write an essay

“We Have Fire Everywhere” You can focus on any element of the text that you like, so long as you make an interpretive,
insightful claim that goes beyond the surface meaning and summary. Remember that a
literary analysis paper:
 makes interpretive and debatable claims;
 is supported with evidence from the text;
 argues for a thesis about the text; and
 explores the complexity of the text.
To write this paper: Review your reading and lecture notes, re-read your chosen essay, and
consider the literary elements and concepts in the reading “Elements of Creative Nonfiction.”
Review the chapters we have read from Digging Into Literature, and use the sample analysis
papers we have studied as examples. Remember to utilize the “quote sandwich” technique, the
surface/depth strategy, and the patterns strategy as well. Consult your instructor during office
hours for help developing an argument and drafting your paper if desired.
You will need to spend considerable time thinking about your argument and refining it as you
write, as well as gathering evidence and drafting strong paragraphs. This paper cannot be
completed in one sitting at the last minute.
To help you get started, review your notes about the sample arguments that we drafted for each
essay in class; you may develop one of these into your own original thesis statement if you like
and use it for your paper. How you prove the argument is up to you. Some of the ideas/themes
we explored in class are not yet arguments—they lack a claim about the effect of the element
identified—but you can build upon those observations if you like. The ideas covered in class or
reading responses are certainly not the only paths for forming an argument, and I encourage you
to pursue an argument that is original to you and one that you find interesting.