MFA in Writing for Children & Young Adults Critical Essay

Writing the Critical Essay: Information and Guidelines

We hope these guidelines will help you when you begin tackling the form of the critical essay. Don't panic. Keep in mind that it's a form you're after, not a formula.

What the essay is

an exploration of a craft-related topic pertinent to your writing
an analysis (that's the "critical" part) of some aspect of a selected published work or works, most likely written for children or young adults
an expression of your thoughts and reflections in a form intended for a professional audience, and therefore using the standard citation format (MLA) that we use in our discourse community
a mode of writing that will allow you to think more deeply and critically about your own work

What it isn't

a book report
an unsubstantiated opinion or set of opinions
a summary of opinions culled from secondary sources
a survey

Advisors will differ on what constitutes the perfect essay opening, or even the perfect essay. Some will expect a traditionally constructed essay with a clear statement of purpose. Others will want you to experiment with the form of the essay as you do with other forms in your creative work. All advisors, however, will expect you to articulate a point of view, and to express, support, and defend it in terms that are clear and logical. Don’t let your opinions read like a tract, or an attack. The nature of the essay is to argue, persuade, consider, and reason. This often includes thoughtful discussion of obvious counterarguments.

We expect that you have the ability to summarize the book(s) under discussion in your essay in such a way that a reader will have a clear enough idea of the story to understand the essayist's point. This requires concise writing and an understanding of the modest goal of the essay. You should be able to illustrate that you grasp the author's intentions, at least with regard to the craft issue under consideration.

Occasionally an essay might lead you to discuss thematic concerns or changing attitudes within the field or even in the wider culture. You may decide to weigh in with cultural or ideological concerns. Both these are fine, for context.

Primarily, however, we hope that your critical writing will help you to look more closely at the craft of writing and to articulate, incisively, what makes a poem or a story tick. It is of particular relevance that you look at issues of craft that you yourself may be struggling with. The essays you write should complement, not compete with, your creative efforts. Examination of craft is emphasized over pure criticism.

We are not a program dedicated purely to literary analysis. We want to produce creative writers. This means we expect you, in your essays, to demonstrate the ability to read creatively. Don’t approach texts seeking to either praise or condemn them, but rather to understand—understand what's happening under the skin of the words, and think about why you respond as you do.

For all these reasons, we want to encourage the use of primary sources as your major background reading for your essays. Secondary sources to bolster your arguments or viewpoint can be used, too, of course, but they can’t take the place of wide, deep reading in your chosen field of literature for children and young adults. Put another way, "expert" quotations should not take the place of your own expressed analysis.

Keep in mind that your audience is knowledgeable about youth literature but not necessarily the specific area you're exploring. Your tone should be engaging and conversational, but not too casual.

What to expect in the program

We require 10 short (2-5 page) essays or the equivalent in first semester. Advisors will assign longer essays and revisions as needed. In second semester we require 8 short and 1 longer (8-10 page) essay or the equivalent. This is a general outline of what is expected; keep in mind that each advisor may vary the specific requirements as they see fit.

An acceptable essay at the graduate level will demonstrate

close, nuanced reading
clear and original analysis
strong organization
competent writing and grammatical expository prose
the ability to raise, sustain, and support a focused argument
relevance to student's own writing
MLA format

References

Bonnie Christensen's "The Critical Essay"

Exemplary Essays by VCFA (MFA-WC&YA) Students & Alumni

Reader Expectations by Jill Santopolo

Crafting Believable Characters by Choosing the Right Words by Rachel Wilson

The Drug Issue by Kate Angelella

Brush Up Your Chiasmus by Carol Brendler

The Omniscient Narrator by Miriam Glassman

Strange Alchemy: Transitions in Margaret Mahy's The Changeover: by Gwenda Bond

Pirate-Speak Across Media and Centuries—Savvy? by Laura Rebecca Cook

Reference books

The Art of the Personal Essay: An Anthology from the Classical Era to the Present, edited by Philip Lopate, Anchor, 1997.

The Fourth Genre: Contemporary Writers of/on Creative Nonfiction, edited by Robert L. Root, Jr. and Michael Steinberg, Allyn & Bacon, 1998.

Rules for Writers by Diana Hacker and Nancy Sommers, 7th edition. Bedford St. Martin's, 2011.

Writing Creative Non-fiction: Instruction and Insights from the Teachers of the Associated Writing Programs, edited by Carolyn Forche and Philip Gerard. Story Press, 2001.

(These books can be purchased at the VCFA bookstore or borrowed from the Library)