WRITING THAT ANALYTICAL ESSAY

Table of contents

• How to Write an Analytical Essay
• What is an Analytical Essay?
• Analytical Essay Topics and Ideas
• Different Types of Analytical Essays
  • Poetry Analysis Essay
  • Rhetorical Analysis Essay
  • Literary Analysis Essay
  • Process Analysis Essay
  • Character Analysis Essay
  • Causal Analysis Essay
• Preparation: Steps Taken Before Writing Starts
• Analytical Essay Thesis
• Creating Your Analytical Essay Outline
• Additional Writing Tips
• Additional Writing Assistance

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How to Write an Analytical Essay

If you are attending a class that requires you to read a written work, watch a movie, or otherwise consume something that was created by someone else, your next step may be to write an analytical essay. Are you up for the job? This guide will provide you with all of the instructions you need to analyze the work, and compose an insightful, analytical essay. Are you ready to learn more?

What is an Analytical Essay?

The first step to writing an analytical essay is understanding what one is. An analytical essay is a paper that offers the writer’s informed observations about the themes and ideas in that work. It contains a combination of the writer’s thoughts along with references to the content itself. 

An analytical essay contains a combination of the writer’s thoughts along with references to the content itself. 

Analytical Essay Topics and Ideas

Depending on your class and the preferences of your instructor, you may or may not be given a specific topic or piece of work to examine. If the topic selection has been left to you, keep reading. This section will help you navigate that process.

Advice for Choosing an Analytical Essay Topic

Nearly any written work can be analyzed. In addition to this, nearly any topic can be discussed and related back to a written work. The most interesting analytical essays are on topics that are relevant today or make an emotional connection. Here are some examples of subject matter that can be successfully covered in an analytical paper.

• The morality and practicality of performance-enhancing drugs in professional sports
• Whether or not NCAA athletes should be paid
• Taxation of megachurches
• Differences between socialism and nationalism
• Why public good and capitalism are in conflict
• The pros and cons of gun control
• The harm done by manifest destiny
• The impact of marketing on children

Different Types of Analytical Essays

Although you can write an analysis on nearly any topic, there are generally six types of analysis that are recognized in academic writing. These will be listed below. You’ll need to have a basic understanding of each of these, as you never know when a class you are taking will require you to write one of these papers.

Although you can write an analysis on nearly any topic, there are generally six types of analysis that are recognized in academic writing

Poetry Analysis Essay

In a poetry analysis, you study a poem. That means analyzing its content, significance in a historical or cultural context, and its structure. Then, you write about it in a way that explains what you have discovered. The purpose is to communicate the message and purpose of the poem.

To write a poetry analysis, you could use the work of classic poets such as Robert Frost or Emily Dickinson. It can also be a worthwhile exercise to analyze the works of current poets such as Claudia Rankine, Natasha Tretheway, or Cathy Park Hong. One of the great things about writing a poetry analysis is that you can find works that cover virtually any topic or sentiment.

Rhetorical Analysis Essay

A rhetorical analysis is written to provide an argument for something that is widely considered to be factual. If you are writing a rhetorical essay, it’s a bit like proving something to someone who simply hasn’t encountered it or is skeptical. These papers are often written on subjects related to science and math. They can be used to deepen or prove the writer’s understanding of a topic,

Rhetorical analysis papers could be written on the existence of gravity, geometrical proofs, or the fundamentals of economics. Any topic that is widely considered ‘settled’ is possible fodder for an analytical essay.

Writing a rhetorical essay is a bit like proving something to someone who simply hasn’t encountered it or is skeptical

Literary Analysis Essay

A literary analysis is based on written work. It will frequently focus on one specific element of that work. For example, a pivotal piece of dialogue, a quote, or the use of a specific location. Your goal will be to analyze that, and its impact on the storyline.

