Key Terms
Casual opinion
"I liked it" or "I didn't like it." That is not analysis.
Analysis
Examining characters' motivations, development, setting, theme, point of view, dialogue, symbolism - and asking WHY elem
Textual analysis
Applied to literary works (fiction, nonfiction, film, poetry). Focuses on meaning, craft, and interpretation.
Rhetorical analysis
Applied to opinion pieces, editorials, persuasive writing. Focuses on the strategies used to create or change opinion.
Example
Analyzing a short story to argue that the author uses shifting point of view to undermine the reader's confidence in the
Ask
Why this word and not a synonym? How does figurative language affect tone?
RULE
When discussing a literary work, use present tense. Literary works exist in an ongoing present.
Correct
The author was born in 1850. (Biographical fact, not a discussion of the text.)
Her approach
"talking back" to a text. The critical essay as a form of dialogue - engaging with a text, pushing against it, entering
Her argument
Texts live on through others' analyses. Critical analysis does not just interpret existing work; it revives and uncovers