What is a Reflective Literary/Character Analysis Essay? A reflective analysis essay, be it literary or character-driven, gives the writer an opportunity to consider a concept and reflect upon its meaning or influence on them personally as well as its influence outside themselves. In a reflective essay, the writer searches for a deeper meaning in the topic, to explore those deeper meanings through thought and expression, and finally, to write a reflection about that deeper meaning. Before writing, and even before brainstorming, begin by asking yourself this question: What is a literary analysis or literary character analysis? The Literary Analysis A literary analysis is not merely a summary of a literary work. Instead, it is an argument about the work that expresses a writer’s personal perspective, interpretation, judgment, or critical evaluation of the work. This is accomplished by examining the literary devices, word choices, or writing structures the author uses within the work. The purpose of a literary analysis is to demonstrate why the author used specific ideas, word choices, or writing structures to convey his or her message. On the other hand, a literary character is an important person created by a writer and defined through the use of dialog, description, and action. As individuals, we are able to tell a lot about people by not only what they say but also how they say it. We automatically assume things based on a person’s actions and how he or she looks. Writers are aware of this, which is exactly why they use this technique to transform into flesh-and-blood humans beings what would otherwise be no more than lifeless cardboard cutouts. Writing a literary analysis involves interpreting a work and arguing for a particular way of understanding it. While this form of analysis is sometimes called literary criticism, this phrase does not necessarily mean finding fault with a work of literature, but rather the essay judges a work of literature. Essentially, you are arguing for your interpretation, not so much to persuade your audience to accept your point of view, but to convince them that it makes sense. Your point of view justifies your way of reading the work by pointing to specific details found in the work and explaining their significance. While you have complete freedom with you interpretation, you must be able to support your assertions from the text. The primary source is the work itself, which in the case of this assignment is any reading assignment from this semester. You should quote from the story, play or essay, describe it, summarize it, and paraphrase it. This does not mean that you will retell the plot, but must give a certain amount of detail to put your assertions in context for the reader. In other words, do more than just refer to specific passages. Analyze the word choices and point to particular patterns of meaning. Watch closely for repetition in a work. These clues often exist because the author wants his or her readers to interpret the work in a certain manner. When quoting from the actual story, play or essay, be sure to balance your essay. You should use both short and long quotations, paraphrasing, and your own commentary. Never let a quotation stand alone. Always react to the quote in some way. The best way to impress your audience is to come up with new ideas. There are even times when a writer discovers an issue they may have found within the story, play, or essay that, for reasons unknown, has been overlooked for years, or brushed off as being insignificant. Congratulate yourself if this happens. This proves involvement and interest in everything you read. Remember: An important element in all literary analyses is symbolism and its importance to the overall revealing meaning of the work. The Literary Character Analysis The literary character analysis essay should focus on your observations about a character in literature, which in our case, is American Literature. Your evaluation of the character is based on what that character says, does, and/or what other characters say about him or her. Of course, the first and most important issue is your description of the character you have chosen to analyze. Then ask yourself what the dominant character traits of the character are. In addition, give some thought as to the personality of the character and in what direction it leads them. (i.e., despair, joy, satisfaction, murder, suicide etc.) Also, consider how the conflict may be more external than internal, or the love-hate relationship between two or more characters. A Guideline to Creating your Analysis 1. Read the text closely several times. Focus on the ideas that are being presented. Think about the characters’ development and the author’s writing technique. What might be considered interesting, unusual, or important? 2. Brainstorm a list of potential topics. Highlight important passages in the text and take notes on these passages. Later, when writing the paper, these notes should help a writer to remember which aspects of the story caught their attention. The topic chosen should always be based on a writer’s interpretation of the author’s message. Here are some things a writer may want to consider when brainstorming for a literary analysis. Character: What observations might a writer make about the characters? Are there discrepancies in what they think, say, or do? Are the observations a writer makes different from what other characters say? How does the author describe the characters? Are the characters “dynamic” (a dynamic character is a character that undergoes important changes throughout the work)? Are the characters “static” characters (a static character is a character that stays the same throughout the work)? Are the characters “flat” characters (a flat character is a character that does not have vivid character traits) or “round” characters (a round character is a character that has vivid character traits)? Are the characters symbolic or representative of some universal quality? Is it possible that two characters in the text might be compared or contrasted? Setting: Is there a relationship between the work’s setting and its mood? Does the setting reflect the work’s theme? How does the setting impact the characters? Does a change in the setting affect the mood, characters, or conflict? Plot: How might the beginning of the work be interpreted? How does the plot build suspense? Does the author use techniques such as foreshadowing or flashback? Are there patterns of cause-effect relationships? Do events occur in a logical order? Examine the events that lead to the climax and determine how the work ends.
