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Additional Requirements for the Critical Analysis Essay

• MLA format requires that your essay include a full-heading and a title, and that it be double-spaced;
• you must begin with a complete introduction, which includes your thesis statement and the main points to be developed in your Critical Analysis;
• the primary purpose of your introduction is to usher the reader into your essay and to lay a foundation for the development of your thesis;
• each body paragraph must include a topic sentence, which more specifically details one of the main points from your thesis;
• each main point must be supported by a secondary source, which directly relates to the development of your thesis, and MLA in-text citation must be included for all borrowed material used in your essay;
• all supporting sources for your essay must be acquired through the HCC library, and/or the library databases;
• you are expected to use the primary source (work you are analyzing), and to cite it in your essay; however, the primary source does not count as one of your secondary sources (you will need three secondary sources in addition to the primary source);
• you may use a source twice, but you may only count it once toward your three source requirement;
• any additional works by the writer you are covering are primary sources; unless the writer has also published literary criticism;
• secondary sources of information are created by someone who did not participate in the event and/or does not have first-hand experience with the object of your research (literary critics); for our purposes secondary sources are generally scholarly articles and books;
• all sources must be introduced and all borrowed material (quotes and paraphrases) must be identified as borrowed, with quotes placed within quotation marks;
• all material included in supporting paragraphs must relate to the development of the topic sentence, which must relate directly to the thesis; this demonstrates a “sustained pattern of development”;
• please develop your points well, and use transitions when moving from one point to the next;
• your conclusion should tell the reader what you have done, and how you have gone about the process of developing your thesis;
• the entire essay should be qritten from a third-person POV, and should contribute to academic scholarship and research through objective, well-supported analysis, using both the primary source and a minimum of three secondary sources.

Sample Introduction Paragraph

Sample Body Paragraph

Sample Conclusion Paragraph

Essays must be at least 750 words, but cannot exceed the minimum requirement by more than 50 words.