MRS.

CARPER ENGLISH

Paragraph
Structure
Why is it important?
 Why is paragraph
structure important?
It creates the framework for organizing your ideas in a
logical order.

This creates a more enjoyable experience for your audience

and ensures that your ideas and claims are clear to your
audience.

There are different types of paragraphs, but today we will be learning

about analysis paragraphs.
 Vocabulary
WHAT IS AN ANALYSIS analysis - (n.) to break

PARAGRAPH? down into smaller

parts for close
You write an analysis paragraph in response to a question examination
about literature that requires an interpretation.
interpretaton - (n.) the
action of explaining
In other words, an analysis paragraph answers an open-
the meaning of
ended question. something

*This is the same thing as a body paragraph in an essay.

Question: Which question should you answer with an analysis paragraph?

1.What is the plot of the novel Animal Farm?
2.In what ways do the pigs abuse their power in Animal Farm?
This question requires an interpretation.
 Parts of a Well-Structured Paragraph

Topic Sentence
Evidence 1
Evidence 2
Conclusion Statement
When pulling in evidence, you must use the quote sandwich!

In English class, we must ground our interpretations in the text. We do this by citing
specific lines of the text that supports our ideas.
THE QUOTE SANDWICH
1.Statement
introducing the When Davy shoots the goose,
Reuben describes his brother’s
quotation
expression: “on his face is nothing
at all but the knowledge that the
goose is his” (Enger16). This
2.The Quotation scene, and Reuben’s description of
it, foreshadows the scene where,
with equal calmness and
3.Commentary confidence, Davy shoots and kills

following the Tommy Basca and Israel Finch.

quotation
 TOPIC SENTENCE Vocabulary

claim - (n.) a
statement or
It introduces the one idea that the paragraph will be
assertion the
about.
speaker believes is
true
It states your claim.

It should always include TAG

title, author, genre
In the novella Of Mice and Men, Steinbeck details ...
The topic sentence is like the trunk of the tree. It is the
foundation of your paragraph. Your ideas are the
branches that grow out of it.
 EVIDENCE
Why is EVIDENCE important?
It shows that your interpretation is grounded in the
text
It shows that your ideas are based on credible
resources
It adds weight to your claim
It demonstrates how your arrived at your
interpretation
 EVIDENCE Vocabulary

direct quote - (n.) a

line that is taken
You need at least TWO pieces of evidence in a paragraph
word for word out
Make sure to implement the quote sandwich.
of the text
Avoid floating quotes. Leaving a quote in your writing without
addressing it is called a floating quote. cite - (v.) to give
When choosing evidence, make sure that it is RICH and credit to the original
RELEVANT. author
Commentary - what follows the quote
this should be your analysis of the quote – showing how
the quote illustrates your ideas and supports your claim
this should be 2-4 sentences More information
avoid restating or summarizing the quote later on proper
thorough reflection should be evident punctuation when
citing evidence.
 SO WHAT?
CONCLUDING
One bad habit of writing is ending with a summary of STATEMENT
your ideas. Instead, I challenge you to shift your
thinking. Your last sentence is your final chance to
drive home your idea to your audience: it is the cherry
on top of your paragraph.

Aim to end on a strong statement that gives your

paragraph meaning and resonates with your
audience.

If this were an essay, this

Answer these questions: You just spent all this time
sentence would connect back
presenting your ideas, so what? Why does it matter? to your thesis and transition
Why is it important? How does this knowledge affect to your next body paragraph.
the audience?
 WRITING TIPS

DO THIS AVOID THIS

use first or second-person
format titles correctly pronouns (I, me, us, we, our,
use direct quotes you, etc.)
maintain a formal write in past tense
academic tone use contractions
This quote shows, The
write in present tense
paragraph will, I believe that
 Vocabulary: EMBEDDING DIRECT
plagiarism - (n.) the
act of copying
QUOTES
someone else's words
and using them as
&
your own IN-TEXT CITATION
according to MLA Format
**This is a serious
offense that must be It is important to cite your evidence to avoid
avoided at all costs. plagiarism.
FORMAT OF EMBEDDING A DIRECT QUOTE
Introduction, "Quote" (parenthetical citation).

Forcing students to wear school uniforms can

have a positive impact on their education:
"elementary school students in both rural and
urban school districts demonstrated
improvement in academic achievement for the
first year following the implementation of the
school-uniform policy" (Shamburger 23).
FORMAT OF EMBEDDING A DIRECT QUOTE
Author's Name Rule

The speaker "mourns that day so soon has gilded by"

(Keats 12) portraying his realization that all humans
share the same inevitable fate.

*If you state the author's name before the quote then you do
not need it in the in-text citation.

In Keats's poem, the speaker "mourns that day so soon

has gilded by" (12) portraying his realization that all
humans share the same inevitable fate.
There are certain pieces of information you need in each in-text citation
depending on the genre of text you are citing.

POEM
ARTICLE
Author and Line
Author
Numbers
(Smith)
(Keats 1-2)
PLAY
NOVEL
Author and
Author and Page #
Act.Scene.Line
(Lee 14)
(Shakespeare
1.2.3-6)
 PUNCTUATION! end
punctuation
Commas, semicolons, colons, and periods go outside of colons
the quotation marks
slashes
Question marks and exclamation marks go inside of the
quotation marks. ellipsis ...
In this poem, Auden poses a question to the reader," [brackets]
Will Time say nothing but I told you so?" (18).
You can use colons to introduce a quote
Slashes are used to indicate line breaks in a poem or
play
The audience can surmise that the horse is confused
by the speaker's actions: He gives his harness bells
a shake / To ask if there is some mistake" (Frost 9-
10).
 PUNCTUATION! end
punctuation
colons
Ellipsis are used to omit certain parts of a text slashes
that are not important to your point ellipsis ...
The narrator reveals his desire to survive [brackets]
despite his suffering: "I want tonight to be
long, as long as my life ... more than any
other night in my life" (1).
Brackets are used when you must change a
word in the original quote for it to make sense
 LONG OR BLOCK QUOTES
If your quotation is 4 lines/sentences or longer, then you must format it as a
block quote.
QUESTIONS? CLARIFICATIONS?
If any questions about MLA in-text citations arise, I
encourage you to visit the OWL Perdue website. This
website is an excellent resource and will be invaluable if
you choose to go to college.