On a sheet of paper, write your own literary analysis essay about the novel you read. Using the questions in this lesson as prompts, draft a thesis statement. Then, following the overall structure of Divya’s outline, write an outline centered on your thesis.
Give your essay a good title. Then use the rubric to make sure you have accomplished the goals for writing an evaluation of a novel. Talk about your essay with your Learning Coach.
Answer:
Essays will depend upon the novel and scene chosen. An example based on Anne of Green Gables follows:
Love Changes Everything in Anne of Green Gables
In L. M. Montgomery’s Anne of Green Gables, orphan Anne Shirley impresses the reader from the moment she first arrives at the train station: “Oh, there are a lot more cherry-trees all in bloom! This Island is the bloomiest place. I just love it already, and I’m so glad I’m going to live here. I’ve always heard that Prince Edward Island was the prettiest place in the world, and I used to imagine I was living here, but I never really expected I would. It’s delightful when your imaginations come true, isn’t it?” (Ch. II) The town of Avonlea does not know what to make of this lonely girl, who befriends Nature and relies on her imagination to survive. As Anne comes of age at Green Gables, love unfolds, giving her the space to grow and transforming those around her. It is a theme that is infused in every element of the novel, from plot to character to setting.
The plot begins with a sense of tension, as Anne realizes the Cuthberts had intended to adopt a boy. When they decide to let Anne stay, the plot centers on what will happen: Can Anne fit in and become accepted, or will her unique nature, expressiveness, and temperament cause undue conflict? Will she grow, mature, and become loved? One incident in Chapter XXII is typical of Anne’s growing pains. After exploding at neighbor Mrs. Lynde for insulting her red hair and freckles, she refuses to apologize. When Anne has been banished to her room for a full day and night, Matthew sneaks upstairs when Marilla is distracted. Kindly, he encourages Anne to apologize and she agrees, admitting her temper has cooled. But it is Matthew’s love, what Anne calls his “kindred spirit,” that gives Anne the confidence she needs to make this decision: “I felt so ashamed of myself. But I just couldn’t think of going and telling Mrs. Lynde so. It would be so humiliating. I made up my mind I’d stay shut up here forever rather than do that. But still—I’d do anything for you . . .” (Ch. X) This event shows the effect of love on Anne’s ability to admit her mistakes, face the consequences, and grow.
The transformative power of love is also conveyed through the characters. This comes through on the first drive home to Green Gables. Something surprising happens to Matthew, who at 60, is firmly set in his ways and extremely shy around girls and women. Yet Anne’s enthusiasm for the island life causes him to experience it with fresh eyes. Cold, stern, Marilla is another story. It does not take long for Marilla’s heart to soften—although she cannot express her feelings to Anne. But she tells Matthew: “Dear me, it’s only three weeks since she came, and it seems as if she’d been here always. I can’t imagine the place without her.” (Ch. XII) By the end of the novel, before Anne is to leave for college, love has managed to melt even Marilla’s icy exterior: “Anne laid her fresh young cheek against Marilla’s faded one, and reached out a hand to pat Matthew’s shoulder. Marilla would have given much just then to have possessed Anne’s power of putting her feelings into words; but nature and habit had willed it otherwise, and she could only put her arms close about her girl and hold her tenderly to her heart, wishing that she need never let her go.” (Ch. XXXVI)
The theme of love is expressed over and over though the setting of Prince Edward Island, which is central to the novel. As a lonely orphan, Anne has found comfort in Nature, even giving her favorite trees names. As Matthew first drives her to Green Gables, Anne is excited about her new home, which she has been told is lush with trees. She felt sorry for the few scrawny trees at the orphanage, she tells Matthew: “They just looked like orphans themselves, those trees did. It used to make me want to cry to look at them. I used to say to them, ‘Oh, you poor little things! If you were out in a great big woods with other trees all around you and little mosses and June bells growing over your roots and a brook not far away and birds singing in you branches, you could grow, couldn’t you? But you can’t where you are. I know just exactly how you feel, little trees.’” (Ch. II) When Anne gets her first glimpse of Green Gables, its beauty renders her speechless—quite a feat. Anne equates the tree-filled setting of Green Gables with love. In this place, teeming with all of Nature’s trimmings, she feels the possibility of love and stability, and is transformed.
Montgomery manages to infuse the theme of Anne of Green Gables throughout its plot, characters, and setting. In this way, she shows her readers how love can transform people’s lives—often in surprising ways.
Outline:
I. Introduction
A. Thesis statement: In Anne of Green Gables, the theme of love is infused in every element of the novel, transforming the plot, characters, and setting.
II. Plot
A. Introduction to the tension in the plot
B. Anne’s growth and maturation throughout the novel
C. Example of an incident that showcases the transformative power of love on Anne
III. Characters
A. Anne’s effect on Matthew’s character
B. Marilla’s transformation as a result of Anne’s presence
C. The change in relationship dynamics as a result of love
IV. Setting
A. Anne’s connection with Nature and how it influences her
B. Anne’s reaction to the beauty of Prince Edward Island and Green Gables
C. The significance of the setting in conveying the theme of love
V. Conclusion
A. Restate thesis
B. Recap main points
C. Final thoughts on the transformative power of love in Anne of Green Gables.