English Composition Resource Guide

A literary analysis is a writer's argument for how an aspect of a work of literature should be interpreted. Such an analysis focuses on a specific attribute of a work rather than on the work as a whole. For example, a literary analysis may analyze the theme of a short story or a novel or the symbolism within it. When writing a literary analysis, writers must back up their assertions with the work itself and with secondary sources. Writers can analyze nearly any type of literature including short stories, novels, and poems. Some even analyze films.

There are numerous Research Starter articles related to this topic. Several themes are linked in this reference article.