Writing a Multi-paragraph Analysis Essay PDF

Preview

Summary

Notes taken directly from the course itself....

Description

Unit Six: Learning Across Disciplines Lesson Title: Writing a Multi-paragraph Analysis Essay

ENC 0017C 11/09/18

Learning Objective: Develop a thesis and write a multi-paragraph analysis essay.

LESSON: One of the most common college writing assignments is the analysis essay. Analysis is the investigation of a topic. In an analysis essay, instructors expect you to closely examine a given topic and then present your own perspective. Analysis essays may contain a summary of the topic to provide readers with context, but they are not merely summaries. For example, if you are analyzing the novel Moby Dick, you might sum up the plot of the book before you give your slant on the text. In this lesson, you will follow these seven steps to writing an analysis essay, complete with an introduction, a body, and a conclusion: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7.

Understand your assignment. Gather ideas. Create a working thesis. Develop paragraphs that support your thesis. Write a conclusion. Write an introduction. Revise the essay.

Step 1: Understand your assignment. The first step in developing any essay is making sure you understand the focus and scope of your assignment. Remember, the heart of an analysis essay is your own perspective on someone else's work. It is closely tied to that person's work, but it is not a summary. Be sure to read your assignment carefully before you begin and refer to it often throughout development to make sure you have stayed on track. Step 2: Gather ideas.

Unit Six: Learning Across Disciplines Lesson Title: Writing a Multi-paragraph Analysis Essay

ENC 0017C 11/09/18

The next step is establishing your topic and gathering ideas about it. To begin gathering ideas, you might want to do some reading to help you develop a clear idea of how you want to approach the topic. Remember, though, that your instructor will want to know what you think about the topic, so while you can read others' ideas about it, ultimately your ideas are what matter most. After doing such secondary reading, brainstorming techniques such as outlining, freewriting, clustering, mind mapping, and listing are all good ways to develop ideas. Step 3: Create a working thesis. Once you have conducted some research, you probably have a general idea of what your thesis will be. You can write a tentative thesis statement, keeping in mind that the actual wording and emphasis may change as you gather more information and think more deeply about your topic. In an analysis essay, your thesis statement should include the topic, subject, or item that you are analyzing and the point that you are making about it. Step 4: Develop paragraphs that support your thesis. Now, pick the two or three ideas that you developed in Step 2 that relate to your thesis the best and write the body paragraphs on them. If it is difficult to decide what ideas to write about, you should choose the ones that you know the most about and that interest you the most. Writing tends to be easier when you know about and enjoy a topic. In addition, limiting the scope of your writing to the most powerful and interesting points will make the writing of greater interest to the reader. Nobody wants to read everything you know about the topic; be selective, and your writing will be more powerful. Once you have narrowed down how you want to support your thesis, you might need to brainstorm a bit more and develop evidence for your major supporting details. You may also find it helpful to conduct additional research and look at other analyses that people have done on the topic.

Unit Six: Learning Across Disciplines Lesson Title: Writing a Multi-paragraph Analysis Essay

ENC 0017C 11/09/18

Remember that your essay must include enough context for your reader to understand your analysis. If, for example, you are writing about a character from a classic novel, you will need to provide enough information about that novel so that someone who has never read it will still enjoy and understand your analysis. However, avoid making the summary the center of your essay. Provide just enough context, then move on to your own ideas. Step 5: Write a conclusion. It may seem strange to write your conclusion before your introduction, but sometimes doing this can help you focus your ideas. It is like giving directions—you need to know where you want your reader to end up before you can lead him or her there. Remember that a strong conclusion reflects the main idea of your essay without repeating it. Step 6: Write an introduction. Now that you know where you want your reader to end up, go back to the introduction and prepare the way. Remember that a good introduction hooks the reader, introduces the topic, sets the tone, and presents the thesis. Step 7: Revise the essay. After you write your introduction, there is just one step left: revising your essay. Some people like to take a break at this point so that they can review their essays with fresh eyes. Remember that revision involves content and organization. You will edit and proofread at the sentence and word level after you have revised your essay. To revise your essay, ask yourself the following questions: Have I followed the assignment? Is this an analysis essay? Have I examined a topic and provided my own perspective on it?  Does the body of my essay support my thesis?  

Unit Six: Learning Across Disciplines Lesson Title: Writing a Multi-paragraph Analysis Essay

ENC 0017C 11/09/18

Is all of my support relevant? Do I need more or less support? Have I included the transitions necessary to guide the reader from point to point?  Does my conclusion summarize and synthesize the important details?  Does my introduction hook the reader and provide adequate background on/introduction to my topic?   

Review your entire essay with these questions in mind. Remember, you may need to add or remove information or reorganize your writing. Being a careful reviewer of your own work is crucial in writing a quality essay. When you have completed this step, be sure to go back one more time to make sure your grammar, spelling, and punctuation are correct. It is always a good idea to have another person read your essay since even the best speller and grammarian can miss his or her own mistakes. EXAMPLE: The example below demonstrates how to follow the seven steps to writing an analysis essay. Use the following topic: Analyze whether someone's motivations are largely noble or largely selfish. You could write about a character in a novel, movie, or television show, or you could write about a public figure. Step 1: Understand your assignment. Sample idea: Analyzing the motivations of Morgan Spurlock, who wrote, starred in, and directed the documentary film Supersize Me. In this case, the assignment is an analysis essay, which means that it must provide sufficient context for the reader and present a perspective on Spurlock's motivations. Step 2: Gather ideas.

