Embedded Files
Whether you’re preparing for an IB assessment, developing your skills as a literary thinker, or just trying to make sense of a challenging text — this page is here to guide you.
This scaffold breaks down the process of text analysis into manageable steps that apply across any genre or text type: poetry, drama, prose, non-fiction, or multimodal. It helps you read actively, structure your thinking, choose the right lens, and develop interpretations that are both thoughtful and textually grounded.
Use it flexibly. You don’t need to follow every step in order — but the more consistently you practise these habits, the stronger your analysis will become.
- Read Actively
Read the full text more than once.
Annotate for literary, linguistic, visual, or structural features.
Identify the genre, form, and mode (literary or non-literary).
2. Break Down the Structure
2. Break Down the Structure
Divide the text into analytical sections:
Poetry: stanzas or tonal shifts
Drama: acts and scenes
Fiction: chapters or narrative changes
Non-literary: paragraphs, columns, or sections
Add your own headings to track change and development.
Look for patterns: contrast, symmetry, repetition, or fragmentation.
3. Apply a Relevant Analytical Framework
3. Apply a Relevant Analytical Framework
Choose the framework that suits the text type:
ITSLIDETh – for non-fiction or multimodal texts
ITISPC – for poetry
SCPLTST – for prose
CoLDCuTS – for drama
Use the framework to explore how meaning is created through:
Tone, imagery, structure, language, devices, and thesis
4. Select an Analytical Lens
4. Select an Analytical Lens
Apply a literary theory or perspective such as:
Feminist
Marxist
Psychoanalytic
Post-Colonial
Ecocritical
Use the lens to explore a global issue or power dynamic.
Think like a literary theorist: how do different perspectives shape meaning?
5. Explore Context and Concepts
5. Explore Context and Concepts
Consider the Three Areas of Exploration:
Readers, Writers and Texts: How is meaning constructed and received?
Time and Space: What context influences this text?
Intertextuality: How does this text echo or subvert others?
nb. there are a number of questions you can consider listed on the first page of each Area of Exploration (AoE), These are particularly useful when looking at how TOK is part of this subject.
Link to key concepts: identity, culture, creativity, communication, perspective, transformation, representation. (Optional)
6. Conduct Focused Research
6. Conduct Focused Research
Investigate the author, time period, genre, and social context.
Look at critical responses and background influences.
7. 🔗Reflect, Compare and Connect
7. 🔗Reflect, Compare and Connect
Compare with other texts from your syllabus or portfolio.
Connect across time, genre, and culture.
Reflect on how the text engages readers or challenges expectations.
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