What is critical writing?
To write critically means to actually think about what a piece of literature means and find a way to express what it says to you. You must "consider" the work, form opinions about what you have read, and think about how the ideas in the work connect to the world in a larger way.In your paper, you will most likely discuss how certain literary techniques are used to convey specific ideas. You will not rate how good or bad an author is. You will discuss what a piece means and how it achieves its effect. To write critically, you must provide analysis of specific points. You will explain how the events (quotes, actions, speech, examples, etc.) demonstrate themes and ideas. In the following paragraph, the essay writer explains what the ruby slippers represent in an example of critical analysis:
"The red ruby slippers represent Dorothy's untapped power. She wears the shoes throughout the entire story, never understanding that she could have used them all along to go home. The Good Witch, Glinda, points out what Dorothy hasn't realized when she says, "You've had the power all along." Dorothy, like her friends the Scarecrow, the Tinman, and the Lion, was always able to solve her own problems but never looked inside herself to do it. When she taps her feet together, she takes control and uses her own resources."
Notice that in this analysis, the author uses examples and quotes to support his point. (That the ruby slippers represent Dorothy's untapped power.) The author does not just present quotes separately; he works them smoothly into grammatical sentences that show how they function in the story. The essay writer also uses dependent clauses: "When she taps her feet together (plus your opinion of what this action means)" to show what ideas a specific example from the story demonstrates. He doesn't just tell what happens. He uses a topic sentence to clearly explain that the paragraph will discuss the meaning of the slippers.
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