A persuasive argument about literature requires a thesis statement. Ask students to identify an interesting question that a text raises. The question might be small in scope, especially if the assigned task is a short paper or a brief presentation. Walk the students through an example, demonstrating how to focus on the text and find fruitful questions to explore. For instance, a student might notice that James Joyce's novel "Ulysses" talks about flowers a lot. He might develop this into a tentative thesis question: Are flowers associated with the character Molly Bloom, and if so what does it mean?
After coming up with a tentative thesis or question to investigate, ask students to examine the text to see how the thesis holds up. Have them take notes on passages or plot points that support or deny their thesis. Show them how to alter the thesis if it proves to be untenable. For instance, the student might decide that in "Ulysses," flowers aren't usually associated with Molly Bloom, but that fragrances are. He could then revise his thesis to focus on fragrances.
After honing theses, students are ready for library research. Ask them to find expert sources that address the question they raise or provide background information. For instance, the student writing about "Ulysses" could locate and read an academic article about the character Molly Bloom, symbolism in Joyce or common perfumes for women in the early 20th century.
After careful reading and research, students will have the building blocks of a persuasive argument. Show them how to make a claim, and then support and elaborate upon that claim with their textual notes and research. In the "Ulysses" example, the student could claim that Molly Bloom is strongly associated with a certain perfume. He could then quote illustrative passages to back up his claim, and elaborate on his argument by noting that this perfume was extremely popular (or not at all popular) in Europe during the time period when the novel took place.
As the students build their arguments, warn them to avoid certain common mistakes. Explain that borrowing arguments or passages from their sources is unacceptable, and show them how to document quotations and paraphrases properly with endnotes or footnotes. Teach students about inductive and deductive reasoning and common logical fallacies. Have students practice coming up with valid and invalid arguments as a class activity, and remind them to use valid reasoning in their own writing.
To move their arguments forward, have students consider common literary devices that might be at play. Have them find examples of metaphors, similes and other figurative language in texts. Ask them to consider how symbolism affects their arguments. For instance, if Molly Bloom is associated with certain fragrances, what does this mean in the context of the novel? Does fragrance stand for her sensuality, her economic class, her relationship with her husband or something else entirely? Encourage creativity, but ask that students continue to support their claims with textual evidence.
Students now have the materials they need to make a sound and persuasive argument about literature. Their honed thesis, textual evidence, library research and literary device analysis come together into a nuanced and well-supported piece of work. Discuss conclusions, and show how to reiterate a thesis statement in a new way that incorporates the interesting complications that an argument raises. For instance, perhaps Molly Bloom's use of fragrances not only comments on her sensuality but also shows her to be a profligate spender or a penny-pincher, or a character who is different from how she appears in some way.