A majority of students and writers experience writer’s block when required to write analytical essay topics. Reasons for this might be attributed to either a lack of understanding of what an analytical essay really is, or a lack of writing creativity.
In cases such as this, students who do not fully understand the concept of analytical essays often seek assistance from an external source that provides them with an analytical essay definition. These sources further support their definitions with an analytical essay format and an analytical essay outline example.
What is an analytical essay?
There are numerous definitions of an analytical essay. While some say it is a form of academic writing in which the writer presents a research argument strongly supported by facts, others say that it is a writing form that allows a writer to analyze smaller pieces for the purpose of shedding light on a bigger picture.
Regardless of these definitions, one thing is certain: writing an analytical essay is totally different from writing a summary. Most students confuse both terms. A summary involves a narration of the points in a story, speech, article, or event. On the other hand, an analytical essay involves finding the relationship between these points and connecting them back to the main point through detailed evaluations and highlights.
In order to accurately achieve this, the writer or student must first draft an analytical essay outline. This outline helps to organize your highlights and improve the structural form of your essay. Some writers follow an analytical essay outline template to help guide them in their writing process.
This article will provide you with tips on how to write an analytical essay. These tips will act as a guide to help you accurately write your academic paper.
Tips to use when drafting your analytical essay outline
All essays are divided into three major parts: an introduction, a body, and a concluding section. All these parts ought to be separately highlighted prior to beginning your analytical essay.
The following tips have been carefully selected to improve the structural design, flow, organization, and accuracy of your analytical academic paper.
- Start with a unique opening statement or question
Your opening sentence must either be interesting or surprising. Whichever approach you choose to use, it must be able to fascinate the audience and keep them glued to your work. You might want to start with a famous quote that introduces the context of your evaluations, or you might decide to start with a short, captivating story.
- Draft a thesis statement
A thesis statement is the major part of your introduction. It usually appears at the concluding part of the introductory paragraph of your academic work. A good thesis statement will reflect what is to be expected from the essay. It offers readers a description of your entire argument in one sentence.
- Back-up your statement
This is still part of the introductory section. You are expected to give your readers a sneak peek into how you intend to prove your argument.
- Develop your themes
From your evaluations, you might have about three ideas to support your claim. Before writing your ideas, begin by first drafting your themes for each idea. Each theme in each paragraph should offer your audience an idea of what that paragraph will discuss.
- Dive into stating your claim
Here, you will provide all your research, studies, surveys, and evaluations. You are expected to back-up your thesis statement with solid facts and evidence.
- Ensure a connection
All themes must link to each other. You can do this by arranging your writing in such a way that a preceding paragraph introduces a subsequent theme. This way, your audience would naturally flow with you.
- Draft your concluding section
The concluding section is the final piece of your academic paper. Here you are expected to restate your thesis statement and summarize your evaluations and highlights. Your concluding section ought to be the same length as your introductory section. You are encouraged to end on an interesting note with a quote or a solid closing statement.
Conclusion
There is nothing worse than staring at your screen for hours without having a single idea of what to write. This momentary block can be very frustrating, especially when you have a deadline to meet. The tips mentioned above will help you overcome this challenge when writing your analytical essay.