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An analytical essay breaks a text, event, or idea into parts and explains how those parts work together to produce meaning or effect. It is one of the most common assignments across subjects, and the line between summary and analysis is where a lot of marks are won or lost.
What it actually involves:
The difference between summary and analysis is easiest to see with an example. Saying a poem describes a storm is summary. Explaining how short, broken lines and harsh sounds create a sense of panic during the storm is analysis. Most of the marks in an analytical essay come from the second kind of sentence.
An analytical thesis makes a claim that needs evidence behind it. The novel is set during the Great Depression is a fact. Arguing that the setting reflects the characters' sense of hopelessness and limited choices is an interpretation, and a reader could reasonably disagree with it.
Each body paragraph works best when it looks at one element, such as imagery, structure, a theme or a key decision. Open with a clear topic sentence, bring in the evidence, and then explain how it supports the thesis. Keeping to one element per paragraph also makes it much easier to go into real depth.
Short quotations usually work better than long passages. After each one, explain what specific words or techniques are doing and connect them back to your argument, so the marker never has to guess.
Strong analysis also links individual details back to the whole text, event or idea. Asking how each part contributes to the overall effect or message stops it becoming a list.
A useful self check is to highlight every sentence that only describes. If more than a third of the essay is highlighted, it probably needs more analysis and less summary. Some summary is still useful for context, as long as it stays brief and leads straight into explanation.
The takeaway:
What it actually involves:
- Summary Says What - Analysis says how and why
- The Thesis - An interpretation, not a fact
- One Element Each - Per body paragraph
- Quote Then Explain - A quote proves nothing alone
- The Connection - Parts back to the whole
The difference between summary and analysis is easiest to see with an example. Saying a poem describes a storm is summary. Explaining how short, broken lines and harsh sounds create a sense of panic during the storm is analysis. Most of the marks in an analytical essay come from the second kind of sentence.
An analytical thesis makes a claim that needs evidence behind it. The novel is set during the Great Depression is a fact. Arguing that the setting reflects the characters' sense of hopelessness and limited choices is an interpretation, and a reader could reasonably disagree with it.
Each body paragraph works best when it looks at one element, such as imagery, structure, a theme or a key decision. Open with a clear topic sentence, bring in the evidence, and then explain how it supports the thesis. Keeping to one element per paragraph also makes it much easier to go into real depth.
Short quotations usually work better than long passages. After each one, explain what specific words or techniques are doing and connect them back to your argument, so the marker never has to guess.
Strong analysis also links individual details back to the whole text, event or idea. Asking how each part contributes to the overall effect or message stops it becoming a list.
A useful self check is to highlight every sentence that only describes. If more than a third of the essay is highlighted, it probably needs more analysis and less summary. Some summary is still useful for context, as long as it stays brief and leads straight into explanation.
The takeaway:
- Every quote needs a sentence doing work after it.
- Most of this came from CollegeEssay.org, which goes through analytical essay structure and interpretation in detail.
- Would be interested to hear from anyone who has done this. Did any of it match your experience?