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Academic words for high school essays and literary analysis assignments

1. Words for introducing an interpretation

Instead of repeatedly writing shows, students can use:

  • illustrates

  • demonstrates

  • reveals

  • highlights

  • emphasizes

  • establishes

  • conveys

  • communicates

  • suggests

  • implies

  • reflects

  • depicts

  • portrays

  • presents

  • constructs

  • challenges

  • questions

  • reinforces

  • complicates

  • foregrounds

 

 

2. Words for analyzing characters

Instead of the character is...:

  • portrays

  • characterizes

  • depicts

  • presents

  • establishes

  • develops

  • reveals

  • embodies

  • represents

  • symbolizes

  • reflects

Useful nouns:

  • protagonist

  • antagonist

  • narrator

  • characterization

  • identity

  • agency

  • motivation

  • conflict

  • transformation

  • development

  • perspective

  • psychological state

 

3. Words for themes and ideas

These are particularly useful:

  • explores

  • examines

  • addresses

  • investigates

  • interrogates

  • confronts

  • challenges

  • critiques

  • questions

  • exposes

  • complicates

  • problematizes

 

4. Words for literary devices

Instead of:

The author uses symbolism.

Students can write:

The author employs symbolism to...

Useful verbs:

  • employs

  • utilizes

  • incorporates

  • develops

  • establishes

  • constructs

  • juxtaposes

  • contrasts

  • repeats

  • reinforces

  • foreshadows

  • alludes to

 

Useful nouns:

  • symbolism

  • imagery

  • metaphor

  • simile

  • irony

  • juxtaposition

  • motif

  • allusion

  • foreshadowing

  • personification

  • tone

  • mood

  • diction

  • syntax

  • narrative voice

  • point of view

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5. Words for explaining significance

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Instead of:

This is important because...

Use:

  • significantly

  • notably

  • therefore

  • consequently

  • thus

  • as a result

  • this suggests that...

  • this implies that...

  • this reinforces...

  • this underscores...

  • this illustrates...

  • this contributes to...

  • this reflects...

  • this reveals...

 

Especially useful:

underscores= emphasizes something important. This imagery underscores Saul's connection to the land.

reinforces = strengthens an existing idea. The recurring image of the river reinforces the theme of renewal.

complicates = makes an idea more complex rather than simply supporting it

Saul's success in hockey complicates the novel's representation of assimilation.

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6. Academic words for literary theory

Since you're interested in creating a literary-theory resource, I would definitely include these:

Postcolonial

  • colonialism

  • colonization

  • assimilation

  • cultural erasure

  • displacement

  • marginalization

  • oppression

  • hegemony

  • dominance

  • resistance

  • representation

  • othering

  • identity

  • agency

  • power

  • voice

Decolonial / Indigenous perspectives

  • reclamation

  • resurgence

  • self-determination

  • sovereignty

  • Indigenous knowledge

  • cultural continuity

  • cultural revitalization

  • belonging

  • relationality

  • land-based identity

  • community

  • ancestral knowledge

  • decolonization

7. Words for comparing ideas

Students often overuse similar and different.

Give them:

Similarity

  • similarly

  • likewise

  • correspondingly

  • in parallel

  • echoes

  • mirrors

  • reinforces

Contrast

  • however

  • whereas

  • in contrast

  • conversely

  • in opposition to

  • diverges from

  • juxtaposes

  • challenges

Example:

Saul's relationship with the natural world contrasts sharply with the institutional environment of the residential school.

 

8. Words for cause and effect

  • results in

  • leads to

  • contributes to

  • produces

  • generates

  • gives rise to

  • stems from

  • derives from

  • is rooted in

  • is shaped by

  • is influenced by

Example: Saul's displacement results in a profound disruption of his cultural identity.

 

9. Words for making an argument

These are excellent for essays:

  • argues

  • asserts

  • contends

  • maintains

  • proposes

  • suggests

  • demonstrates

  • establishes

  • supports

  • substantiates

  • challenges

  • refutes

 

Levels of strength

Less certain:

The novel suggests that...

 

Moderately strong:

The novel demonstrates that...

 

Strong analytical claim:

Wagamese challenges the assumption that...

 

Very strong:

Wagamese exposes the destructive consequences of...

 

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