FYS Shakespearean Temper: Analyzing critical sources A strategy

Henze, Richard. Deception in Much Ado about Nothing. Studies in English Literature, 1500-1900. Vol. 11 No 2
(Spring 1971). 187-201. Web. JSTOR, 23 October 2013.

Approaching a critical essay is similar to the approach I recommend when you read anothers essay:

1. Examine the title: What kind of title descriptive (explicit, direct)? figurative (word play, allusion, etc.)?
What does the title tell or suggest the focus will be?
2. Essays length? Divisions, headings, or sections labeled or marked?
4. Read the conclusion: Look for relationship between intro, thesis, & conclusion & then notice how the
writer moves out of the discussion.
5. Read each paragraph lead. Notice how each marks a progress in the discussion in relation to the
claim/thesis. [Note: after youve completed these first 5 steps, you should have a solid frame for this
authors argument and reading the essay should proceed efficiently.]
6. Read the entire essay preferably in one sitting.
7. Identify the major parts of the essay: The thesis & the supporting claims that advance the thesis. If there
are concessions to the claim, note those, too.
8. For your own notes and response, identify 3 or 4 points that reveal information or an interpretation that is
new to you. Note points that change your understanding of the issue.
9. Identify points that you do not fully understand.
10. Take a few minutes to write a paragraph in response to what youve read distilling what you regard as the
most helpful/thoughtful/insightful information from this writers essay.