Essay Writing - Literature
Essay Writing for Literature
One of the most important lessons a student can learn in their English Language Arts class is how to critically think and communicate those ideas. As teachers, we strive to implement these two fundamental lessons within every class we teach. Essay writing, although a pain to many of our students, will help prepare our students for the world ahead of them. Our students will be expected to critically think through situations that they arise during the course of the lives and will most certainly be expected to respond. Though our students may not engross themselves into the depths of literature after they graduate, it is still just as important to instill a sense of literacy, education, culture, and critically responsive thoughts.
Finding a Theme
The best graphic organizer would be a response to individual ideas or themes. The student should write down a common theme they noticed within the text and then write several examples of that theme recurring through the characters or the plot.
In 5.1 Writing about Literature: The Basics, Crystle M. Bruno writes,
You must examine theme in your basic analysis of literature. Theme is the unifying idea behind a story. It connects the plot points, conflicts, and characters to a major idea. It usually provides a broad statement about humanity, life, or our universe. We can think of theme, in its most basic definition, as the message the author tries to send his or her readers.
One thing you should remember about theme is that it must be expressed in a complete sentence. For instance, “discrimination” is not a theme; however, “genetic modification in humans is dangerous because it can result in discrimination” is a complete theme.
For example, in George Orwell’s Animal Farm, a broad and overall theme could be understanding how a government forms. Where do we see the most examples of how government forms? We could list the Rebellion as one, when the animals overthrow the humans on the farm and expel them from the land. We know this as a revolution. Then the animals renamed the farm from Manor’s Farm to Animal Farm. We understand that to be the animals recognizing themselves as a sovereign “country.” Then the animals write a Constitution of sorts, rules that all animals should know and follow. Then someone or a group of someones take power, and that is who leads the new “country” and will reflect how new policies will be decided. A more specific theme would be learning about authoritarian leadership, communism, or fascism.
Bruno provides a graphic organizer that will help students ask themselves the important questions as they uncover the themes of the text.
Another source posted by HACC, Central Pennsylvania’s Community College includes how students can begin to analyze literature: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pr4BjZkQ5Nc
Some themes will have more textual examples than others. That’s okay. After the student has written down as many ideas or themes they can think of, and then list all of the examples that could be given, the student should decide which ideas they like best. The student should select at least two, but there should be one primary idea that sticks out to them. This will be the topic of their essay.
Discourse
Once the students have their thoughts recorded, they should discuss them with each other. Sharing ideas is the best way to open dialogue between students. Some students may be writing about similar themes, and discussing their shared themes will open their minds to each other’s thoughts and reflections. Perhaps the student may learn something new through talking with their peers. Likewise, the student may then strengthen their own ideas after explaining to someone else exactly what they’re interested in uncovering.
In an interesting note on individuality and student motivation, Bruno writes,
“Okay,” you say, “that's all good and well. But hasn't anything I have to say about a story already been said? So what's the point, then?” When you write your paper, you might end up saying something that has been discussed, argued over, or proposed by literary critics and students alike. However, when you write something, you present a point of view through your unique voice. Even if something has been said about a book many times, you can add something new to that discussion. Perhaps you can state an idea in simpler terms, or you want to disagree with a popular viewpoint. Even if you're writing to an instructor's prompt, your voice will make the paper unique.
Proposal
A topic proposal should be written, not only to help the student understand more about their topic themselves, but through this writing exercise, the student will be able to concisely state what it is they want to write about. Typically a thesis may be included within the proposal, and this will help the student identify the specifics of their essay early, before the major writing begins.
Note: If the thesis changes from the one given in the proposal, that is okay too. A proposal should be considered a mere starting point for the student. The student may reflect back on the proposal when writing the essay. The proposal may even help or be inclusive of the student’s introduction paragraph.
Essay Format
Like any formal essay, there will typically be 5 paragraphs: an introduction, 3 body paragraphs, and the conclusion.
Needless to say, this format is standard, but many students believe they must have only 3 body paragraphs, no more and no less. A student should not have any less than 3 paragraphs, that much is correct, but a student should be encouraged to write more than 3 body paragraphs. For many quality essays, there are 4-5 body paragraphs detailing how the student’s ideas, textual evidence, and themes all interconnect. Especially if there is scholarly research involved within the essay, then the essay is likely to have more than 3 paragraphs.
Topic Sentences
To begin each body paragraph, most students cite transition words. I’m not sure how this became the standard for essay writing, but transition words can be overused. Instead, the student should focus less on the transition word and more on the topic sentence.
A topic sentence is what the body paragraph will be about. It states exactly what the student is arguing in that paragraph so there is no confusion in the end. Topic sentences also help the student organize what textual evidence and arguments will be in which paragraph.
When detailing an essay outline, the student should start by tentatively titling the essay and writing out their topic sentences for each body paragraph they intend to write. This will help organize the student when the major writing begins.
Editing:
One of the hardest and most critical components of essay writing is editing. Though students typically use spelling and grammar check within their software to help them correct their grammar and punctuation, these devices cannot help the student organize their paper or help facilitate better writing.
The student must be able to identify their own mistakes within an essay and know how to correct them. A resource helpful to the student would be a student checklist for their essay. The checklist will reflect the teacher’s rubric and the student’s grade, depending on the criteria expected of the student. A student checklist will also help identify any mistakes they not be aware of having made.
For example, a student checklist could contain:
One (1) clear thesis
At least three (3) clear topic sentences at the beginning of each body paragraph
At least five (5) quotes are used from the text.
All quotes are properly cited according to MLA format
One (1) Works Cited page
Spelling is correct
Grammar/Punctuation is correct
This checklist will not only give space for the student to understand how their essay should be written, but it will help the student understand exactly what the teacher expects to see within their essay. Starting an essay, as well as writing, editing, and submitting a final draft is difficult for any one person to do on their own. It’s up to us, as teachers, to ensure our students are being guided along the way as they realize their own potential in writing.