gentlemantown asked: I really hate to be a bother, but you guys have given out some absolutely fabulous advice. <3 Do you have any tips on analytical essays? Maybe some things you have done yourself/yourselves? I guess that's not related to original stories, but.. yeah. Thanks in advance! You obviously don't have to respond right away. Feel free to take your time, I know you guys are busy. :) ❤

Tazzy: Absolutely any messages about writing are fine here, whether it’s about fiction, non-fiction, essays- anything, really! :) We’re here to help, so that’s what we’ll do.

Anyway. I have utterly no clue at what level you’re writing essays at, but all I can really offer you is the advice that every teacher churns out (to me, at least!).

You’ve got to P.E.E.

Funny little acronym, but (if you aren’t already aware) it stands for “Point, Evidence/Example, Explain.” When you’re analysing something, you’ve got to make a point, use a quotation to prove your point, and then elaborate what this quotation shows/what effect it has.

Now, I’ve written quite a few analytical essays, but my most recent ones have been done by hand and I don’t have any paper copies. Due to this, the example I’m about to give is from a piece I did when I was 14/15 as it’s one of the few essays I have on my laptop. If you’re older than that, you’ll have to go into more depth with your analysis. (And as you’re probably aware, I’m English, so chances are that things are marked differently in different countries- but here it is anyway.) The piece was about Jessie Pope’s Who’s For The Game?in comparison to war poems by Wilfred Owen, if you were wondering:

There is an extended metaphor of war being a game, which is of course an idealistic view- it is far from reality. (This is my Point.) ’Who’s for the game, the biggest that’s played, / The red crashing game of a fight?’ (My Evidence/Example.) In the latter sentence, there is an oxymoron for calling a ‘fight’ a ‘game’, and it ends on a questioning note, rhetorical questions used repetitively to stir emotions in the reader, asking them questions and attempting to persuade them to sign up for the army. This is the extended metaphor throughout the poem, as she refers to war as a game in more than one sense. (Part of my Explanation, but I cut it short as I rambled to seem as if I had done more work.)

 In your elaboration, you should identify any literary devices the author has used and what effect it has on the audience. You should refer back to the quotation you’ve used and embed parts of it into your explanation (we were constantly reminded to embed things). Of course, you main quotation doesn’t have to be written in the way shown in the example above- I could have phrased much more effectively and taken the quotation apart as I went, instead of quoting it all at once. (What can I say; I was a terrible student like that :’D).

Other than that, you might want to add in context. If you’re analysing a historical piece or something set in a certain timeframe, chances are that you are marked for historical context. I suggest you get a mark scheme or similar and see exactly where it is you can pick up marks, and identify places where you think you might fall short. Talk to you teachers/tutor about it, I’m sure they can help you much more effectively than I’ve been able to! :’D Best to go to the fonts of knowledge, right?

Either way, I hope I helped. If I just re-elaborated what you’ve already been told to do, I apologise :/ Message us again for further help, if you need it! ♥