Writing and Close Reading
Close reading
NB: a close reading is not a description from beginning to end: it is a view on a narrative that sees it as a whole, and has a critical opinion on it.
Basics
The process of close reading is twofold: first, read the text; second, interpret your reading. Interpretation is a kind of inductive reasoning: you should move from the observation of particular facts and details to a reading based on those details. A close reading does not mean a close description - the reading element indicates activity on the part of the reader. This activity should be thought of in terms of the analysis, synthesis, and interpretation of the formal features of narrative. The formal features of narrative are the narrator, the plot, the characters and what is known as focalisation (who sees or describes what is going on).
What to do
As you read the text, annotate it: ‘annotating’ means underlining or highlighting key words and phrases - anything that strikes you as surprising or significant, or that raises questions - as well as making notes in the margins. Focus on particulars and specifics: who is speaking? where is it located? at what time of day? what kind of language is being used? what allusions are made? What symbolism is present? Is the text ambiguous, if so why? What is the author trying to achieve? etc. Any word you are unsure of, or which looks strange in the context given, look up in any dictionary. When you have a list of particulars you’ve noticed about the text and have looked up all words you’re not sure of, you need then to formulate this list into an essay. Don’t state the obvious: close reading requires that you account for why certain words are important in the context and why the author would be using them. What is being achieved? Similarly, formal features do more that set a mood: you need to think about why a particular mood has been evoked. Many of you are good at spotting when a text becomes odd, uncomfortable, strange or
NB: a close reading is not a description from beginning to end: it is a view on a narrative that sees it as a whole, and has a critical opinion on it.
Basics
The process of close reading is twofold: first, read the text; second, interpret your reading. Interpretation is a kind of inductive reasoning: you should move from the observation of particular facts and details to a reading based on those details. A close reading does not mean a close description - the reading element indicates activity on the part of the reader. This activity should be thought of in terms of the analysis, synthesis, and interpretation of the formal features of narrative. The formal features of narrative are the narrator, the plot, the characters and what is known as focalisation (who sees or describes what is going on).
What to do
As you read the text, annotate it: ‘annotating’ means underlining or highlighting key words and phrases - anything that strikes you as surprising or significant, or that raises questions - as well as making notes in the margins. Focus on particulars and specifics: who is speaking? where is it located? at what time of day? what kind of language is being used? what allusions are made? What symbolism is present? Is the text ambiguous, if so why? What is the author trying to achieve? etc. Any word you are unsure of, or which looks strange in the context given, look up in any dictionary. When you have a list of particulars you’ve noticed about the text and have looked up all words you’re not sure of, you need then to formulate this list into an essay. Don’t state the obvious: close reading requires that you account for why certain words are important in the context and why the author would be using them. What is being achieved? Similarly, formal features do more that set a mood: you need to think about why a particular mood has been evoked. Many of you are good at spotting when a text becomes odd, uncomfortable, strange or