Literary Analysis Revisions

1. Literary Analysis Revisions Day One

2. The “You” Factor • Like first person pronouns (I, we, me, my, us), “you” also has no place in formal, academic writing • “You” addresses the reader in too casual a manner • Even your hook and concluding statements should avoid “you”

3. Revise To Avoid “You” • “You should lobby your local politicians, asking them to support the creation of mixed income housing.” • “Lobby local politicians, asking them to support the creation of mixed income housing.” • The author still addresses the reader, but indirectly rather than directly. You and your is implied. • Go through your essay, paragraph by paragraph, and revise your sentences to be you and your-less.

4. First Person • Right, so while we’re at it, let’s revise our essays to fully reflect third person point of view • Usually, sentences using first person pronouns can be easily revised by eliminating or adjusting the first person introductory phrase • “My quote shows that Lafeyette hardened after Craig’s death.” • “This quote shows that Lafeyette hardened after Craig’s death.” • The second example is stronger because it suggests Lafeyette’s hardening is fact, that everyone agrees with you • Take a moment to revise your essay to be first person-less

5. Present Tense • Even though TANCH’s events happened in the past, literary texts are thought to exist in the present. The “literary present”. • Therefore, your essay must use the present tense • When revising, pay close attention to your verb tenses making changes like… • shows NOT showed • changes NOT changed • is impoverished NOT was impoverished

6. Formatting • Be typed in 12 pt., Times New Roman font • Be double spaced • Include in-text citations • Include a Works Cited page • Be written from third person point of view • Include a title and a heading • Include a cover page (prompt sheet/rubric) • Spell out There Are No Children Here (capitalized AND italicized or underlined) every time you refer to it

7. Examples: When They’re Too Darn Long • If your examples are toooooo darn long, revise to only include the parts that prove your main point • When omitting unnecessary words from your quotation, use an ellipse ( . . .) to replace them • For example, if you’re trying to prove that the Henry Horner community’s safety needs are not met: • “The children had no ‘duck and cover’ drills, as in the early 1960’s, when the prospect of a nuclear war with Cuba and the Soviet Union threatened the nation. This was merely their sensible reaction to the possibility of bullets flying through the window” 66). • “The children had no ‘duck and cover’ drills . . . This was merely their sensible reaction to the possibility of bullets flying through the window” (66).

8. Examples: Quote Within a Quote • When someone speaks inside of your quoted example, you need to use single quotes • “When it was Pharoah’s turn, she noticed his stammering. ‘M-m-mymy name . . . M-m-my name is Pharoah Rivers’ he told the class” (67). • “’M-m-mymy name . . . M-m-my name is Pharoah Rivers’ he told the class” (67). • “When it was Pharoah’s turn, she noticed his stammering. ‘M-m-mymy name . . . M-m-my name is Pharoah Rivers’” (67).

9. Examples: In-Text Citations • Right. So you’ve got to give our pal, Alex Kotlowitz, formal credit since we’re quoting his work word-for-word. • This is called an “in-text citation” • Because we are only using one text to make an argument, our citations are manageable • If Alex Kotlowitz’s name is NOT mentioned before your first example, you must cite the page number AND his last name • “Like other big-city schools, Suder has experienced financial constraints” (Kotlowitz 65). • If Alex Kotlowitz’s name is mentioned before your first example, you only need to cite the page number • “Like other big-city schools, Suder has experienced financial constraints” (65).

10. Examples: In-Text Citations • In-text citations are NOT part of the quotation • However, in-text citations ARE part of the complete sentence • “Also, Suder must share a nurse and psychologist with three other schools” (65). • The page number is located after the ending quotation marks • But the page number comes before the ending punctuation (the period- duh)

11. Examples: In-Text Citations • Formatting the in-text citation is simple “Go Bears” (78). -Ending quotation mark -Space -Beginning parenthesis -Page number -Ending parenthesis -Ending punctuation

12. Works Cited Page • Yeah, so, it’s not enough to only give credit to Alex Kotlowitz within the context of your paper. • If an interested reader wants more information about your essay’s argument or the text, he/she needs to know how to find the text • Therefore, we need to compose a one-entry Works Cited page • The Works Cited Page gets its own sheet of paper- don’t be stingy. • It will follow your cover sheet and final draft • Websites like EasyBib.com help students create Works Cited pages by prompting them for the necessary information. Or, if you’re really resourceful, you can simply copy the Works Cited page example on the following slide.

13. Works Cited Kotlowitz, Alex. There Are No Children Here. New York: Anchor, 1991.

14. Works Cited Page Formatting • Notice how the title (Works Cited) is centered and capitalized • Since TANCH is a book, we include… -author’s last name, first name -title of the book -publishing city -publisher -year of publication • Indent the first line; left justify subsequent lines • No numbered entries • Alphabetized by author’s last name • Single space entries, double space between entries

15. Commentary • Remember: commentary should be AT LEAST two sentences long. Like, minimum. • The first two sentences explain the example to the reader. Assume they have not read TANCH before. • The next few sentences require brain juice. This is where YOU are explaining how your example helps prove your main point!

16. Synonyms To Use In Your Commentary • Instead of repeating “This shows, this shows, this shows” after every example, try these alternatives: • Here, Pharoah tries to convince himself, and everyone else, that he cannot comprehend what is happening. • Demonstrating his desperation to hang onto his childhood, Pharoah tries to convince himself that he is not growing up. • In this example, Pharoah fakes ignorance to avoid taking responsibility for getting older. • This quote suggests that Pharoah has developed a coping strategy to help him avoid stressful situations.

17. Restatement Of Thesis And Main Points • While we’re rephrasing to avoid redundancies, let’s talk “conclusion”. • Your conclusion requires you to rephrase your position on your topic and main points AND utilize a strategy like a call to action, coming full circle, etc. • The restatement of your thesis statement is important because it’s what you want your reader to remember. • That said, you should restate it using different language so as not to tire your thesis out.

18. Restatement Of Thesis And Main Points Thesis statement and main points in introduction: • In Alex Kotlowitz'sThere Are No Children Here, Lafeyette's broken value system, response to Craig's death and aggressiveness toward his brothers and sisters reflect the most significant character change. Restatement of thesis statement and main points in conclusion: • To conclude, Lafeyette's character evolves the most.  By the end of There Are No Children Here, his once optimistic values are corrupted, Craig's death has emotionally broken him, and too much responsibility has rendered him unfit as a role model for his younger brothers and sisters.