Expository Writing, Spring 2022. Mark BuchanTEXTUAL ANALYSIS EXERCISEDUEROUGH DRAFT (500-700 words)January 26th9amFINAL DRAFT (500-700 words) January 30th, 11.59pm (via Canvas)TEXTAndrew Solomon, SonINSTRUCTIONSOnce you have finished reading Solomon’s essay, carefully reread the passages reproduced below. Takenotes as you do so, asking yourself the following questions in particular: What question or problem isthis passage exploring? What are its KEY TERMS? Its themes? Its examples? What broader implicationsmight the ideas contained in the passage have for the text as a whole?Once you have taken thorough notes on each passage, produce AT LEAST TWO substantive paragraphsof at least 250 words each. Each paragraph should consider (and quote from) ONE of the selectedpassages, ANALYZING the ideas you encountered, while avoiding SUMMARY.➢ANALYSIS explores and explains; it says something new. It requires that we consider implications,thatwe interpret the language and structure of a text. Analysis looks for patterns, dissects concepts,and explores (rather than merely presenting) evidence. It asks (and answers!) HOW and WHYquestions.➢SUMMARY reports on what has already been said. It generally asks and answers WHAT, WHERE,WHEN, and WHO questions. Summary adds nothing new to the conversation.To focus your writing, begin by choosing one KEY TERM that you think matters for the passage, andincorporate it into your topic sentence. Some examples of KEY TERMS one encounters while readingSolomon include: identity, difference, uniqueness, illness, defective, limitation, duality etc. (though youcan make nearly any idea that explores and explains into a KEY TERM through emphasizing it).
