Pro Tip 1: The Author's Language 

This is the very first layer you peel back. Your goal is to move past figurative language (identifying metaphors and similes) to analyze their effect on the reader and why it’s placed there.

 

• Wording: What specific words stand out as interesting or unusual, and what strong emotion or symbolic weight does that choice carry?

• Figurative Language: What comparison is being made (metaphor/simile), and more importantly, why did the author choose this specific comparison over another?

• Imagery: Are there patterns of imagery (like the 5 senses) that appear throughout the text? What psychological mood or symbolic meaning does this recurring pattern create?

 

Pro Tip 2: Voice & Perspective

A PRO analyst understands that they must analyze the storyteller, not just the story.

 

• Perspective: Who is telling the story (1st, 2nd, 3rd person)? If it is 3rd person, figure out the narrator's limitations (whether it’s limited omniscient or omniscient).

• Tone: What is the text's mood? Analyze irony that will often reveal the author's hidden message.

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Pro Tip 3: Structure & Pacing

This tip moves you from analyzing sentences to analyzing the structure of the entire work.

 

• Structure: How is the text divided (chapters, stanzas)? Ask why the author chose to end a scene or a chapter exactly where they did. This shows the author's deliberate control over the reader's experience.

• Order: Does the story unfold in order, or does it jump in time? Analyze the effect of those time jumps. 

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Pro Tip 4: Testing Your Main Point (Stop Stating the Obvious!)

An Extending idea is a defensible argument about the author’s purpose, not a simple statement of plot. Your entire essay should be built on one strong Main Point about the text.

 

• Is it Analysis, Not Summary?: Your Main Point must tell the reader how or why the author created meaning, not just what happened in the plot.

• Am I focused on The Author's Choices?: Does your Main Point explain why the author used a specific literary tool to create meaning, instead of just talking about the characters?

• Does it cover the whole story?: Is your Main Point a big idea that can be proven using evidence from the beginning, middle, and end of the text? 

 

From the Author (Personal Comment)

Hello! This is yours truly Esther Leung! In my opinion, when I first dealt with literary analysis I was like “why is this necessary can’t we just read the book and put it down this SUCKS”. However when I actually got the hang of it, I realized there’s more to the story than just the plot, it’s kind of like an onion you see…

 

You may be wondering at this point, “Esther, are you stupid what does an onion have to do with literature?”. Well, you see onions have layers and they begin with a simple, dry, papery outer skin and as you start to gradually peel back the layers (aka the literary analysis part), each layer is more revealing and closer to the core truth. We can now make a connection BACK to the literary analysis process where we start off with a simple plotline and gradually unveil the hidden meanings and intentions that the author planted in the writing such as symbolism, morals, irony, allusions etc.

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