Academic writing is not a cakewalk and critical analysis is all the way more difficult. An
essay is considered to be an effective when it has critical analysis. However, crafting a good
critical analysis paper is a skill which students need to master.
Meaning of critical analysis
As the name suggests a critical analysis paper is that which involves a perfect combination of
critical thinking, critical reading and critical writing. Simply stating facts about a topic does
not make an essay effective as an academic essay should consist of point of views and
arguments posed by many scholars and writers. It is through critical analysis that these
arguments and opinions from different writers are discussed along with the analysis of the
author writing the essay. To be more precise, author first considers a piece of literature or
non-fiction or art and evaluates the points of other scholars, authors or artists. Another
interesting feature of critical analysis paper is that such type of paper considers thesis, and
argument which are stated in the introduction section, justified in the body section and
concluded in the conclusion section. This is backed up by logical reasoning and supporting
evidence.
Critical analysis is a subjective kind of writing wherein the author also expresses his views
and evaluation of the text or the literature. This type of writing draws upon critical thinking
skills because critical analysis requires the evaluation of ideas in a balanced way. With regard
to critical thinking skills, it is seen that there are 5 major critical thinking skills which are
- Observation
- Analysis
- Inference
- Communication
- Problem solving
Observation is used in critical analysis essays as it helps in noticing problems and solutions,
analysis helps in data collection and interpreting while inference helps in drawing conclusion
s. Communication skills helps in sharing information with others and in case of academic
piece of writing, communication skills help in writing and articulating things in the critical
analysis essay. Problem solving skills are also crucial for writing a critical analysis which
helps in identifying and troubleshoot solutions. A student should work on these five critical
thinking skills which form the very basis of writing a critical analysis paper.
How to write a critical analysis
First of all, it is very important on the part of the students to analyse the topic and what they
are going to write before actually writing. It is advised to students to explore the topic
beforehand and then write some key points which help in directing the content of the essay. A
lot of articles and works of other writers need to be studied in order to gain a detailed insight
of the topic which helps in analysing the topic critically. After following this, here are some
steps which should be considered by students-
Creating an outline- Creating an outline beforehand itself determines the excellence of
critical analysis essay. This outline can be creating a bullet-point outline wherein
main points are added so that the author can remember it. Throughout the writing
process, students should go through the critical analysis.
Writing an introduction- This is yet another crucial part of writing a critical analysis
essay. In the introduction section, the student must introduce the topic to the audience.
It should not only include the aim of the essay but should also provide the thesis
statement which guides the argument of the essay. Introduction should be 10% of the
total word count. For instance, if the word count of a critical analysis essay is 1000
words, then an introduction of 100 words is enough. However, the length of the
introduction can vary as per complexity. For more complex critical analysis, several
paragraphs can be used in writing an introduction and in case of less complex
analysis, 3-4 sentences of introduction is enough. It is very important on the part of
the students to write an engaging introduction which keeps readers glued. They
should read thoroughly and carefully and choose a thesis statement. The main intent
of a thesis statement is to make a claim about the point of view and writing style of
the scholars and authors. Thesis statement should present a perspective which can be
backed up with evidence.
Writing the body of the essay- Body of an essay is an important part as it contains
major critical analysis of the essay. Follow the outline of the essay in writing the main
body of the essay. Every paragraph should convey a different idea and thus, each
paragraph should start with the idea which is represented in that paragraph. The body
should contain about 4-5 paragraphs according to guidelines which address the main
topics of the essay. Students are also advised to incorporate quotes from the source
that supports claims.
Concluding critical analysis- This is an important part of a critical analysis as it
includes concluding after considering different point of views and opinions and
stating own point of view which is important in helping readers form an opinion on
the topic which is critically analysed. The main intent of a conclusion is to provide a
natural stopping point for the critical analysis. A conclusion should be 10% of the
total work. Thus, if the total word count is 2000 words, it should be 200 words
considering the 10% rule.
Refining the work- Simply doing critical analysis in a structured format is not going
to enhance the academic piece of writing. The critical analysis report or essay should
be refined as well because if the work is not refined then it tends to loose its essence.
Proofreading is an important task not only in writing a critical analysis but also in all
kinds of academic works. There are many essay help in UK which provide
proofreading services to students. These essay writing services provide extra input to
students which help in identfying more errors and thus, makes critical analysis better.
