Uber-mega-lit-analysis essay Lecture

Introduction: the roadmap of the essay Somewhere in the first two sentences, mention the author and title of the work In the first sentence, introduce the topic of the essay—the reader should be able to pick out the key words that frame the rest of the essay The next two – four sentences are comprised of 1.) background information about the literary work and 2.) subtopics for the body of the essay (everything and anyone you discuss in the essay are contained in these sentences…even in a more generalized form) The final sentence(s) contains the thesis—the assertion/ argument of the piece

Example Key words Title and author In The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri, the protagonist, Gogol Ganguli, is going through a series of identity shifts. Gogol’s first identity, represented by the name Gogol, includes his parents’ high expectations, his Bengali heritage and his teenage angst about his identity. When he goes to college, Gogol changes his name to Nikhil in an attempt to break away from his past identity. Gogol’s new identity, represented by the name Nikhil, includes a defiance of his parents’ expectations, a rejection of Bengali culture in favor of American culture and an independent, detached lifestyle. Significant events in Gogol’s life, such as his father’s death and his relationship with Moushumi, cause Gogol to reconnect with his past identity. The repeated identity changes that Gogol has experienced throughout his life combine to form a more mature, complete identity, containing elements of Gogol’s self-made American identity with his devoted connection to his past. 1 2 3 4 5 Subtopics Thesis

Body Paragraphs Each body paragraph matches the order of ideas as they are stated in the intro. The first sentence is the topic sentence—the organizing principle of the paragraph; it states the main focus of the paragraph. The next sentence provides background for the first piece of evidence the writer introduces. The writer provides just enough background without summarizing the whole story. The next sentence builds upon the previous one and embeds a quote into the discussion (with proper citation). The subsequent sentence explains the significance of the quote by focusing on key ideas that relate to the focus

Topic Sentence Background Info The name Nikhil represents the new life, the new identity that Gogol creates for himself when he goes away to college. When Gogol changes his name to Nikhil, he feels freed from the pressure of his parents’ high expectations, saying that “now that he’s Nikhil it’s easier to ignore his parents, to tune out their concerns and pleas” (105). This greater sense of freedom allows Gogol to make decisions that his parents would not approve of, such as participating in the American culture of college-life (drinking, smoking, staying up late), getting an American girlfriend and becoming an architecture major. Gogol becomes more confident and happy when he becomes Nikhil. For example, he “[works] up the nerve to ask for [Ruth’s] number at the last minute” (112), something he was afraid to do when his name was Gogol, and he describes himself as “so happy” (116). This contentment shows that Gogol is breaking free from his family influences and developing a better sense of who he is on his own, represented by his new name, Nikhil. Quote blended into the sentence Proper citation Analysis of the quote

Body Paragraphs (cont’d) Complete this same task for each quote you provide. Your concluding sentence brings the ideas together and builds a transition to the next paragraph. Gogol becomes more confident and happy when he becomes Nikhil. For example, he “[works] up the nerve to ask for [Ruth’s] number at the last minute” (112), something he was afraid to do when his name was Gogol, and he describes himself as “so happy” (116). This contentment shows that Gogol is breaking free from his family influences and developing a better sense of who he is on his own, represented by his new name, Nikhil. Same as before Concluding sentence

Conclusions The “so what” of the paper and the result of the discussion Begins with a sentence that synthesizes all the main points of the discussion Each subsequent sentence addresses the main ideas from the body paragraphs, and discusses the results/conclusion of the analysis the final sentence brings closure to the piece *contrary to popular belief, the conclusion does not restate the thesis, nor does it sum up the main ideas

The results of the analysis from Synthesizes main ideas from the essay Gogol finds a way to balance the overwhelming burden of his past with his desire to become his own person by having two identities, represented by his two names. While his ability to separate from family expectations does empower Gogol, he runs the risk of rejecting his past, his “Gogol” identity, too much. Therefore, Gogol’s reconnection with his past identity is crucial to his development. Gogol realizes that “it had not been possible to reinvent himself fully, to break from [his past]” completely, but rather, that his past has “formed [him], shaped him, determined who he is” (287). With this realization, Gogol understands that his past identity is actually still alive inside him, that it is an integral part of his present identity. When Gogol acknowledges his past identity within himself, he is finally able to understand and make peace with his full identity. This step, more than any other event in Gogol’s life, is the most important to his maturity, the greatest and most permanent identity change. The results of the analysis from the body paragraphs Closure to the whole discussion

Conventions Voice of authority: avoid “seems,” “probably,” “maybe”; also avoid vague pronoun references like “it is clear/certain/evident” or “this shows/this is shown” No “I” (implied) Uses present tense throughout Smooth transitions within and between paragraphs (key word or time/order) Sources cited in chronological order (in each paragraph) Sources cited correctly: “quote” (#). (or other corresponding punctuation) Block quotes cited correctly: indented, single-spaced, no quotations, 11-point font, period before parentheses. Effective and sophisticated sentences, grammar, spelling, and punctuation