The purpose of this analysis is to dig deep. For example, your paper might explore the motivations of a character. An analytical essay example for a literary analysis might include:

• The role of race in social hierarchies.
• What drives Draco Malfoy to behave the way he does.
• How the pursuit of peace and safety impacts liberty and freedom.

Process Analysis Essay

A process is the action taken when something moves from one state into another by going through several stages of change. To explain this change thoroughly, you write a process analysis essay. In this analysis paper example, you would explain both the transformation itself and the purpose of the transformation through the paragraphs in your essay.

Here are some examples of popular process analysis essay topics:

• How to change the oil in a car.
• How to prepare a dish.
• How to get ready for college.
• Explain the water cycle.

Character Analysis Essay

In many of the best written works, the most interesting element is the development of the characters. That’s true for both modern and classic literature. Things that can be analyzed would be the character traits, moral compass, maturation, respectability, personality, and the characters' world view. In this analysis essay, you provide an explanation of the character’s development based on the changes they go through as the story unfolds:

Here are some examples:

• Examine how a character matures in the face of a tragic circumstance.
• Explore the redemption of an ‘evil’ character.
• Discuss the maturation of a character in a series of written works.

Causal Analysis Essay

Here, the question you answer is why? These papers are often speculative. You usually describe something that happens in a written work, then you provide an insightful explanation as to why. These are often written about real-life topics. Here are some examples:

• What causes random violence to spike at certain times of the year.
• Why do people riot after sporting events.
• How is our flight or fight response triggered?
• What drives someone to buy a product after seeing an advertisement?

The examples above are just some of the different types of analytical essays that can be written. What they do have in common is that many of them follow the same format.

Preparation: Steps Taken Before Writing Starts

Before you begin working on your analysis essay outline, let alone writing your essay, you should be ready to take several steps in preparation for writing your essay. To prepare for the writing process, consider taking the following steps:

1. Refer to this guide as a helpful primer and refresher.
2. Select the topic for your paper if that has not been done for you.
3. Write a title that is catchy and interesting and doesn’t simply repeat the topic.
4. Read or watch the relevant material and take notes.
5. Locate and read complementary material. For example, the author’s backstory if it is relevant, or historical information about the setting of a novel.
6. Organize your notes in a way that works with your learning style.
7. Formulate a thesis that you can defend.
8. Write an outline.

Analytical Essay Thesis

This is the argument that you will support in your essay. You will present your thesis statement at the start of your paper. You will then support it using some combination of information from the work you are analyzing, facts, statistics, and research papers. If you are working on a scientific topic, you will have to employ the scientific method in order to ensure that your paper passes muster.

With the exception of a rhetorical analysis, your thesis should be something that is up for debate. It’s okay to have strong, even controversial opinions. However, you must back up your assertions with facts from acceptable sources.

Your thesis should do one of the following:

• Categorize things or provide reasons for them.
• State an opinion.
• Emphasize something of note about a particular topic.

Creating Your Analytical Essay Outline

Your outline will allow you to create your analytical essay structure and organize your thoughts. The number of paragraphs that will result from your essay will depend on the assignment. However, five is a common number.

The structure of your essay will begin with your introduction. If you want to learn how to start an analysis essay, this is where you begin. You should start with a hook. This could be a fact or anecdote that is relevant to the topic. Next, you will introduce the topic and its context. Finally, you will state your thesis.

Your body paragraphs will be where you state and support single elements that prove your thesis to be correct. These should be based on solid evidence.

Finally, your concluding paragraph will show how your separate arguments combine together to prove your point. 

Additional Writing Tips

Here are some tips that can help you learn how to write an analysis paper.

• Take time in finding the ideal topic. Make sure it is relevant to your class, interesting, and that you can find plenty of resources for research.
• Spelling and grammar are important. Make your ideas more credible by presenting them in a neat, and easy to read format.
• Follow the directives of your specified essay format (MLA, APA, Chicago, Turabian)

Additional Writing Assistance

As always, we are happy to provide any assistance you need on your analytical essay assignment. Simply contact us or place an order to get the help you need.