Unit Six: Learning Across Disciplines Lesson Title: Writing a Multi-paragraph Analysis Essay

ENC 0017C 11/09/18

One possible way to get some ideas is to look at the different motivations that Spurlock may have had and break them into two groups, positive and negative. Spurlock's motivations were good He wanted to educate people to change their habits, which are killing them (he presents statistics and talks to many experts; he gets people's attention by shocking them, he tries to show that McDonald's is a powerful company that is dangerous to people). Spurlock's motivations were self-serving He created a shocking situation, with himself at the center, in order to gain publicity and, eventually, fame. What he did exaggerates how most people live and is not realistic. Because it was so shocking, it was a big hit, and he went on to make many other films and even got his own HBO show. Does it matter? Maybe what matters most is the outcome of what he did, rather than his motivations. Step 3: Create a working thesis. Spurlock's motivations were both pure and self-serving; ultimately this is irrelevant if people benefited from his work. Step 4: Develop paragraphs that support your thesis. Spurlock called attention to a national health crisis. It is interesting that he had to say "yes" anytime he was asked if he wanted to "Supersize" his meal. That's where the title of the film came from. He knew that the best way to really get people's attention is by shocking them. He gained 24.5 pounds in one month and nearly brought himself to liver

Unit Six: Learning Across Disciplines Lesson Title: Writing a Multi-paragraph Analysis Essay

ENC 0017C 11/09/18

failure. That brought attention to the problem and to Spurlock. Because of its shock value, the film quickly became popular. All of the attention focused on Spurlock and what he did. Ultimately, this notoriety led to more filmmaking, his own television show, and even a stint on The Simpsons. Step 5: Write a conclusion. It does not matter if Spurlock's intentions were selfish because the film did educate people about the dramatic health risks of a fast-food diet. By gaining weight and hurting his own health, Spurlock made the dangers of a fast-food diet horribly real to his audience. By getting his audience's attention, Spurlock increased the possibility that his audience would change their diets, too. 6. Write an introduction. Every day, Americans eat at fast-food restaurants. McDonald's is probably one of the first picks for many of them. In Morgan Spurlock’s documentary film Supersize Me, he goes on a 30-day McDonald's-only diet to show how dangerous fast foods can be. It shocked a lot of people, and Spurlock became famous. This essay analyzes whether his motivations were selfish or noble. 7. Revise the essay. Every day, 1 in 4 Americans goes to a fast-food restaurant, and that restaurant is likely to be McDonald's, which holds nearly 50 percent of the fast-food market share in the United States. In Morgan Spurlock's 2004 documentary film Supersize Me, the filmmaker goes on a 30-day McDonald's-only diet to show the dangers of fast food. The film received a lot of attention and Spurlock became famous.

Unit Six: Learning Across Disciplines Lesson Title: Writing a Multi-paragraph Analysis Essay

ENC 0017C 11/09/18

But did he do it for the sake of others, or to further his own career? Spurlock called attention to a national health crisis through his shocking 30-day transformation. While he included statistics and expert testimony to support his argument, he knew that that alone would not be enough to effect change. The best way to really get people's attention is by shocking them. By both restricting his diet to McDonald's meals and reducing his amount of physical activity, he gained 24.5 pounds in one month and nearly brought himself to liver failure. That brought attention to the problem, but also to Spurlock. Because of its shock value, the film was a hit at the prestigious Sundance Film Festival. Spurlock was the writer, director, producer, and star, so all of the attention focused on him and his dramatic acts. Even his recovery fed into his fame: his then-girlfriend supervised it, following a regimen that became the basis for a later book. Ultimately, this notoriety led to more filmmaking, his own television show, and even a stint on The Simpsons. It is difficult to say how much of an effect the documentary had on public health, but these things are certain: within about six weeks of the movie’s premiere, McDonald's discontinued the "Supersize" meals. They (and other fastfood restaurants) have increased the number of healthy options available, and federal law requires major fast-food restaurants to post the calorie content of their menu items. In 2013, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that fast food consumption had decreased during the period of 2007-2010. When thinking about Morgan Spurlock and Supersize Me, the question we need to ask is not "Did Spurlock have selfish motives?" but "Did Spurlock’s film help anyone?" Clearly, both noble and selfish motivations were at play. Ultimately, perhaps, it does not matter if Spurlock's intentions were

Unit Six: Learning Across Disciplines Lesson Title: Writing a Multi-paragraph Analysis Essay

ENC 0017C 11/09/18

selfish, because the film did educate people about the dramatic health risks of a fast-food diet. It was a significant part of an overall trend; a trend that seems to be headed in right direction. METACOGNITIVE QUESTIONS: 1.) How does summary differ from analysis? Answer: A summary pulls together the most important information from someone's work. If it is a novel, it might tell the most important events and characteristics of the main characters. But an analysis is looking at some aspect of that work and developing an opinion about it. For example, you might write about whether a character is a hero or a villain. 2.) In what situation might you need to write an analysis essay? Answer: Analysis essays are relevant to all subject areas in school, whether history or communications or mathematics. Being able to analyze situations, ideas, and other people's thoughts is key to being a successful student or employee. 3.) Why might it be useful to write your introduction last, rather than first? Answer: An essay will go through revisions before it is complete, and sometimes the most important ideas aren't clear until further in the process. Your introduction is your hook to draw in the reader and should be a powerful, well-crafted paragraph that links directly to the writing. Waiting until the end to write it helps to ensure that these qualities are reflected in it....