Read the piece of literature a plethora of times, noting important passages.
Decide upon the literature’s theme and author’s purpose. Then explore the means by which he/she reveals the purpose.
Keep collecting information until you have enough to develop your topic thoroughly.
Organize your information.
If you are going to discuss how a character is revealed through dialogue, setting, and symbolism (all literary categories), you would group information under “dialogue,” “setting,” and “symbolism.”
If you are going to explore how a story’s setting (literary category) portrays a climate of fear (psychological category) that turns into anarchy (political category), you would group information under “setting,” “fear,” and “anarchy.”
If you are going to explore how characterization (literary category), diction (literary category), and conflict reveal discrimination (social category), you would group information under “characterization,” “diction,” “conflict,” and discrimination.
Study the categories that you decide upon and look for relationships amongst them.
metaphor
symbolism
irony
theme
point
of view
society
setting
diction
conflict
Determine what these relationships reveal about the work and what will increase the audience’s knowledge and appreciation of the work. This insight, which should be stated in one sentence, becomes the essay’s thesis statement.
Be sure to include a brief summary of the story in either your introduction or its own paragraph.
In each body paragraph, take a different approach to proving your thesis. Use concrete examples from the text, including direct, cited quotations, for support. Explain how the choices prove the thesis.
Upside down funnel conclusion expression further implications of the work.