Literary Analysis of Romeo and Juliet REVISING THE ESSAY Literary Analysis of Romeo and Juliet

Diagram of the 5-paragraph essay COMPOSITION Diagram of the 5-paragraph essay

FORMAT

HEADING Use a proper heading John Student English 1 – B1 Mr. Rose February 28, 2011 Your Title Goes Here

Remember to Double-Space FORMAT Remember to Double-Space Your heading should be single-spaced But the essay itself should always be double-spaced.

Always Give Your Essay a Title The title of your essay should: Reflect the content of your essay Include the name (or author) of the text Centered (rather than aligned left) The title of your essay should NOT: Be underlined or have quotation marks Except for those words that are in the title of a book or story.

Always Give Your Essay a Title Examples: Romeo and Juliet: An Ironic Tragedy Love and Hate in Romeo and Juliet Star-Crossed Lovers

Include Title and Author INTRODUCTION Include Title and Author Your introduction should include the author’s full name and the title of the story, novel, play, etc. Short story titles should be in quotations marks. Titles of novels and plays get underlined instead. Examples: In William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet… Romeo and Juliet, one of William Shakespeare’s most enduring plays…

Give Some Background on Story INTRODUCTION Give Some Background on Story Your introduction paragraph should give enough background about the story so that the reader understands the context for your thesis. Example: If your thesis is about the effects of a vendetta, you’ll need to explain that the Montagues and Capulets have had a longstanding family feud – and define what a vendetta is.

Make a Strong, Clear Claim THESIS Make a Strong, Clear Claim Your THESIS should: be stated in a single sentence include a “method of development” be the final sentence in your first paragraph Example: “In Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare uses situational, dramatic, and verbal irony to enhance the suspense in this story of star-crossed lovers.”

SUPPORTS Supporting Your Claim Each support paragraph: illustrates, explains, or proves your main claim – the thesis. contains and details a particular point that relates to the main claim. includes a topic sentence that supports the thesis statement. Provides examples and quotations from the text.

SUPPORTS Supporting Your Claim Situational Irony Example 1(with explanation) Example 2 Example 3 Dramatic Irony Verbal Irony

Use Quotations from the Story This is an excellent way to illustrate your major supports. Get in the habit of using at least one important quotation in each body paragraph. Example: Romeo describes the emotional pain of love: “Is love a tender thing? It is too rough, / Too rude, too bois’trous and it pricks like thorn” (1.4.25-26). Beware: Do not use extensive quotations – keep to short ones.

Add Some Insight to the Conclusion Don’t just restate your thesis. An effective conclusion: reminds readers of the main point summarizes and reinforces the support paragraphs provides an insight beyond restating the thesis

Always Write in the Third Person Avoid using the first person “I” and “we,” “me” and “us” Avoid: We can clearly see that Romeo is acting irrationally. Improved: Romeo is acting irrationally.

Always Write in the Third Person Avoid the use of second person “you”. Stay in the third person. Avoid: This would lead you to believe Romeo is as fickle as he is rash. Improved: The scene at the Capulet’s masquerade ball shows that Romeo is as fickle as he is rash.

LANGUAGE Use Formal Language …and avoid using colloquial or slang expressions. Avoid: “Romeo has a little problem. How do I put this lightly? He’s lovesick.” Avoid: Something is seriously wrong here. Let me clear it up for you. Avoid: Romeo can be an idiot at times

TENSE Use the Present Tense Use the literary present tense when writing of events in the story – not past tense. Avoid: After Romeo killed Tybalt, Benvolio advised him to leave the town square immediately. Correct: After Romeo kills Tybalt, Benvolio advises him to leave the town square immediately.

Read the Workshop Model EXAMPLE Read the Workshop Model This Powerpoint presentation is meant to be an aid to writing an effective literary analysis essay. Review the “Writing Workshop” chapter in your literature book (pages 926-933). Read the “Workshop Model” essay on page 930.

Assignment: Essay Revision In Class Today Work on revision of your essay See me with any questions March 15/16 (Thu./Fr.) Revision due – printed out