Use highlighters - Take note of any and all points of
interest in the text. If you've got a thesis in mind already, use several
different colors of highlighter, each for information relevant to a separate
prong of your argument. This will make your life much easier when you go
back to integrate your sources, particularly if you've got an extensive
amount of text to cover.
Look for patterns - Be aware of recurring
techniques-both literary and rhetorical-which the author uses to illustrate
a concept. Specific sorts of imagery, allusion, or dialogue, which seem to
be similar or related inevitably, reveal a larger intention that can be made
into an argument.
Ask questions - In expository work, continually
ask yourself "Is this true? What evidence supports this statement?
Can other conclusions be drawn from the facts of this text?" By
deciding whether or not you agree with the arguments of your source, you'll
begin to crystallize more subtle arguments of your own. In literature,
question the author's purpose in using particular narrative structures. "Why
is this metaphor used? What does the comparison signify? Why do we learn
this particular piece of information in such a manner? Why is the setting
dwelled on so much in this passage? What is the relationship between setting
and character?” Write these questions in the margins as you go along.
Get down to the details - One
of the most sophisticated close reading techniques you can incorporate into
your work is an analysis of the multiple connotations of a specific word. Be
aware of every single word the author uses. When you find one of particular
interest, literally look it up in the dictionary and consider how each and
every definition might be applied to the text. Even if the author uses it
with one literal definition in mind, see if the connotations of the other
definitions can be applied to your idea (This is particularly true of
Shakespeare).
Consider the source in relation to other texts - If
something in the work reminds you of something else you've read, there's
quite possibly a good reason why. Consider how your source is a response to
or a continuation of other texts. Always be on the look out for Christ
symbolism and Greek mythological allusions; both are fairly easy to spot and
can be effectively analyzed in support of a particular interpretation.
An Example:
From Coleridge's Kubla Kahn: "In Xanadu
did Kubla Kahn a pleasure dome decree; Where Alph the sacred river ran
through caverns measureless to man; into a sunless sea."
Your assignment is to write about how the poem illustrates
the power of human creativity. In light of this, here are some questions
to ask yourself right off the bat:
-
Why
does Coleridge select an Oriental locale and a historical figure to
open his work?
-
What
is the significance of the word "pleasure,"
"measureless," "sunless"?
-
What
is Alph, and does Coleridge use it as the setting for his poem?
Answering these questions might involve a consideration of
distance, in both time and space, related to the vastness of human
capacity. You might also consider "measureless" and
"sunless" as descriptive of types of knowledge or
ignorance; in breaching the "sunless" sea with his dome,
what sort of power is Kubla Kahn exhibiting? A trip to the dictionary (or,
more likely, a glance at the inevitable foot note) will provide the
information that the Alph is a magical river in mythology. This begs the
question, "how does a fantastic setting relate to Coleridge's view
of the imagination?”
