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Outlining the Literary Analysis

Learn a step-by-step process to organize your notes and create a structured outline for your literary analysis of "The Shawl" by Cynthia Ozick.

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Outlining the Literary Analysis

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  1. Outlining the Literary Analysis

  2. Spark notes, Shmoop, etc YOU SHOULD NOT BE GETTING QUOTES FROM THESE PAGES – IF YOU DO, YOU WILL GET AN AUTOMATIC ZERO.

  3. Start with note cards Sort your note cards by key word. Within each key word, sort like or same ideas together. Re-label and move note cards that are not in the right pile.

  4. Now look at your thesis statement—does this organization of note cards follow your thesis? Re-organize the piles until you have sorted your notes into groups that support your thesis statement.

  5. For example, if your thesis statement is: In her novella, The Shawl, Cynthia Ozick utilizes characterization, symbolism, and unique narrative techniques to explain how human cruelty caused lasting emotional damage to Holocaust survivors, you would have piles labeled “characterization”, “symbolism” and “narrative techniques”.

  6. These Key Word should become the main ideas (Roman numerals) of your outline. Characterization Symbolism Narrative Techniques

  7. Now you need to deal with each stack of note cards individually. Go through the cards—rank them by what is the most important/pertinent information. Match secondary source cards with the quotes from your novel that they explain or match quotes with secondary source cards as evidence.

  8. Create a “discard” pile of cards you don’t think you’ll use. Don’t actually throw them away—you might still need them later!

  9. Once you’ve decided what the most important evidence is, consider how many different paragraphs you’ll need to fully analyze each section of your thesis statement. Write rough drafts of the topic sentences for those paragraphs and sort the pertinent cards with that paragraph. Organize your topic sentences in the way you want them in your paper.

  10. Transfer this information to your working outline—use ONLY phrases, no complete sentences! • Key word • Main Idea 1. Quote 2. Analysis 3. Back-up (proof from another source that your analysis is correct.) • Main Idea 1. Quote 2. Analysis 3. Back-up (proof from another source that your analysis is correct.)

  11. Continue with capital letters (representing paragraphs) until you feel you have exhausted the topic and are ready to transition to another topic (the next key word).

  12. Your outline should not have any information from the introduction or conclusion of your paper. It must have the thesis statement at the top. It must follow an alphanumeric format.

  13. You may want to include the card number and/or parenthetical citation at the end of each entry—this will help you go back and get the correct information when you actually write the paper.

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