Literary analysis often engages novels and short stories, poems, or plays. Assignments typically ask writers to develop a claim/argument/interpretation about a key concern or tactic in a literary text by analyzing important moments, passages, or lines.

While the different literary genres offer specific features to consider (e.g., line breaks in poetry and stage directions in plays), literary analysis assignments usually share two common concerns: favor analysis over summary and work to introduce/frame the importance of the passage(s) you focus on (instead of ripping them out of context.

Analyzing Novels and Short Stories

Summary vs. analysis: this University of Arizona Global Campus resource offers quick explanations and examples to help writers distinguish between summary and analysis.

Summary: Using it wisely: this UNC-Chapel Hill Writing Center page offers more extended advice on identifying and limiting summary in favor of analysis.

Analyzing literature: another in-depth resource from the UNC-Chapel Hill Writing Center centered around a nine-step process of writing about fiction. 

Basic Tips for Writing a Literary Analysis: a list of nine key tips (dos and don'ts) when writing a literary analysis.

How to analyze passages from literature: we like the guiding questions this webpage offers. Plus, we know the author.

Analyzing Poetry

Analyzing poetry: a guide from Texas A&M University that summarizes the essential elements of poetry. 

Understanding poetry applications: this handout from UNC-Chapel Hill provides an overview of explications--short analyses of relationships and meanings in poetry. The webpage discusses working with meter and preparing and writing the explication. It also includes a sample for reference.

Student sample essay about a poem (with comments)

Analyzing Drama

How to Review a Play: this handout from the University of Wisconsin-Madison explains the structure of a play review, how to prepare before the performance, and how to tackle the main elements of the paper.