Include a thesis statement. A thesis statement should be located at the end of the first paragraph of your essay. It is the central idea of your paper. Think of a thesis statement as a one-sentence summary of your essay. Your statement lets the reader know what your paper is about. For instance, if you are writing an analysis on F. Scott Fitzgerald's "The Great Gatsby" and are focusing on the effects of greed throughout the novel, then your thesis statement would read something like this at the end of the first paragraph: "This paper will examine the impact of greed on the characters' lives."
Keep the topic narrow. When writing a literary analysis, it is important to focus your essay on one or two related aspects only. For example, if you choose to write a literary analysis on Emily Brontë's novel "Wuthering Heights," you might keep the analysis narrow by analyzing Nelly Dean's character, one of the major narrators in the story. Since some scholars have questioned whether Nelly Dean's narration of events at Wuthering Heights is based on facts or her own exaggerations, a good analysis would either try to prove Nelly Dean's inaccuracies by pointing to specific half-truths in her narrative, or protest against scholarly claims by trying to prove the character's reliability to the narrative, supporting your claims with examples from the novel.
Do a little research. Although some literary analyses assignments may not require outside sources, it will still add some authority to your essay. For instance, if you are contradicting scholarly claims that Nelly Dean is an unreliable narrator in "Wuthering Heights," refer the reader to some of those opposing claims and why you feel they are inaccurate. You may consider doing this if you agree with scholars that Nelly Dean is indeed unreliable. Add authoritative sources to back up your claim.
Conclude your paper. Do not end your paper abruptly. A conclusion should be written to bring your essay full circle. It must relate to your thesis statement. A concluding paragraph should be in your own words, whether you are giving your final thoughts or opinion on your analysis. Be careful not to veer off topic or end your conclusion with another author's words.