What makes a good literary essay!?

[Gehenna]

I have mastered writting essays on general topics, but my problem area are literary essays! no matter how good I think they are my teachers still tell me otherwise!

It is a big problem for me since I have to write 2 essays for my matura exams, which will decide at which university I will study! The first essay will be in Slovene (language) in it has to be 700- 1000 words on Crime and Punishment and Visoska Kronika (a Slovenian book), the other will be an English essay about 250 words on The Great Gatsby or Look Back in Anger! My vocabulary is above average in both languages and so is my grammar, but there is always ''something missing''!

So I would like your opininions on what makes a good literary essay!

Thanks in advance!

[Billy Bilo]

Confidence is important as is a good general thesis, argue for something but make sure you are backed up, referencing and building on previous work is important.

A little literary theory is useful these days though those debates seem to be waining.

[Virgil]

It's hard to be that original in 700 - 1000 words. How old are you? My advice depends on what level you're at.

[Gehenna]

Im 18 years old!

We get guidelines to the essay title!

Example:

CRIME, GUILT AND PUNISHMENT IN cRIME AND PUNISHMENT!

The poor Peterburg student Rodion Raskolnikov finds himself in the grasp of crime and guilt. He commited murder. Think about the motives which lead him to that. How does he feel the guilt? With an excerpt from the text illustrate how this effects his behavoir and actions. How is he punished? Do you think he is rightfully punished? Could you confirm the thought, that the novel ends by the principle of ethical equalisation/ levelling( couldnt find the right expression, hope you understand what is meant)?

I mean I know the answers, but I just cant seem to express them with right words!

[mir]

i think that flow is really important - if it all seems to fit together or goes from one topic to another too fast, or needs a few extra lines or words to make it seem like a whole picture rather than a bunch of pieces put together.

[Unspar]

The ONE THING that is MOST IMPORTANT in literary essays is CLOSE READING. I didn't learn about it until I got to college, but I'm surprised I ever wrote an essay without it.

You need to closely examine the text. Choose your examples carefully, then examine in detail how that example supports your argument. Look at everything. Word choice, word order, tenses, punctuation. Repetition, alliteration, any deliberate use of language. Not just technical stuff either, but also information about the character, movement of the plot, or anything that stands out. You have to believe that every word and every comma is chosen and placed where it is for a specific purpose, and your discussion should deduce what you think that purpose was and explain how that supports your argument.

[adilyoussef]

In my opinion, there are some people who mix up analysis with naration. Make sure that you are not narating instead of analyzing. First, you should have a purpose on mind: what your essay is about. Go directly to your purpose. Start with a smooth introduction to your topic. And use the facts on the novel to suport your arguments. For example, while analyzing crime, you should state what are the aspects of crime in the novel, how they are illustrated and in what way crime is dealt with in the novel; what arethe characters that represent crime and how it's reflective in their behaviour and life. Try to cover all the aspects. But most of all, you should master the novel. You have to know about the author and the school s/he belongs to. That would help a lot. A piece of advice, the beauty of your work remains in its simlicity. Be simple and try not to use difficult structures. Here, you are analysing not writing a novel. This happens to people who get fascinated by a work of literature and try to coppy the novelists style instead of being simple and clear. Most of the time it occurs subconsiously. Try to read others critics and essays. They would also help you develop your own style in writing a critical essay. And finaly, good luck to you.

[Unspar]

No offense to adilyoussef, but a lot of that is stuff you definitely should not do. There's some good advice there (like emphasizing analysis), but there's some stuff to avoid too. Do not reference the author's life or history at all: this is about the text, not the author. You could write a convincing essay without even knowing who wrote the book you're talking about because you're making an argument based solely on the text.

Also, do not "try to cover all the aspects." If you're talking about crime in general, you'd break it down into about three key aspects, each with at least one key example from the text. Cover the aspects that'll be most beneficial to your arguments. Adilyoussef is somewhat right about mastering the novel because you need to know what you're talking about and you need to be able to draw on that knowledge, but you don't need that knowledge to be exhaustive. I've gotten As on several essays for books that I hardly paid attention to or didn't even finish. That's not to say that's a good idea, but all you really need to do is know your topic well and present it convincingly.

But I cannot emphasize close reading enough.

[Charles Darnay]

I think clarity is definatly a key element. Especially because are dealing with short essays here, make a point, make sure that point is supported with detail from the text, and move on. Don't not try and fluff up the essay. At the same time, give it a tone.... but whatever you write, make sure IT IS CLEAR. The one thing I find when I read people's essays - and for the longest time I too was guilty of it - was that someone would know what they want to say in their head but would fail at properly communicating the idea on paper. BE CLEAR!

[PeterL]

In just 1000 words you could barely get started.

[Virgil]

I think the advice offered here is very good. Get to the point and provide rationales for your point.

[chmpman]

If you do take adilyoussef's advice to read other analyst's take on the text, BE SURE YOU HAVE YOUR OWN OPINION SORTED OUT FIRST. Using another's points, and citing those, can be a handy way to support or oppose your own thesis by providing argument point and counterpoint, but you don't want to subconsciously have your ideas tainted by another's.

Then again, considering the shortness of your papers, I would stick to only your ideas and forget comparing/contrasting those with another.

Other than that the above advice sounds good so far. Good luck.

[adilyoussef]

No offense to adilyoussef, but a lot of that is stuff you definitely should not do. There's some good advice there (like emphasizing analysis), but there's some stuff to avoid too. Do not reference the author's life or history at all: this is about the text, not the author. You could write a convincing essay without even knowing who wrote the book you're talking about because you're making an argument based solely on the text.

