Writing Essays About Literature: A Guide and Style Sheet

Rating:
Summary: A guide to college writing
Review: This is an well-organized book that offers advice to a writer in a college level course, or as a reference tool for other writing classes. Although the book is somewhat dated in content, it is still a good source for information. Each chapter is subdivided into different categories, which make it easy to reference material. The beginning chapters deal with choosing a topic and how to analyze literature. The analyzation of material is split into different categories such as literature, fiction, drama, and poetry. Under each section there is a division that helps in the definition of `good literature.' For example, the literature is split into sections of literature as language, aesthetic, fictional, true, expressive, and affective. Under each section in the chapter there is a description of what the section entails and how the writer can distinguish whether the work in question applies to the rule or doesn't apply. Chapter seven contains a list of the different types of criticisms that are usually used in literature, such as Historical Criticism and Biographical Criticism. This chapter has a description of what the type of criticism means and how it is applies to literature of different genres. Chapter eight helps in the evaluation of literature on the basis if it answers some of the 13 questions listed and described in the chapter. The next two chapters help in the production of good essay content. There is, as in most books, a section on how to document sources, how to handle quotations, and the format of the paper. The last chapter contains six sample essays for the writer to look at and see how all the parts of this book are contained within a single piece of writing. Overall, I found this book to a helpful guide or source book. If unsure of something, it is an easy guide to look back at and find a definition and how to apply it to a paper. Although it is not the only book that provides this information, I believe that it presents it in such a way that it is user friendly for beginning writers.

Rating:
Summary: A guide to college writing
Review: This is an well-organized book that offers advice to a writer in a college level course, or as a reference tool for other writing classes. Although the book is somewhat dated in content, it is still a good source for information. Each chapter is subdivided into different categories, which make it easy to reference material. The beginning chapters deal with choosing a topic and how to analyze literature. The analyzation of material is split into different categories such as literature, fiction, drama, and poetry. Under each section there is a division that helps in the definition of 'good literature.' For example, the literature is split into sections of literature as language, aesthetic, fictional, true, expressive, and affective. Under each section in the chapter there is a description of what the section entails and how the writer can distinguish whether the work in question applies to the rule or doesn't apply. Chapter seven contains a list of the different types of criticisms that are usually used in literature, such as Historical Criticism and Biographical Criticism. This chapter has a description of what the type of criticism means and how it is applies to literature of different genres. Chapter eight helps in the evaluation of literature on the basis if it answers some of the 13 questions listed and described in the chapter. The next two chapters help in the production of good essay content. There is, as in most books, a section on how to document sources, how to handle quotations, and the format of the paper. The last chapter contains six sample essays for the writer to look at and see how all the parts of this book are contained within a single piece of writing. Overall, I found this book to a helpful guide or source book. If unsure of something, it is an easy guide to look back at and find a definition and how to apply it to a paper. Although it is not the only book that provides this information, I believe that it presents it in such a way that it is user friendly for beginning writers.