How to Write an Analytical Essay
Make sure you have a strong thesis that you can prove with your evidence.
For analytical writing, focus on the “how” or the “why” of your arguments. Be sure to interpret and analyze rather than summarize! Your teacher wants you to go beyond just understanding plot or what's happened in history; use the plot or historical facts to prove your own ideas!
Your analysis of evidence (in an English paper, quotations from the text; in a history paper, historical information; etc.) should serve as a link. When analyzing, it's your job to explain how the evidence you have chosen links back to the thesis.
Avoid personal pronouns (I, me, my, you, we, us, your) in academic writing unless your teacher tells you it's OK to use them.
Avoid editorializing, or giving your opinion on whether the text/author is good/talented. Focus on the prompt and your arguments instead!
TENSE
- For English papers, always use the literary present tense. For example, when writing about "The Scarlet Ibis," you'd explain that Doodle dies, not that he died.
- For history essays, you can use the past tense. So, you'd explain that Marie Antoinette was beheaded because it happened a long time ago!
- If you're referencing a historical event in an English paper, you can use the past tense. However, be sure to switch back to present tense when discussing literature!
Ex: William Shakespeare wrote Romeo and Juliet. In the play, the two teenagers fall in love.
For analytical writing, focus on the “how” or the “why” of your arguments. Be sure to interpret and analyze rather than summarize! Your teacher wants you to go beyond just understanding plot or what's happened in history; use the plot or historical facts to prove your own ideas!
Your analysis of evidence (in an English paper, quotations from the text; in a history paper, historical information; etc.) should serve as a link. When analyzing, it's your job to explain how the evidence you have chosen links back to the thesis.
Avoid personal pronouns (I, me, my, you, we, us, your) in academic writing unless your teacher tells you it's OK to use them.
Avoid editorializing, or giving your opinion on whether the text/author is good/talented. Focus on the prompt and your arguments instead!
TENSE
- For English papers, always use the literary present tense. For example, when writing about "The Scarlet Ibis," you'd explain that Doodle dies, not that he died.
- For history essays, you can use the past tense. So, you'd explain that Marie Antoinette was beheaded because it happened a long time ago!
- If you're referencing a historical event in an English paper, you can use the past tense. However, be sure to switch back to present tense when discussing literature!
Ex: William Shakespeare wrote Romeo and Juliet. In the play, the two teenagers fall in love.