Quote Analysis

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Review: The format of an essay

Intro Paragraph: although you do not need to have a whole intro

paragraph with IN CLASS ESSAYS, it is required for take homes

ends with the thesis statement

Body Paragraphs: Claim(states ONE main idea to prove your thesis). Transitions into text (book) to narrow your focus. Gives direct evidence (support) from the book Analyzes the evidence to connect to thesis

May provide a few different pieces of support, with multiple sentence of analysis

Writing an essay

We have already talked about how to write the thesis based on theme

The next task is to divide your big idea into small ideas called claims. These are theme-based and should answer how or why your thesis is true

Then, you need to prove your idea with evidence from the book

Finally explain your evidence and apply the information to come to an idea about it—this is the analysis

Analysis

When you hear this word, what do you think of?

Dictionary Definition: the process of breaking a complex topic into smaller parts to gain a better understanding of it

How does this apply to an essay? Complex Topic=Theme Smaller Parts=Points to Prove Thesis (Claims) Better Understanding: Your explanation and evidence

Analysis vs Summary

So often in essays, I see students choosing good quotes (like the ones you have all chosen during last night’s reading)

What happens is that when you plug these into your essays, you simply summarize that quote instead of analyze the quote

Avoid summary!

“Siobhan understands. When she tells me not to do something she tells me exactly what it is that I am not allowed to do. And I like this” (Haddon 29). Here, Christopher is discussing that he needs exact directions or instructions because he literally can’t understand abstract ideas. Siobhan, his mentor, knows him the best and helps Christopher to comprehend difficult ideas.

What is the problem with this?This is information we already know. Look at the first

sentence after the quote… This author has simply summarized the quote-NO! NO!

Look the at the next sentence… Again, this is info we know because we have read the book. We

KNOW Siobhan is his friend, and we KNOW that she helps him. This author hasn’t answered the SO WHAT?!

What is the SO WHAT?

The SO WHAT part of the essay is the analysis. This author chose the quote for a specific reason—it was important in some way. Was this author able to convey why this quote was important? HECK NO! He just re-told us info that we knew.

SO WHAT SHOULD HE HAVE DONE? He needs to answer the SO WHAT? Why is this quote

important? What does it prove? What does it show? How does it give the reader insight into the plot and/or characters?

There needs to be something new added—proof of THOUGHT!

Let’s Fix It

“Siobhan understands. When she tells me not to do something she tells me exactly what it is that I am not allowed to do. And I like this” (Haddon 29).

Remember, do not summarize. Think about this quote’s importance. Again,

what does it prove? Why is it important? What insight does it provide the reader?

Let’s Share! First, share your analysis with a partner. Next, I’d like a few volunteers to share with the class.

Partner Practice

“Father said, ‘We all make mistakes, Christopher. You, me, your mum, everyone. And sometimes they’re really big mistakes. We’re only human’” (Haddon 122).

Let’s Share! You cannot say “this quotes proves/shows,

etc”

Individual Practice

Just like these last two quotes were chosen for a reason, so were the quotes you chose last night. Never, ever forget…Your job as a writer is to effectively explain

that importance. Look over your “significance” section. Did

you summarize or analyze?

To achieve this… Break down the quote first, relate and analyze the impact

on the text Then apply it to the claim (which, in turn, supports your

thesis) Remember, all your evidence (quotes), support your claim!

“Father said, ‘We all make mistakes, Christopher. You, me, your mum, everyone. And sometimes they’re really big mistakes. We’re only human’” (Haddon 122). Christopher’s father is highlighting for Christopher that everyone makes mistakes, and although some may be bigger than others, we must forgive the ones we love. This, according to Haddon, is the only way to move forward in our relationships.

Day two

Get out your Of Mice and Men essayCircle your thesis statement: is there a

thematic root? Judgment?Underline all your claims (remember, these

are NOT plot based sentences, rather they set up the analysis by breaking the thesis into smaller parts)

Highlight all the elements of summary

What do you notice about your essay?

Day 3--quiz

You may write mini-paragraphs if you want to, but you can also just analyze the quote If you want to write a claim, intro the quote, add the

quote, and then analyze, you may

Analyze means break it down and then apply Don’t just write broad statements It is ok to mention the characters’ names, etc, but

remember to go beyond what happens in the story