Reading Analysis

Major Writing Assignment 1: Close Reading Analysis of Selected Texts

Directions: compose an essay of about 3-4 pages that analyzes the connections that
can be made between or among at least two of the works we have focused on in Unit 1
(Beowulf, “Grief of a Girl’s Heart,” Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, and “The Wife of
Bath’s Prologue and Tale). I want you to mine the works for the gold we can find! Are
there shared themes at play? How so? Perhaps there is a strong connection between
the works and their characters’ development? What about the time in which the works
are set?

This is an opportunity to get close to the texts you are interested in and discuss the
themes we see coming together! This essay is designed specifically for you to choose
what you like!

Length, Formatting, and Special Requirements
 At least three (3) pages, MLA style formatting
o Times New Roman, 12-point font, numbered pages inserted in the top
right of the page, Works Cited page on the last page of the document
 Use a page break at the end of your essay, before the Works Cited
 Makes detailed use (in the form of quotations) of at least two works from Unit 1
and is appropriately cited parenthetically
 Creative/insightful title that reflects the thesis of the essay
o More substantive than “MWA 1” as it is the first thing your reader
encounters
Composition Requirements/Tips
 An introduction that:
o Establishes necessary context for the focus of your essay
o Briefly presents the sources and/or types of evidence in the essay
o States the interests of the essay (its purpose, motivating questions), and
o Posits an arguable thesis or larger claim about the works holistically (that
the reader will come to agree with you about by the end of your essay)
 Body paragraphs should focus on highlighting significant details from the works
that, when analyzed in depth, reveals a deeper understanding on a larger scale.
Body paragraphs typically include these elements in order:
1. Topic Sentence (“introduces” what the point of the paragraph will be with an
attention to reader interests/needs)
2. Context (necessary background information the reader needs in order to
understand your upcoming concrete evidence and your significance-level
claims)

ENG 205
Fall 2020
3. Concrete Evidence (appropriately quoted/paraphrased/summarized from the
source)
4. Significance (explain to the reader how to close read or analyze the concrete
evidence and the offer the conclusions we can derive from that analysis)
a. Walk the reader through it step by step; nothing is self-evident
 A conclusion that addresses what inferences can be made from your evidence
and claims holistically. Consider things we’ve been talking about in class:
o Commonplaces and ideologies that circulate in the societies/time of the
works
o Larger-stakes claims about what we get from looking at these works
together (what does the reader get meaning-wise from the analysis
overall?)