As you're all aware, the Critical Analysis is due Saturday 12/3. While your Critical Analysis is a bit different than the standard essay paper (click on the Critical Analysis link on the tabbed menu above if you haven't already), many of the points made in the advice I give students when writing a typical essay paper apply. Therefore, I'm including my advice on how to write more effective essays below.
How to Write More Effective Essays
1) Have an interesting title. Think of the title appearing in a Table of Contents. Would your title entice a reader to choose it first to read?
2) In screenplays we call the first five minutes the hook. They tell screenwriters that if you can't hook the reader of the screenplay in the first five pages, agents and studio readers often won't read any further. The same approach applies to an essay. Your introductory paragraph is your hook. You need to grab your audience's attention. Use the trick screenwriters do...start in medias res (the middle of things). This forces your audience to catch up and draws them into your paper. Finally, most teachers will tell you that they can recognize an A paper in the first paragraph. Ask yourself, is this an A intro?
3) Deeper is better than broader in analysis. A common error in student essays is that the writer tries to cover too much material in a relatively short essay. It is preferable to focus on a specific/narrower topic and explore it in greater depth than to provide a broad but shallow analysis.
4) When writing about literature or film, be sure to give your reader enough context to understand what's going on even if they have not read the book or seen the film. The ultimate goal is to write publishable essays and you can't assume that everyone in your audience will have read the text or seen the film recently enough to remember everything.
5) Make sure that you get the details correct. For example, you should know that all movie titles are italicized. Also, getting a title or character wrong in your essay ruins your credibility. Imagine if you are reading an essay about Star Wars that constantly refers to the film as Star Trek. How much confidence would you have in the writer?
6) Eliminate all the boring parts. Don't tell me "This essay is about . . . ." Your writing should not sound like a five paragraph essay that you wrote in high school. So don't tell me what it is about or what you are going to cover. Just get to the interesting stuff.
7) Support, support, support. You must support your analysis with the three E's: evidence, examples, and experts.
8) Use metaphors. As humans we think metaphorically. Therefore, if you want to communicate effectively and efficiently, metaphors are like having a brilliant translator at your side when visiting a country where you don't speak the language.
9) Your papers should have perfect mechanics. Use spell check, grammar check, and have someone else read your paper. You don't want to distract your reader with easily correctable errors. Besides, these types of errors tell the reader that you don't care. And if you don't care, then why should the professor care about giving you a good grade?
10) Your conclusion is typically the last thing read before your paper is graded. Just as introductions are critical, so are conclusions. It should be the strongest part of your paper. And do not simply repeat what you've already said. The five paragraph essay should be dead to you.
11) When writing your essay, you don't have to write it in order. It's fine to start with a body paragraph and to even leave notes for yourself in the draft like "I need to get a good quote here" or "I need to research x." Simply getting started on an essay can build positive momentum.
12) Give yourself enough time for a rewrite. Just about everyone will write a better paper if given the opportunity to rewrite it. Professional writers know this, so should you.
13) Finally, pick a topic that you find interesting and try to make your paper entertaining as well as informative. Typically, people do not spend enough time coming up with a good idea. You should always force yourself to come up with, at least, five ideas. If you do this, often you'll find that your first idea was not the best. And don't be afraid to let your voice come through in your essay. Remember, no one wants to write or read a boring paper.
Good Luck!
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