion to the reader!

The ConclusionThe Conclusion

Introduction : Paragraph One, thesis, mild background information, introduce

argument and topic

1st sentence: General statement of the

topic (social/political/ethical, etc.)

2nd & 3rd sentences: Elaboration of the author

and the literary work

Additional sentences: Description and/or

development of the

literary work as it pertains

the topic. It’s where you

support your argument.

Final sentence: thesis.

Graphic Representation Graphic Representation of the Literary Essayof the Literary Essay

Paragraph 2 – Development of argument

Topic Sentence: Elaborate on the argument

Development (later sentences) consists of

ideas which support the topic

sentence and thesis

Choose 1 – 2 quotes from the literary work which will develop/support this topic and establish a connection to topic/thesis

A linking sentence will reinforce what was stated in this paragraph and connect it to the following argument (next paragraph).

Graphic RepresentationGraphic Representation

Paragraph 3 – Development of second argument

Paragraph 4 – Development of third argument

Graphic RepresentationGraphic Representation

Restates the thesis

Summarizes the main points of your argument from each paragraph

Makes final concluding point

The ConclusionThe Conclusion

INTRODUCTION

BODY

CONCLUSION

ARGUMENT 1

ARGUMENT 2

ARGUMENT 3

How it looksHow it looks

Quotes of four lines or less can be included in the body of your essay using quotation marks

Example:

“He stood there until nightfall, and I

waited for him. When we went in the

house I saw he had been crying; his

face was dirty” (Lee 63). Author’s last name and page reference

How to use and How to use and reference quotesreference quotes

For citations that are MORE than 4 lines long, indent the whole quote and single space the quote as shown below:

DO NOT PUT QUOTATION MARKS

For reasons unfathomable

to the most experienced

prophets in Maycomb County,

autumn turned to winter that year.

We had two weeks of the coldest

weather since 1885 (Lee 63)

Tab

Quote citationQuote citation

Alfredo, B. Critical Interpretations of To Kill A Mockingbird. New York: Routledge, 1999.

Lee, H. To Kill A Mockingbird. Philadelphia: Warner Books, 1960.

Use MLA format.Include the literary work in the works cited list.

Works CitedWorks Cited

Do not make a title page for your paper unless specifically requested.

In the upper left-hand corner of the first page, list your name, your instructor's name, the course, and the date. Be sure to use double-spaced text.

Hit enter once and center the title. Don't underline your title or put it in quotation marks.

Hit enter once between the title and the first paragraph.

FormattingFormatting

Formatting

Ensure you have completed the following before you submit your essay for assessment to your teacher:

1. Double spaced your essay

2. Times New Roman font size 12

3. MLA format throughout

4. Labeled each page, excluding page 1, with your last name and page number – Example: Bashiri 2

Literary Essay ChecklistLiterary Essay Checklist

5. Included a Works Cited page

6. Cited the literary work in the works cited page and referenced properly throughout

7. Have introduction, body paragraphs, and conclusion

8. Clearly stated thesis

ChecklistChecklist

9. Edited for spelling and language errors (be careful of “typos”)

10. Stapled the essay in the correct order

11. Spelled the teacher’s name correctly

12. Indented each new paragraph: Hit tab once

13. Italicize all book titles throughout the essay, quotes around short stories and poems

14. Have a title

15. There are no contractions (unless in quote)

16. The essay is only in third person (unless in quote)

Region PresentationRegion Presentation

Pick your region’s/country’s ten most interesting facts to share with the class.

Be ready to present this tomorrow. You may display the information on a PPT or read them off of a sheet of paper.