WEIGHT: 20% Instructions: • Choose ONE of the questions below to answer. • Your paper should be 2 to 3 double spaced pages (NOT including the cover page and reference list). Papers of less than two full pages of content will not be eligible for a passing grade. • Remember, a critical analysis is NOT a summary of the text; instead, you should analyze the work. Consult the guidelines below when planning your analysis. • You must quote and paraphrase from the text in your analysis, using correct APA in-text citations. • DO NOT use any sources for this paper other than the readings and your own thoughts and ideas. • If you do use another source for any reason, it MUST be cited and referenced properly. If you are found to have used any outside sources without citing and referencing, you will receive 0 for this assignment. Assignment Questions (choose ONE): 1. Compare the representation of aging in “Half as Much” and “Miss Julianne”. Consider both similarities and differences in your analysis. 2. Compare the narrative perspective (the point of view of the character telling the story) in “Half as Much” and “The Shawl”. How do the narrators’ voices and perspectives influence your understanding of the story? 3. Compare the relationship between older and younger generations in “Half as Much” and “The Shawl”. Consider both similarities and differences in your analysis. Critical (Literary) Analysis Essay Definition: A critical analysis essay is a focused piece of writing that analyzes a literary work (or works, in this case). It should reflect critically (which is not the same thing as criticizing) on the text and make connections between the ideas, characters, or perspectives presented in the two texts. Structure: 1. Short introductory paragraph. Explain what your main point is and introduce the work you will be talking about. ▪ Thesis: The first or last sentence in your introduction. It should tell the reader what you main point (or argument) about the text is. This should be the controlling idea for the whole essay and should be very specific. 2. Two or three paragraphs of analysis. You may want to divide these by having a paragraph for each story OR by having a paragraph for similarities and a paragraph for differences. ▪ Use specific examples (quotations and paraphrases) to support your points. 3. Brief Conclusion that sums up what you’ve said in the essay. Guidelines for Writing a Critical Analysis Essay 1. To write an effective critical analysis, you must first be sure that you understand the question that has been posed, and all literary terms that you have been asked to address. Once you feel you understand the question, reread the piece of literature, making notes. Then look at the notes you’ve made, consider what connections you can make between observations, and reconsider the question. Try to formulate a rough thesis statement (your “claim”). Now try to select those pieces of evidence that you feel you can most convincingly use to support the claim you made. Next, try to formulate a good introduction, that • names the work discussed and the author. • is specific about the topic you will address • provides a thesis statement that answers the essay question posed and • indicates the way you plan to develop your argument (support your claim). 2. Analytical essays normally use the present tense. When talking about a text, write about it in the present tense. 3. Do not use slang or colloquial language (the language of informal speech). 4. Do not use contractions. 5. Create an original title, do not use the title of the text. 6. Analysis does not mean retelling the story. Many students fall into the trap of telling the reader what is happening in the text instead of analyzing it. Analysis aims to explain how the writer makes us see what he or she wants us to see, the effect of the writing techniques, the text’s themes and your personal response to these. Adapted from https://www.mun.ca/writingcentre/resources/modelessay/index.php