University Writing Center

Answering any, or all, of the following questions will help you to analyze most journal articles and essays.

1. EXAMINE THE TITLE

• What does the author tell you in the title?
• Does the title specify the topic or main idea?
• Does the title merely imply the subject?
• Does the title arouse interest?
• Is the title brief/provocative/relevant?
• Does the title indicate the author’s attitude toward the subject?

2. IDENTIFY THE MAIN IDEA

• Is the main idea stated or implied?
• Is the main idea expressed in the first paragraph, in the body, or at the end?
• If the main idea is at the end, does this placement add suspense or clarify details or merely cause a lack of interest?
• Is the main idea stated in more than one place?
• Is the placement of the main idea the best arrangement for the article/essay?
• Does this placement add interest or confusion?
• What are the advantages/disadvantages in such an arrangement?
• Could the main idea escape the reader completely?
• Does the author adhere to the main idea?
• Does the author use any of the following to support the main idea?
  • actual situations or definite places
  • descriptive or narrative materials
  • anecdotes or incidents
  • quotations
• Did the techniques used contribute to the argument?

3. ANALYZE THE STRUCTURE

• Can you identify a definite plan of organization (for example, beginning, body, end)?
• Did the author do any of the following?
  • analyze the subject matter
  • categorize the material
  • chronologically develop ideas
  • compare and contrast material
  • use a combination of any of these
• Is the structure clear and logical?
• Are the transitional words/phrases adequate to help the reader follow the author’s ideas?
• Does the author have logical support for ideas?
• Does the author use evidence to support claims?
• Does the author overuse generalizations or make mistakes in logic?
• How does the author add interest and variety?
• Is the ending consistent with the beginning?
• Does the ending weave together threads of ideas from within the article/essay?
• Is the ending a restatement of a high point?

4. EVALUATE THE STYLE OF THE ARTICLE/ESSAY

• Is this an academic or a popular source?
• Is the tone consistent with this format?
• Does the author’s personality show in the writing?
• Are individual situations or overall ideas stressed?
• Does the author’s background influence the article/essay?
• What is the author’s point of view?
• What role does the author’s point of view play in the subject?
• What techniques are used to produce the author’s style?
  • vocabulary
  • technical words
  • descriptive words
  • unusual inversions of words
  • forceful or weak words
  • definitions
  • allusions to other works
  • satire
  • imagery and figurative language

Further Reading

• http://writingcenter.tamu.edu/content/view/34/76/ -This UWC handout gives a general overview of reviews and critques.
• http://www.utoronto.ca/writing/bkrev.html – A good overview of the book review/ article critique; provides links to London Review of Books and New York Review of Books as well.
• http://www.english.udel.edu/wc/student/handouts/critical_reviews.html – Notes the difference between a critical review and an abstract or a summary, and then gives an idea of how to go about getting started on a critical review.
• http://library.queensu.ca/research/guide/book-reviews/how-write – Gives a step-by-step procedure for first, getting a general idea about a book, and second, analyzing and evaluating a book.