What is a Critical Analysis Essay?
Writing a critical analysis essay in college and university is an essential component of coursework. College and university students have to read diverse books on several subjects during the coursework. The purpose of college and university education is to impart critical thinking skills among students. Therefore, critical analysis essays test the abilities of students so that they can critically read, evaluate a piece of text and formulate an opinion on the matter through critical thinking and writing. Students can select any piece of literary text encompassing works of fiction or non-fiction and write the essay. Students can also critically evaluate a piece of art, architecture, paintings, sculptures, movies, and music and write a critical analysis essay.Why Is Critical Reading Integral For Writing A Critical Analysis Essay?
Critical reading is essential for writing a critical analysis essay. But you might ask, what is the difference between reading and critical reading? For obvious reasons, reading can be done cursorily or just to get quick information. For example, when you go to a restaurant and read the menu, it is just simple reading. However, when you indulge yourself in academic endeavours and read a piece of text, it necessitates critical reading.Critical reading is important because the purpose of higher education is to transform you into a thinking being who does not accept everything prima facie. The purpose of higher education is to inculcate the spirit of inquisition and develop a questioning mind that examines everything. As Aristotle aptly put it, "An unexamined life is not worth living". In the same vein, if you do not critically read a piece of text, you will never be able to form your own opinions. Consequently, you would be swayed and persuaded by the thoughts and opinions of others. Therefore, critical reading of a text is essential for writing a critical analysis essay. Here are some tips on how to critically read a text:
- Question the assertions of the author
- Evaluate the evidence provided by the author to substantiate the claims
- Look for counter-evidence that counters the author's opinions
- Make your points as you are reading through the text
- Compare the contrast the differing viewpoints
- Formulate your opinion of the text
If you are facing any problems following the above points, you can hire the best essay writing services UK.
How To Write A Critical Analysis Essay?
Topic Selection
The first step to writing a critical analysis essay is topic selection. You must find a suitable topic for your essay. We live in a turbulent age where social and political unrest is widespread, and similarly, the world we inhabit is inundated with controversies. You can pick up any hot topic that is the bone of contention among the pundits. Search for the contemporary issues that have bewitched the modern mind and read about them. For example, you can select a topic on gender equality which is still a far-fetched idea in many parts of the world. On top of that, the question of transgender identity and fluid identities has created new challenges in the definition and categorisation of gender. The purpose is to write an essay with a critical mindset and to take a strong position on the issues after doing the necessary research.Read More: Collect Evidence
Once you finalise a topic, the next step is to read extensively on the subject matter and collect evidence. You must resort to the academic literature that has shed light on the subject matter published in various journal articles and books. It is important to read scholarly sources for writing a critical analysis essay. Compare and contrast the evidence and under the classification of strengths and weakness, jot down the strengths and weaknesses of existing arguments and evidence on the issue. Make sure you keep track of sources because you would require to provide citations of the sources if you choose to incorporate them in the essay.Compose a Thesis Statement
Every essay revolves around a central idea which is the core perspective of the author, which he or she either defends or refutes. The core idea is the central position of the author on the subject matter corroborated or refuted with the help of substantial evidence. A critical analysis essay is an argumentative and analytical essay. Therefore, it requires writing a strong thesis statement that defines your position on the issue.A thesis statement must be a strong, coherent, logical, arguable and defensible statement. For essay writing, a thesis statement must not exceed three to four lines and is usually included at the end of the introduction section of the essay. Students must spend significant time composing the thesis statement since it is a fundamental component that sets the essay's tone and direction. If you experience difficulty writing a critical analysis essay, you can always get help from the best essay writers.
Outline Of Critical Analysis Essay
A critical analysis essay follows the standard five-paragraph structure, which is as follows:Introduction
The introduction section starts with attention grabbers such as rhetorical questions, famous quotations, facts and statistics. The writer then moves on to provide brief background information on the topic, thus contextualising the topic for the reader and making a smooth transition to introduce the essay's central idea. It is essential to use signal words and transition words to introduce the thesis statement in the essay.Main Body
The main body of your essay has the following components:- Three paragraphs
- Every paragraph starts with a topic sentence, which is the paragraph's main idea. A topic sentence is linked back to the thesis statement.
- PEEL structures: The author introduces a point followed by evidence, explanation and linking statement
- Include counter-evidence to substantiate your claims
- Coherence and Organisation among the ideas
- Logical Consistency