Literary Analysis Essay Structure for the Great Gatsby Snapshot Essay

Literary Analysis Essay Structure for the Great Gatsby Snapshot Essay

Literary Analysis Essay Structure for The Great Gatsby “snapshot” essay

Sample sentences for you to emulate:

For example, when Miss Wilcox comes to Mattie’s house to talk to Pa about Mattie going to college, Mattie thinks to herself, “My heart had sunk to someplace down around my ankles. Miss Wilcox meant well, I knew she did, but I also knew Pa. She’d never get him to say yes; she’d only rile him” (Donnelly 165).

If it’s dialogue, it will be written the same way:

On Mattie’s first day working at the Glenmore, she receives a tip and Weaver explains to her, “It’s called a tip. They leave it for good service. You get to keep it” (Donnelly 245).

If dialogue appears within a larger quote, use single quotes to set off the dialogue.

“I shook free of him, stumbled to the dresser, and poured another cup of tea. ‘You drink this, Pa!’ I shouted at him. ‘Right now! You stop your nonsense and drink this tea!’” (Donnelly 291)

Use your resources for assistance!!

Remember, you’re analyzing one of the following literary techniques:

Foreshadowing

Figurative Language

Symbolism

Characterization

Irony

Introduction

  1. Literary attention-getting opener + MLA citation (if needed; dependent on opener)
  2. Explanation of opener with connection to topic/thesis
  3. Brief summary of novel, connecting opener tothesis (3 sentences)
  4. Thesis statement

Sample Thesis: Fitzgerald uses characterization to prove the society of the 1920’s is violent.

Make sure to mention the literary technique you’re analyzing in your essay and include a “so what”—so what is Fitzgerald trying to prove about society of the 1920s through that literary technique?

Body Paragraph Structure:(T = Transition; DTE= Direct Textual Evidence; MLA= Author and page number)

  1. Transition + Topic Sentence
  2. T + Context + DTE + MLA
  3. Significance of 2 (How does it support the thesis? So what, does it show?)
  4. T + Context + DTE + MLA
  5. Significance of 4 (How does it support the thesis? So what, does it show?)
  6. T + Context + DTE + MLA
  7. Significance of 6 (How does it support the thesis? So what, does it show?)
  8. T + Context + DTE + MLA
  9. Significance of 8 (How does it support the thesis? So what, does it show?)
  10. Transition, Concluding Sentence (Sum up what the paragraph shows)

Conclusion

  1. Restate thesis statement (not verbatim)
  2. Summarize body paragraph
  3. Transition, concluding thought regarding topic of paper and American Society – so what does this paper prove about the American Society?
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