The Matrix: Writing a Synthesis Essay
Base XP: 300
Are you ready to CHOOSE? To choose whether you will stay in the kiddie pool of literary analysis, or take the plunge into deeper, more meaningful analysis?
Prepare yourself for SYNTHESIS.
When you have a Synthesis Essay assigned to you, you're usually asked to either compare or contrast some thematic element in two texts. So how is this different than a compare and contrast essay?
The difference is in the details.
When you start writing your synthesis essay, you need to look through the texts with the intention of breaking it down into its composite elements. This means you're looking for the following:
- symbolism
- imagery
- characterization
- conflict
- metaphors/figurative language
If you can identify all of these and comment on them, then you're doing what we call a superficial analysis of the texts. Of course, that's not our goal in this course. Our goal is to get out of the kiddie pool, and take your analysis deeper. One great way to do this is by using a Synthesis Matrix.
The key to accessing deeper analysis is to look at connecting all of those composite literary elements to the message or theme of the pieces you're looking at. Asking yourself these questions is one way to access these deeper ideas:
- How is _____________ being used by the author or poet?
- Why is __________________ important?
- How does ______________ connect to universal themes or experiences?
Now it's time to start putting your ideas into the Matrix. Here are quick instructions for how to organize your notes:
- Put the names of the texts at the top of the columns.
- Label each row with the elements you're taking notes on. For example, if you're synthesizing your ideas on how THEME is developed in "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock" and "Foxes", you might label your rows "symbolism", "imagery", and "characterization".
- Now you go through your texts, and put your notes into the boxes that correspond to both the text (column) and concept (row).
When you write your essay, you will use rows to organize your body paragraphs, and discuss both texts according to concept. In this way, you're comparing/contrasting/discussing both texts according to concept, and building towards a balanced discussion.
This week's task: In synthesis essay format, discuss THEME in both "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock" by T.S. Eliot and "Foxes" by Timothy Findley. Be sure to refer to both texts in your response, and organize your thinking beforehand using a Synthesis Matrix, like the one linked below.
You can find a copy of Prufrock linked in your content library on OneNote, and here is a link to a copy of "Foxes".
