The Analytical Essay – Understanding the Basics
If you want to understand how a watch works, what do you do? You take it apart and look at how each piece contributes to the whole working mechanism. This is how you must think when you are asked to write an analytical essay. Whatever the topic, you must take it apart, take a look at each of its parts and then respond in some way. Is there value? Is there validity? At this point, may students seem to think that an analysis essay is nothing more than a persuasive one, in which they inject their opinions. Be careful about this pitfall. Yes, you may end up expressing an opinion, but that is not the major purpose of the essay. It is to analyze the points and opinions of others.
The Curve Balls of Analytical Essay
It is one thing to analyze a physical thing, like a watch or a motor. It is quite another to analyze an idea, a concept or a piece of literature. For example, you may be asked to analyze the concept of laissez-faire capitalism or socialism, or some other ideology or idea; you may be asked to analyze a piece of literature for character development or theme; you may be asked to analyze a piece of non-fiction in which the writer addresses some contemporary issue. Whatever it is, remember the definition of analysis. You must reduce the idea of concept to its facets and look at each facet.
Approaching the Topic
Let’s suppose for a minute that you must analyze the idea of school dress codes. You have read a piece in which the author states that such dress codes promote the educational process in many ways. Perhaps, s/he states that uniform dress removes the distractions that may be created by bright and unusual colors, or by provocative clothing. Maybe s/he states that a dress code serves to promote a business-like atmosphere and is thus psychologically significant. Your job is to analyze each of those points, perhaps doing a bit of research yourself, and determine if, indeed, those points are valid. In your analysis and research, you may discover that aspects, other than just dress codes, factor into a good or bad learning environment – poverty, student population demographics, systemic issues, etc., and the author has failed to account for these.
The Production
If you are still struggling with the process of producing such an essay, this is the time to get online and look at examples of good analytical essays. You will discover, of course, that they all follow standard essay format of an introduction, body paragraphs and a conclusion. You will also discover that, in the introduction, the authors will introduce a thesis statement which sums up their response to the topic. Each body paragraph will address a facet of the idea or opinion, and your response to it. Going back to the concept of dress codes, each body paragraph will address a point made by the author or a research study, and will involve your response to that point. Is it valid? Does current research support that point? Your conclusion will bring all of those points back together and perhaps suggest other factors that have not been considered – poverty, family structure and values, teacher quality, etc. You now have an analysis essay that is academically worthy!
Don’t Forget
Producing an analysis essay involves all of the process steps that you use for any other essay. You must have some graphic method of organizing your thoughts. In this case, an outline probably works best. When you use that outline to create your rough draft, remember that is only a rough draft and must be reviewed, edited and proofread before the final draft is produced. No matter how valid and thought-provoking your thoughts may be, if they are not presented in a coherent, grammatically correct way, they lose significance.