English 1121 -- Analyzing a Personal Essay -- Spring 2008

English 1121: College Writing and Critical Reading

Spring 2008 / Sections 06 and 18

Essay #2 -- Analyzing a Piece of Personal Writing

Writing Assignment:

Write an essay of 3-4 pages in which you analyze one piece of personal writing (chosen from the six we read as a class) by doing some research to find out more about (1) the writer's life, (2) other things the writer has written, (3) his/her writing process, (4) his/her philosophy about writing, (5) his/her ideas about memory, memoir, and personal writing, (6) his/her writing style, characteristics, trademarks, etc. The question behind this analytical essay might be: How does knowledge about the writer's life, other pieces of his/her writing, and his/her ideas about writing allow you to better study, understand, and appreciate his/her personal essay?

Defining Some Terms:

When we summarize another piece of writing, we break it down into its major units of information to be able to write a condensed version containing only the main ideas of the piece. (If you decide to summarize the essay before you analyze it, your summary should be no longer than one paragraph -- or perhaps summarize the essay as part of your introduction.) When we analyze another piece of writing, we break it down into parts, sometimes into its informational parts, other times into its structural and/or technical parts, to be able to see each part clearly and to see how the parts relate to each other and work together to achieve the overall effect; in other words, we seek to determine what the writer does and why he/she does it that way (or, how the writer's "choices" help him/her to accomplish his/her purpose for his/her chosen audience). When we evaluate another piece of writing, we judge it by looking for its strengths and weaknesses; we look for what the writer does very well and what we admire about the writing as well as what we feel detracts from the writing. In essay #2, analyze, don't evaluate (though a brief evaluation might be an effective conclusion strategy).

Doing the Research:

Challenge yourself, and challenge your reader, by picking some things that are not only interesting but are really worth exploring. Remember: the best academic writing makes the familiar strange and creates new knowledge about everyday life. You won't be able to do this if you always take the easy way out and pick the most obvious things.

To aid you in writing your analysis, you must also do some research on the writer and find at least six (6) sources which provide you with information about the writer. Look for both "primary" and "secondary" sources:

PRIMARY SOURCES: (1) other personal or autobiographical pieces that the writer has written, (2) other pieces that the writer has written about writing (process, philosophy, goals, audience, style, etc.), and (3) interviews with the writer.
SECONDARY SOURCES: (1) biographical pieces about the writer, (2) analyses of the writer, and (3) evaluations or reviews of the writer's books.

Strive for a variety of researched sources -- a mix of primary and secondary, a mix of print and electronic, etc. Then, use at least three (3) of these sources to write your analysis of your chosen essay.

The reason I’m asking you to do research as you write your analysis is to encourage you to find some good ideas for your analysis. Perhaps you find a biographical source that discusses the writer’s personal background and/or writing process; then ask yourself, are there ideas in that source that you can apply to your own analysis? Or, you might find another piece your chosen writer has written; by comparing that selection with the selection in our text that you've chosen, do you see anything that might lead to a path of analysis?

Keeping Track of Your Sources:

When you find your sources, you must print or photocopy them (if the source is a book, copy the title and copyright pages, and the pages you read) and be sure you have the following information for each source:

the author’s name.
the title of the "source" -- a chapter, an essay, an article, a webpage, etc.
the title of the “larger thing" that contained the source -- a book, a magazine, a newspaper, a journal, a website, etc.
the original publication information of the source -- city, publisher, copyright date, etc.
the date you printed the source, if it is an electronic source.
the web address of the source, if it is from the internet; or the name of the database and/or library, if it is another kind of electronic source; or the location in the library, if it is a print source.

You will need all of these items as you compile your working bibliographies and works cited pages. In addition, I will require you to submit the sources you use in your analysis with the final draft of your essay.

Formatting Requirements:

Your essay should be at least three (3) pages but no longer than five (5) pages -- double-spaced and word-processed -- with 1.0-1.25” margins, and a 12-point “normal” font (Arial or Calibri). No title page is needed; put your name, the course, my name, and the date in the upper left-hand corner of the first page (see LBB on pages 41-43 and 521-530 for a picture of what the format should look like).

Evaluation:

When I grade your essay, I will look for:

an introduction which clearly identifies the author and personal essay you are focusing on, and which clearly states the focus and perhaps the direction of the essay. Think of your introduction as a promise you are making to your readers -- it's what you hope to accomplish, show, or prove -- and the body of your essay needs to deliver on that promise.
Several body paragraphs which analyze different aspects of the writer and essay you are focusing on. Each body paragraph should focus on one main idea, it should include details from the essay you are focusing on, it should include your own critical thinking about the aspect under analysis, and it should possibly include information from one or more research sources which support the point you are trying to make. Finally, your readers should be able to move clearly and smoothly from paragraph to paragraph.
A conclusion that brings things together in a satisfying way. A typical conclusion restates the focus or central idea (and perhaps the main ideas) of the essay, but a really good conclusion keeps readers thinking long after they put down the essay.
A pleasing style, an attention to sentences and words, that shows you care about what you are writing about. Sentences should be clear and complete, they should not be "comma splices" or "run ons," and fragments should be used sparingly and only for emphasis. Words should be carefully chosen, vivid, and used correctly -- remember, words can be spelled correctly but they might not be the right word.

Any questions?