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How to Write a Literary Criticism of a Book

Writing literary criticism of a book usually comes as part of a literature class in an English curriculum. Learning to write literary criticism comes through instruction from teachers and experience. Pay special attention to details such as the structure of the literary work. Literary criticism does not necessarily mean that you tear apart a book or are negative at all, but rather that you explore meanings in the writing and try to figure out what the author is saying.

Instructions

    • 1

      Read the book. Make notes on your impressions and reactions as you read. Pick out phrases, plot points and thought processes that interest you. Mark or write down the pages of interesting passages. Don't worry yet about the meaning of the ideas you are collecting.

    • 2

      Write your overall thoughts about the book as soon as you finish it. Include things you learned, your impressions, what you liked and didn't like, and whether you consider the book a success. Don't worry about structure at this stage. Just get as many thoughts on paper or computer screen as you can as quickly as possible.

    • 3

      Read through the observations you made as you read the book, then read over your final thoughts on the subject. Organize handwritten notes by color-coding themes you noticed in reading. If you use a word processor to take notes, cut and paste your notes to group related ideas and observations. Use these groups as the framework to order your thoughts and opinions.

    • 4

      Write your essay's introductory paragraph, summing up your observations in a thesis statement. Your thesis should be the main point of literary criticism you want to make about the book. For example, you could say water represents freedom in "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn." The rest of the essay should support your thesis.

    • 5

      Write the body of your essay using citations based on your reading notes and book quotations to support your conclusions. The body of your essay should contain three or more sections, usually one paragraph each, supporting your thesis. Focus each section on one point related to the thesis. Include arguments for and against your thesis from other sources you cite, and echo or rebut those arguments to build a convincing case for your literary criticism.

    • 6

      Summarize your literary criticism with a concluding paragraph emphasizing what you learned about the book and the writer's purpose. Rephrase your thesis and your supporting body paragraphs to show that you have proved your main point about the book.

    • 7

      Include a "Works Cited" page with formatting guided by a reference such as the "MLA Handbook."

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Literature

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