Also, do not "try to cover all the aspects." If you're talking about crime in general, you'd break it down into about three key aspects, each with at least one key example from the text. Cover the aspects that'll be most beneficial to your arguments. Adilyoussef is somewhat right about mastering the novel because you need to know what you're talking about and you need to be able to draw on that knowledge, but you don't need that knowledge to be exhaustive. I've gotten As on several essays for books that I hardly paid attention to or didn't even finish. That's not to say that's a good idea, but all you really need to do is know your topic well and present it convincingly.

But I cannot emphasize close reading enough.

Of course there is no offence; but I think you didn't get my point. By knowing about the author does not mean to inclued him or her in the essay. No, absolutely not. When you know about the author, you have a clear idea of the message s/he wants to convey. Never reffer to the author in your work. By covering all the aspects of the topic, I don't mean to be general. But to focus on it in a sequential deatailed plan. I absolutely agree with what you have said, but as I've understood from the question is that ... has problems with writing a literary essay, that's why I suggested to read about the author to help her/him shape his/her thoughts. For example, X deffendes the rights of wemmen, this is usually reflected in his/her work. Knowing this informaion would help you through writing your essay. Of course without mantioning this in your essay, just hinting.

I hope that this time I've chosen my words correctly and my messages is clear. I'm sorry I've not clirified my point miticulously because I'm in a hurry. *always be*

[adilyoussef]

If you do take adilyoussef's advice to read other analyst's take on the text, BE SURE YOU HAVE YOUR OWN OPINION SORTED OUT FIRST. Using another's points, and citing those, can be a handy way to support or oppose your own thesis by providing argument point and counterpoint, but you don't want to subconsciously have your ideas tainted by another's.

Then again, considering the shortness of your papers, I would stick to only your ideas and forget comparing/contrasting those with another.

Other than that the above advice sounds good so far. Good luck.

Yes that for sure. Bt what I ment by reading others essays is not in the same topic. I mean to read proffesional writer's ones to know the way it is written. Coppying will make only things worse. Try to focus on the way they are written not the content. In this way, you will develop your own style. But never plagiarize.

[TodHackett]

My advice? Write something original.

I know, what I just said is pretty mundane, so let me clarify what I mean and maybe it will become clearer, and maybe, just maybe, more profound.

In college I was given an assignment to write a paper on the _Iliad_. This was for a professor who had huge swaths of the work memorized, and knew more about the language and culture than I ever could. So I asked myself: What could I possibly write on that my professor hasn't already thought, read, and written about?

I chose to write on archery, archers and arrows in the Iliad. They don't appear much in the work-- most of the fighting is with spears and rocks-- but I scanned the work, looking for places where there was archery, and found a few. I also found that when I "foregrounded" archery, and "backgrounded" the rest of the work, there were new angles on the _Iliad_-- things I hadn't seen before. I ended up comparing archers in the _Iliad_ to snipers in modern warfare-- looking at the attitudes that each held, and the attitudes of other soldiers toward them. I wrote an adequate paper, and got an "A". And, from the comments that my professor had written, I got the impression that he was genuinely interested in what he was reading.

No offense, Gehenna, but your teacher/professor has probably read hundreds of papers with titles like, _CRIME, GUILT AND PUNISHMENT IN cRIME AND PUNISHMENT!_. Why, just seeing that title might turn me off-- not necessarliy becuase it's not a good paper (I'm sure it is!), but because it looks the same as hundreds of papers I've read before! I agree with unspar:


You need to closely examine the text. Choose your examples carefully, then examine in detail how that example supports your argument. Look at everything. Word choice, word order, tenses, punctuation. Repetition, alliteration, any deliberate use of language. Not just technical stuff either, but also information about the character, movement of the plot, or anything that stands out. You have to believe that every word and every comma is chosen and placed where it is for a specific purpose, and your discussion should deduce what you think that purpose was and explain how that supports your argument.

But I would add: "Close Reading" also enables you to focus on small things, to pick up on things that other students might miss. So, instead of writing on "Crime, Guilt and Punishment" (all BIG things), write about certain scenes, descriptions or characters that have something in common. Maybe Dostoevsky describes Roskolnikov walking along the street before the murder, and then again after (it's been so long since I read the work I can't remember!). Maybe D spends an unusual amount of time describing someone or something, or does so in a strange way. Pick up on a few of these, and write a paper on them! If your teacher hasn't seen a paper like yours before, and it shows him/her something new about a work s/he's been teaching for years, I can almost guarantee you'll get a good grade.

[Gehenna]

Thanks to everyone! You all helped a lot! I have an essay coming up on monday and I will try to follow your tips and we'll see how I do!

And TodHackett I cant be really original since I cant chose the topic! The title is predetermened and so are the points on which I have to write! and then I have 2 hours to write the essay! But thanks anyway, I will probably benefit from your advice somewhere in the future!

And if anyone has other good advice I would apriciate it!

[youmi]

I had the same problem of you, but I tryed to improve my method. I think that you should listen to the advice of adilyoussef, his explanation is very clear and specific. take it easy, good luck!

[Kosmic_Karma]

Make your thesis surprising, not something everyone would think of right off the bat when ready that piece of liturature, but once you explain it, it makes sence.

[86.5parker]

Maybe you should clearly words even if you are good in grammar and more carefully about on what you right..I also encounter that before but it is English essay and the first time i did it is not really successful but i search and search about the essay and after all it is ok..i cant say that i am good but i passed it..

[Buh4Bee]

This is a really good thread with some very good advise. Another idea is to read really good essays, whether they are by a friend who is a good writer or even samples from the teacher. I wouldn't be afraid to ask for some examples from past classes. Literary writing is learning to write technically a certain way. Once you get it, you'll start to improve.