MR. TREHERNE

AP LANGUAGE

&COMPOSITION

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Things Fall ApartLiterary Analysis –Summer essay

Prompt

Write a literary analysis of Things Fall Apart in which you examine

how Achebe uses literary devices to show a character’s change

in identity from the beginning of the novel to the end due to the

cultural collision caused by the introduction of Western ideas into

Ibo culture. Choose only one character for this essay. Be sure to

also explain within each paragraph why the use of the literary

device is effective in showing the character’s development.

In your essay, analyze

How the collision challenges the character’s sense of

identity

How the literary device is effective in portraying the

character’s change from the beginning of the novel to the

end

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Introduction

Clear topic - deconstruct the prompt

Understanding what you are writing about

is vital to writing a good introduction and

essay.

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Introduction - Organization

Sentence #1: Hook plus TAG (title, author,

genre)

Sentences #2,3,4,etc.: Background

information of ideas, characters, etc.,

depending on the prompt.

Last sentence: Thesis statement

DO NOT SUMMARIZE THE PLOT!!

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Hook

Something interesting about the work

(fact, startling information, etc…)

Must be relevant to the topic / prompt

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Author’s Full name and title of novel

Be sure that you mention the author’s name

and title of the novel (in italics) in the intro.

In Things Fall Apart, a novel by Chinua

Achebe, an African village loses its cultural

identity as first missionaries, then government

representatives invade their land.

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Background - Bridge to Thesis

Make clear what it is you are analyzing in the essay.

Explain a bit about this aspect so that the reader is

clear about what is being analyzed.

If your topic is about character(s), introduce the

character and his or her role in the work.

DO NOT START ANALYZING IN THE INTRODUCTION!!!!

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Thesis Statement

Working thesis – first step in pre-writing.

What will you will prove in answer to the

prompt?

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Sample Thesis

Sentence before thesis:

Doe utilizes literary devices to intensify his portrayal of the

main characters as destined to fail.

Sample Thesis:

Through foreshadowing, author John Doe creates a sense of

futility, loneliness, and gloom that shows how Tess’s identity

changes from the beginning of the novel to the end.

Through the use of irony, author John Doe shows how Jane’s

sense of identify changes from the beginning of the novel to

the end as a result in the clash of cultures.

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Body Paragraphs10-12 sentences (not including citation)

Start the paragraph with a topic sentence that states your claim.

Next, have an assertion sentence that discusses your major point?

Use a citation to supports your claim.

The citation should be introduced and cited correctly

Explain in 2 sentences how that citations supports the

claim stated in your thesis and topic sentence. DO NOT

JUST SUMMARIZE THE CITATION –remember I read the book

What is your next major point?

Use another citation that shows supports your claim.

Explain in 2 sentences how that citation displays your major point.

Transition statement.

*Each body paragraph should have 2 citations.

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Analysis vs. Summary of Citation

Watch this video on Summary vs. Analysis -Begin at time 5:00 and stop 8:33

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qg8KXczUpTM

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Example of Summary – DO NOT DO THIS

In the novel Janie exclaims, “He used his words to

jail me. No longer was he the sweet kind man I

initially met. He was cruel, harsh, and unforgiving. I

feel like I traded one prison for another and I

could not escape” (Hurston 98). Janie is now

married to her second husband and he is treats

her very mean. He continuously uses harsh words

with her and she thought that her second

marriage would be better but it was just as bad as

her first.

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Example of Analysis

Janie states, “Here was peace. She pulled in her horizon like a great fish-net. Pulled it from around the waist of the world and draped it over her shoulder. So much of life in its meshes! She called in her soul to come and see” (Hurston 198). Janie uses a variety if metaphors to analyze her all encompassing feelings of happiness and security. The horizon has been a constant theme throughout the novel. Janie equates the horizon to a great love. At this point in the novel Janie loses the love of her life Tea Cakes. When she wraps the horizon around herself she is not only showing that she achieves that love but that she feels truly secure with where she is in life. She wants her soul to be at peace because she is finally at peace with her life.

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