Table of Contents
ANALYSIS ESSAY
An assessment of a subject presented methodically with supporting evidence.
WRITING AN ANALYSIS ESSAY
An analysis essay requires you to go deeper into a subject, weigh its pros and cons, and consider arguments that are both for and against the subject. You have to begin by breaking the subject into smaller components.
Consider a literary analysis in which the text is broken into theme, style, plot, structure, language etc. If the theme of a literary work is grieving, the evidence will be excerpts from the text that convey grief. We go on to find out how the author or poet succeeded in creating that effect.
When writing an analysis essay, you will not take a strong stand for or against the subject as with an argumentative essay. The approach is neutral. Unless you’ve been asked to write a critical analysis which calls for a subjective take. Just remember to support your response with evidence.
Unlike book notes, analytical essays are more than the summary of a subject. The subjects of analysis can vary from management issues to movies, articles and books. Management topics often have their own methods of analysis like SWOT and PESTEL.
WHAT THESE ESSAY TERMS MEAN
- PROCESS ANALYSIS: Steps of a process laid out in chronological order
- CRITICAL ANALYSIS: An evaluation of a topic, which may be subjective
- RHETORICAL ANALYSIS: Pulling apart the components of a non-fictional piece to understand how each component contributes to the effect of the whole text
- LITERARY ANALYSIS: An analysis of a piece of literature
PLANNING AN ANALYSIS ESSAY
Skills that will come in handy when you set out to analyze a subject are logical thinking, and the ability to take notes and ask questions. While taking notes, it is essential to capture the main ideas, catch phrases and key terms. Statistics and important studies can be helpful. In case of print material, you could even highlight relevant points.
Visual notes, templates, SQ2R charts, and mind maps are other ways to gather and organize notes. Before you begin writing your essay, you can reassemble your notes under appropriate categories which will make it easy for you to dip into them.
Researching outside the topic and widening your focus can help add another dimension and depth to your writing. If you are writing about a Latin American author who uses the magic realism technique in writing, reading about other authors in that genre allows you to understand the author’s work within a broader context.
Asking open-ended questions will allow you to explore different aspects of a subject, which may in turn help you in identifying a unique perspective that can be used to build your analysis essay. ‘Why’ and ‘How’ questions are particularly useful.
These are examples of questions that can be asked when working on a literary analysis:
- How does the work compare to the author’s previous work?
- What are the recurring themes?
- What symbols have been used? What do they convey?
- Is the plot plausible? What makes it so?
- How is the book structured? How does that enhance the story and the way it is read?
- What is the setting of the story?
- Who are the secondary characters? In what way do they contribute to the development of the story?
- How are the main characters fleshed out?
- How are the key events in the story unpacked?
STRUCTURE OF AN ANALYSIS ESSAY
The structure of an essay follows the basic format of essay writing. That is,
i. Introduction
Hook
Background
Thesis
ii. Body
Topic sentence for each paragraph
Evidence for each point of analysis
iii. Conclusion
Restate the main points and thesis
EXAMPLE ANALYSIS ESSAYS
Now that you’ve learned how to write an effective essay, check out our Sample Essays so you can see how they are done in practice:
Literary Analysis of ‘The Yellow Wallpaper’
The Hidden Meaning of Robert Frost’s ‘Mending Wall’
