English 102 Library Module

Researching & Documenting a Literary Analysis Paper

Introduction: Things to Know about this Tutorial

This tutorial will guide you through the research process for your literary analysis paper. The tutorial is divided into six parts. You are expected to work sequentially through all parts, completing the exercises and/or assignments.

PLEASE NOTE: Throughout this process, you are encouraged to seek help from the  Academic Support Center, either in person or online. Statistics demonstrate that students who use the Center's services four or more times develop their writing skills and increase their assignment grades.

You can enter each part by clicking the titles below or in the menus at the top and bottom of each page of the tutorial.

Part 1: From Topic to Thesis Statement:

First, you have to choose a work, or works, to read and analyze. Your teacher will provide guidance on this choice - some require a short story analysis, some instruct you to choose any work from your textbook that isn't covered in class, etc.  Your analysis will focus on a particular theme or literary device that is important in the work, for example: the role of women, racism, religion, use of color, symbolism, setting, etc. This section helps you transition your topic to a supportable thesis statement.

Part 2: Locating Sources:

You will need sources to support your thesis statement. In this section, you will be directed to the library's Online Catalog to search for books and e-books. You will be introduced to the library's literary databases to access thousands of electronic sources. 

Part 3: Evaluation of Sources:

In English 101, you had to evaluate the quality and credibility of your sources. In this class, you must do so to an even greater degree. You will have to determine whether a source is an analysis or a review. For this paper, you are required to use critical analyses, NOT reviews, such as book reviews. You will have to determine whether a source is appropriate for a literary research paper, and you will have to determine whether a source provides insight into the topic of your paper and support for your thesis statement.

Part 4: Create a Working Bibliography

Use Noodlebib bibliography composer software to list the sources you found in Part 2.

Part 5: Giving Credit Where Credit Is Due

Review how to avoid plagiarism by properly documenting all sources that you have used in your paper. This section explores the critical relationship between parenthetical citations within the body of your paper and full documentation of your sources on your Works Cited Page

Part 6: The Finish Line

Things to think about as you work on your rough draft.