An analysis paper is quite similar to a critique in that you are breaking down a text. However, whereas in a critique you evaluate or judge the text, in an analysis you are more interested in showing how a text works so that your reader can appreciate what you see. Like an argumentative paper or a critique, your analysis should be centered around a thesis. Literary analysis generally focuses on literary techniques such as characterization, imagery, tone, irony, plot structure, or diction and how these contribute to the meaning or theme of a text. Analysis of non-fiction may center more on the examples in a text, or the approach taken by the author to convey his or her point.

The structure of an analysis paper, like other academic essays, is traditionally three-part: an introduction in which you introduce the source text(s) you are analyzing, and present your thesis; body paragraphs in which you support and explain your analysis with specific evidence from the source text(s) that you explain clearly and fully, and a conclusion that wraps up your paper, perhaps reiterates your thesis (though not word for word!), and leaves your reader with something to think about.

Examples

• Analysis (of non-fiction) Essay written by a Chabot student
• Literary Analysis Essay written by a Chabot student