STATEMENT OF OPINION AND ASSERTION,
CLAIMS OF FACT, VALUE AND POLICY, AND
LITERARY APPROACHES
ENGLISH | Third Monthly | Chapter 3 | 10 – St. Ezekiel Moreno
Opinion and Assertion
 Opinion – a statement that involves the
person’s feelings, emotion, and
preferences. It cannot be proven.
Expressing a Personal Opinion:
 In my opinion….
 I feel that….
 I would say that….
 Speaking personally….
 As I see it…
 Well, if you ask me…
 In my view….
 I think that….
 Assertion – a statement that is
somewhat true and somewhat false. A
confident and forceful statement of fact
or belief. It is also considered a
declaration.
Claims
 Claim – a clear assertion of one’s belief,
proposition, or opinion.
 Identifying one’s claims is an essential
skill when expressing opinion on a
certain issue especially in the field
writing.
 May serve the purpose of convincing or
persuading readers or a specific
audience to agree with a specific stand
or rationale on an issue
Claims of Fact, Value, and Policy
 Claim of Fact
– assertion that something is true or
false.
- It is objective and verifiable (with data)
 Claim of value
– a proposition that is based on the
worth of something. It evaluates or
judges whether or not something is
good, right, just, moral, and ethical.
– presents an assertion to whether
something is good or bad
– is one concept or idea better that
another?
– emphasizes and weighs the benefits
of the subjects matter
– is also debatable in nature
– kind of similar to an opinion
 Claim of Policy
– an assertion that support a particular
course of action
– usually uses the modal verbs should
and must (obligation)
Parts of Critique (Critical Analysis)
Introduction
Summary
Analysis
Conclusion
Analysis
 Critical Approaches (Literary Criticisms)
– sometimes called “lenses”, are the
different perspectives we can consider
in analysing or interpreting a text
Literary or Critical Approaches
 Structuralist/Formalist Approach –
holds the true meaning of a text can be
determined only by analysing the
literary elements. Elements:
o Literary elements
o Literary devices
o Structure
o Language
 Historical approach – understanding of
the historical and cultural traditions
 Moralist Approach – study literature
from the moral perspective therefore to
determine whether a work conveys a
lesson or message
 Feminist Approach – focuses on female
presentation in literature
 Reader-Response Approach –
dependent upon readers’ response to it
 Marxist Approach – examines the
relationship of a literary product to the
actual economic and social reality of its
time and place including:
o Class stratification
o Class relations
o Dominant Ideology
It tries to understand how power,
politics, and money play a role in
literary texts
THE LIFE OF EDGAR ALLAN POE AND HIS
POEM “ANNABEL LEE”
ENGLISH | Third Periodical | Chapter 3 | 10 – St. Ezekiel Moreno
 Edgar Allan Poe was an American
writer, author, poet, editor and
literary critic. He is best known for his
poetry and short stories, particularly
his tales of mystery and the macabre
 Born : January 19, 1809
At: Boston, Massachusetts
 Died: October 7, 1849 (40 years old)
At: Washington Medical Colleges
 Resting place: Westminster Hall and
Burying Grounds, Baltimore,
Maryland, U.S.
 A number of diseases have been
proposed as possible causes of Poe's
death, including diabetes, heart
disease, epilepsy, and tuberculosis.
Parents of Edgar Allan Poe
 Mother:
Elizabeth Eliza Poe was an acclaimed
actress who died at the age of 24.
 Father:
David Poe Jr. was an American actor
Born: July 18, 1784
At: Baltimore Maryland, United
States
Died: December 11, 1811
------------------------------------------------------------- Bostonian."
His father abandoned the family in 1810, his
mother died from the following year because
of pulmonary tuberculosis.
Siblings of Edgar Allan Poe
 Older Brother:
William Henry Leonard Poe
 Younger Sister:
Rosalie Mackenzie Poe
Wife of Edgar Allan Poe
 Virginia Eliza Clemm-Poe married Poe
when she was 13 years old and Poe at
27.
Born: August 15, 1822
At: Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.
Died: January 30, 2847 (age 24)
At: Bronx Country, New York, U.S.
In January 1842, she contracted
tuberculosis, growing five years and
died of the disease at age 24.
Foster Parents of Edgar Allan Poe
 Poe was taken in by John and Frances
Allan of Richmond, Virginia.
 As a teenager and young adult, Poe
briefly attended the University of
Virginia, briefly enlisted in the army,
and briefly enrolled at West Point.
 Penniless and homeless, Poe moved
in with his older brother in 1831.
 Poe got into gambling debt at the
University of Virginia and had to
leave school.
Poe Published His First Book At 18
 Edgar Allan Poe published Tamerlane
and Other Poems in 1827, just after
he dropped out of the University of
Virginia
The book featured the epic poem
"Tamerlane" about a Turkic conqueror and
was published under only the name "a
Why 1846 is a tragic year for Poe
 When Broadway Journal went under
in January 1846, Poe lost the most
reliable venue for his attacks. And
having alienated so many of his fellow
writers and editors, he found it
difficult to publish and, therefore, to
make money.
Annabel Lee
 "Annabel Lee" is the last complete
poem composed by American author
Edgar Allan Poe.
 It explores the theme of the death of
a beautiful woman. The narrator, who
 fell in love with Annabel Lee when
they were young, has a love for her so
strong that even angels are envious.
Themes:
 Pure love
 Love transcends death
 Death and grief
 Tragedy
 Envy or jealousy
The Main Characters in Annabel Lee

 Annabel Lee
 Narrator
 Highborn kinsmen
The Literary Approaches in the Poem Annabel
Lee
 Formalist/Structuralist Approach
 Reader-Response Approach
 Moralist Approach
 Historical Approach