“Digital annotation is close reading 2.0. The Learning Network is an Educator Innovator partner and this article also features another partner, Hypothes.is. This sometimes leads to "padding," repeating the same idea in different words or worse, indiscriminate "expert" quoting: using too many quotes or quotes that are too long with little or no discussion.Originally posted on The Learning Network blog, this piece dives into what annotation is in general, and provides an overview of web tools to get started with annotating online. The "How Can You Write 500 Words About One Short Story?" BluesĪssumes that writing the paper is only a way of stating the answer rather than an opportunity to explore an idea or explain what your own ideas are and why you have them.It ignores the necessity of testing each part of an interpretation against the whole text, as well as the need to validate each idea by reference to specifics from the text or quotations and discussion from the text. Plot summary is just one of the requirements of writing about fiction, not the intended goal.Īssumes that writing about fiction is a "no win" game in which the student writer is forced to try to guess the RIGHT ANSWER that only the professor knows.Īssumes that ANY interpretation of any literary piece is purely whimsy or personal taste. Learn to avoid them.Īssumes that the main task is simply recalling what happened in detail. These four common assumptions about writing about fiction interfere with rather than help the writer. A good question to begin with when writing response entries is "What point does the author seem to be making?"Īfter close reading and annotating, can you now make a statement about the story's meaning? Is the author commenting on a certain type of person or situation? What is that comment? Write quickly after your reading: ask questions, attempt answers and make comments about whatever catches your attention. Keep a notebook for freewrite summaries and response entries."She's stark naked," said Stanley, sounding annoyed. They could see the top part of her: black hair, aflushed solid back, arms spread out. Then they saw her, between chimneys, about fifty yards away. Why is the man annoyed by the sunbather? Is Lessing commenting on sexist attitudes? The second paragraph could have a note from the reader like this: These should be questions, comments, dialogue with the text itself.Ī paragraph from Doris Lessing's short story "A Woman on a Roof" serves as an example: Highlighting without notes in the margins
The point of highlighting at this stage is to note key passages, phrases, turning points in the story.
Use a highlighter, but only after you've read for comprehension.Use these "tracking" methods to yield a richer understanding of the text and lay a solid ground work for your thesis. Close reading takes more time than quick, superficial reading, but doing a close reading will save you from a lot of frustration and anxiety when you begin to develop your thesis. Below are three techniques for reading fiction actively and critically. To discover these interwoven meanings, you must read the work closely. Writing about a story or novel can be difficult because fiction is generally very complex and usually includes several points or themes. This covers prewriting, close reading, thesis development, drafting, and common pitfalls to avoid.Īlso see the OWL handout on Writing about Literature and the OWL handout on Literary Terms. This handout covers major topics relating to writing about fiction. Writing Letters of Recommendation for Students.
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