Writing a Good Analytical Essay

At a glance, writing analytical essays may seem easy. All you have to do right after getting assigned with a topic is to analyze the given topic, make a stand, look for an evidence, conclude everything you have written, and you’re done! But for those who have written a lot of analytical essays in their lives, writing one may not be as easy as writing other types of essays such as narrative essays and descriptive essays.

With this type of essay, you have to analyze every nook and corner of the topic given to you. It might sound intimidating, but don’t let the thought terrify you because there is definitely a way you can write analytical essays without breaking a sweat. Here are some tips that can help you in producing a good analytical essay:

1. Always make sure you create a thesis statement that is strong enough to set up your argument and continue it up until the body of the essay down to the conclusion. In short, the rest of the parts of your essay.

2. Always narrow down the focus of your analytical essay so that you can have a smooth transition from one paragraph to another and that your essay won’t get overwhelmed with all the points you are trying to fit in your composition.

3. Always remember that you are writing an analytical essay so you should keep on arguing and defending your opinion on the topic you are writing about.

4. But always make sure that your arguments are grounded on facts.

5.Yes, you are told to base your argument on a factual statement but simply stating a fact doesn’t automatically make the readers believe its validity. You have to provide any valid evidence to support everything you have written. Also, be specific with your evidence; do not provide a vague one. Always remember to cite your sources.

6. When analyzing an article or a literary essay work, you have to look at every nook and cranny in order to find something you can refute about. Check the author’s thesis statement, his arguments, the evidence used, the central theme, and others. In this way, you will not run out of ideas on what you should be arguing about.

7. If you are writing an analytical essay about a literary work, do not bother storytelling. You are going to analyze and argue with your readers and not give bedtime stories. Just provide a brief synopsis, select a few memorable line or mention a crucial scene to intensify your claim, interpret and explain its relevance to your claim, and you’re good to go.

8. Follow a structure for your analytical essay that is organized and logical. This will give you direction in writing, as well as your readers when the read your work. Also in this manner, it can solidify and strengthen your analysis.

9. Comment; don’t summarize. You are not told to write a narrative where you can somehow get a chance to fully elaborate the literary piece of work you are told to write an analytical essay about.

10. Always begin with a plan. You can make an outline if those kinds of guides are effective for you. Remind yourself of what Benjamin Franklin had once said: “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail”.