CEAL Paragraphs
A CEAL paragraph is a format that helps guide you in your literary analysis writing. It is an acronym for:
Claim - otherwise known as the topic sentence. This is the paragraph's central focus, what you are trying to prove within the paragraph. It is always related to your thesis.
Evidence - examples that help prove the main idea (and, in a longer paper, the thesis). In an English paper, your evidence is generally made up of quotations from the text. For a history paper, you might be using a quotation or paraphrased fact. REMEMBER: EACH SOURCE MUST BE CITED AND CREDIBLE!!!
Do not place a quotation alone as a sentence. Be sure to give some context that explains to the reader how/where the quotation fits into the story.
Analysis - This section is the most important part of the paragraph; it is where you dig deep into your evidence and explain how and why it proves your thesis.
“Quote-suckers” (specific words or phrases from quotations) can be extremely useful when analyzing.
Transcend what the quotation, or any other from of evidence, says and explain connections that you personally come up with.
REMEMBER: EXPLAIN HOW AND WHY!!!
Last Thought/Linking Sentence - If you're just writing a paragraph, use this sentence to restate the Main Idea (in a different way!) and wrap up your thoughts. For a longer paper, connect your main idea back to your paper's thesis. Sometimes teachers will tell you to transition to the next paragraph's idea.
Here is an example of a CEAL paragraph:
In the novel, The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, Myrtle Wilson demonstrates how members of the lower class cannot achieve the American Dream. Myrtle, a working class citizen, associates herself with the wealthy in order to appear rich. During her apartment party, Myrtle changes into a party dress and, “with the influence of the dress her personality had also undergone a change. The intense vitality that had been so remarkable in the garage was converted to impressive hauteur…until she seemed to be revolving on a noisy, creaking pivot through the smoky air” (Fitzgerald 39-40). Myrtle strives to be someone she is not by changing into an outfit she thinks implies she is wealthy. She tries to be rich by dressing the part, but the poor side of Myrtle still lurks within her, as displayed through the term, “smoky air.” “Smoky air” relates to the Valley of Ashes, yet at this point in the novel, Myrtle is in New York. By revealing that the “smoky air” of the Valley of Ashes follows Myrtle to New York, a wealthier location, Fitzgerald demonstrates how simply associating with the wealthy is not enough for Myrtle to actually obtain the American Dream. Her attempt to transcend class structures ultimately leads to her death, which reveals that the working class cannot grasp the American Dream.
Red: Claim
Green: Evidence
Blue: Analysis
Black: Last Thought
Claim - otherwise known as the topic sentence. This is the paragraph's central focus, what you are trying to prove within the paragraph. It is always related to your thesis.
Evidence - examples that help prove the main idea (and, in a longer paper, the thesis). In an English paper, your evidence is generally made up of quotations from the text. For a history paper, you might be using a quotation or paraphrased fact. REMEMBER: EACH SOURCE MUST BE CITED AND CREDIBLE!!!
Do not place a quotation alone as a sentence. Be sure to give some context that explains to the reader how/where the quotation fits into the story.
Analysis - This section is the most important part of the paragraph; it is where you dig deep into your evidence and explain how and why it proves your thesis.
“Quote-suckers” (specific words or phrases from quotations) can be extremely useful when analyzing.
Transcend what the quotation, or any other from of evidence, says and explain connections that you personally come up with.
REMEMBER: EXPLAIN HOW AND WHY!!!
Last Thought/Linking Sentence - If you're just writing a paragraph, use this sentence to restate the Main Idea (in a different way!) and wrap up your thoughts. For a longer paper, connect your main idea back to your paper's thesis. Sometimes teachers will tell you to transition to the next paragraph's idea.
Here is an example of a CEAL paragraph:
In the novel, The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, Myrtle Wilson demonstrates how members of the lower class cannot achieve the American Dream. Myrtle, a working class citizen, associates herself with the wealthy in order to appear rich. During her apartment party, Myrtle changes into a party dress and, “with the influence of the dress her personality had also undergone a change. The intense vitality that had been so remarkable in the garage was converted to impressive hauteur…until she seemed to be revolving on a noisy, creaking pivot through the smoky air” (Fitzgerald 39-40). Myrtle strives to be someone she is not by changing into an outfit she thinks implies she is wealthy. She tries to be rich by dressing the part, but the poor side of Myrtle still lurks within her, as displayed through the term, “smoky air.” “Smoky air” relates to the Valley of Ashes, yet at this point in the novel, Myrtle is in New York. By revealing that the “smoky air” of the Valley of Ashes follows Myrtle to New York, a wealthier location, Fitzgerald demonstrates how simply associating with the wealthy is not enough for Myrtle to actually obtain the American Dream. Her attempt to transcend class structures ultimately leads to her death, which reveals that the working class cannot grasp the American Dream.
Red: Claim
Green: Evidence
Blue: Analysis
Black: Last Thought
Topic and Concluding Setences
The Main Idea is often referred to as the TOPIC SENTENCE of the paragraph. The main purpose of the topic sentence is to tell the reader what you are going to prove in your paragraph, and how it relates to your thesis. Having a strong and clear topic sentence helps keep the paper focused on proving your thesis.
The Last Thought is often referred to as the CONCLUDING SENTENCE of the paragraph. The main purpose of the concluding sentence is to wrap up what you have proven in your paragraph by relating the main argument to the thesis.
The Last Thought is often referred to as the CONCLUDING SENTENCE of the paragraph. The main purpose of the concluding sentence is to wrap up what you have proven in your paragraph by relating the main argument to the thesis.