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Writing about literature: an analytical paragraph

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Every Literature answer is built from analytical paragraphs. A strong one answers the question, uses a short embedded quotation, analyses the writer's method and explains the bigger idea.

The building blocks

Practice poem (original)

Read this short poem twice.

A model paragraph

The poet presents the father as a hard-working man whose love is shown through touch rather than speech. His hands are described as 'maps of work', a metaphor suggesting that every scar records part of his life of labour. The word 'maps' implies the speaker can 'read' her father's history in his hands. The final line, 'softer than any words', contrasts with the scars and the fall, revealing a gentleness beneath his toughness. This suggests the poem's idea that love can be shown through actions as well as words.
Useful verbs: presents, suggests, implies, reveals, conveys, emphasises, contrasts.
Worked example

Write a point and embedded evidence about 'He never held a pen for long.'

  1. Point: the father is not someone who expresses himself in writing or words.
  2. Embed: 'He never held a pen for long' suggests...
  3. Go further: this prepares for the final line, where his hands speak more than words.

Answer: The poet shows the father is not a man of words: he 'never held a pen for long', which prepares for the ending where his gentle hands are 'softer than any words'.

Key idea

Point naming the writer, short embedded evidence, a named method, close analysis of a key word, and a link to the bigger idea or theme.

The interactive lesson includes the diagrams for this topic.

Check you have got it

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Practise this lesson free (6 questions)All GCSE & IGCSE English Literature lessons