Article Analysis: Enduring Myths of African Art

Suzanne Preston Blier, “Enduring Myths of African Art” 26-31. DUE: FRIDAY, OCTOBER 29 @ 11:00 AM WHAT IS AN ARTICLE ANALYSIS? I define it as your own critical analysis of the material presented in a reading. A successful response should identify the author’s topic and thesis, and then present an argument concerning the effectiveness of the author’s argument. A response can engage both the content of the material (the important points, including any arguments) and the way that content is presented. An article analysis is NOT a book report that merely summarizes the reading and repeats the author’s points. IRST: How to read critically. To move through any reading and toward a thorough understanding of the reading, consider answering the following questions. 1. What is the author’s subject? 2. What is the author’s thesis? 3. How does the author support the thesis (e.g. examples, description, opinion, anecdotes) and how do these examples, etc., specifically support the thesis? 4. What is the author’s purpose (to persuade, argue, describe, entertain, explain)? Authors often answer questions in their writing, but they can also raise them. You should consider whether issues raised in the reading are addressed adequately, passed over with sufficient discussion, or even ignored. SECOND: How to formulate a response There will be readings to which you immediately have a response to the author’s thesis and main points. Your analysis is NOT A SUMMARY OF THE ARTICLE. If you are stuck, think about the elements of the article that you remember most readily, and what did the author do to makes those element(s) more memorable. Did anything about the article stick out to you as jarring? Interesting? Inappropriate? If so, that section of the article may be a good place for you to focus your own critique of the article. THIRD: How to write the response. The introduction of your paper should include both a summary of the reading’s main points (succinctly in about 4-5 sentences), in your own words, as well as your own thesis statement that expresses your analysis of the article. Your thesis statement should be an argument. Please see the handout on iCollege, How to Write a Thesis. This should be followed by the body of your paper, which is the support for the thesis of your paper. This is where you convince me of your thesis. Your paper should have a conclusion, where you remind me of the key pieces of your argument. The paper should be concise (1 page in length, 1” margins), typed, and double-spaced. FINAL REMINDERS. The evaluation of your paper will be based on both how you present your argument and on the proper use of standard written English. No outside sources should be used for this paper. When referring to the text of the article, please include the page number. I DO NOT ACCEPT EMAILED PAPERS. EXAMPLES A paper “heading in the right direction” might: Challenge an element of the reading with a counterexample. Recognize why a critical element of the author’s proof is important. Identify an unclear element from the reading A paper “veering off course” probably: Only summarizes the reading Rambles about your own personal opinions without providing a link to the reading. Discusses the reading, but misinterprets it