Paragraph Checklist and Example

Analysis Paragraph Checklist and Example

The most important part of Essay 1 is your actual analysis of the advertisement you've chosen. Therefore, the individual paragraphs that provide that analysis will each be quite important to the overall success of your essay. For solid examples of analysis paragraphs, you can review paragraphs 3-6 of Cheryl Lee's essay, "The Story Behind the Gestures," on pp. 45-48 of A Short Guide to College Writing. Lee's paragraphs hold up well when assessed on the basis of the checklist below. I encourage you to use the checklist to guide your writing and revising of each of your own analysis paragraphs in Essay 1.

Topic Sentence	Sums up a main point, a primary inference, that supports the thesis statement of the essay Typically appears at the beginning of the paragraph
Support	Provides the evidence for the inference summed up in the topic sentence Examines specific details and explains the connection to the topic sentence At least 4-6 sentences, making the whole paragraph at least 5-7 sentences (1/3-2/3 a typed page)
Unity	All of the support really relates specifically to the topic sentence "Stray" ideas may provide evidence or even topic sentence in another paragraph
Coherence	Uses transitions to connect ideas in support sentences Uses repetition to link support to topic sentence and support sentences to one another

Below is paragraph 3 of Lee's essay. The topic sentence is underlined, the specific details are in regular font, the analysis of those details is in boldface, the transitions are in blue, and the repetition is in green. Note, too, that all of the ideas in the paragraph do relate to the topic sentence (thus, the paragraph is unified, as well).

In the photograph, the most prominent and symbolic of gestures is the use and position of the arms. Both my father and mother place an arm around me and in turn around each other. Their encircling arms, however, do more than just show affection; they unify the three figures into a close huddle that leads the viewer’s eye directly to them as opposed to the background or the periphery. The slightly bended arms that rest at their sides act as arrows that not only reinforce the three figures as the focal point but also exclude the fourth figure, my brother, from sharing the spotlight. Unlike the other members of the family whose arms and hands are intertwined, Edwin stands with both hands down in front of him, latching onto no one. The lack of physical contact between the huddled figures and Edwin is again emphasized as he positions himself away from the viewer’s eye as he stands in the periphery.