What is critical analysis?

So…you want to know how to write a critical analysis essay? As an academic, I am often asked the following questions:

• What is critical analysis?
• What is critical writing?
• What is the difference between analysis and critical analysis?
• How do you critically Analyse a research paper?
• What are the steps to write a critical essay?
• What does a critical essay mean?

So this article aims to take some of the frustration out of critical writing by breaking things down…

Foucault (1981/1988) clarified that:

“critique is not a matter of saying that things are not right as they are. It is a matter of pointing out on what kind s of assumptions, what kinds of familiar, unchallenged, unconsidered modes of thought the practices that we accept rest…. Criticism is a matter of flushing out that thought and trying to change it: to show that things are not as self-evident as one believed, to see that what is accepted as self-evident will no longer be accepted as such. Practicing criticism is a matter of making facile gestures difficult.” (pp. 154-155)

Critiquing doesn’t mean that you are simply critical in identifying everything bad. After all, one can be a ‘critically acclaimed’ actor. Instead, one has to tease out both the good and the bad. You will also need to decide how much value you will place on any evidence you find, look at the alternatives and decide how you might apply your findings in the real world. Your arguments should be backed up with evidence throughout.

Types of evidence ranked in order of quality from high to low…

A linear representation of critical analysis

Adapted from Plymouth University (2008)

The critical analysis cycle

5 common mistakes in essay writing

In critical analysis, the writer expresses their own evidence based view. As such, any critical analysis is subjective. Yet there are some mistakes people make that make their writing less credible.

• Their tone is personal and familiar rather than academic in nature
• They rely too heavily on the work of others without presenting their own evidence based arguments
• They make bold statements without citing their sources of evidence
• They rely too heavily on description without analysing and evaluating the materials under critique (We can read the material ourselves if description is all we want!)
• Their arguments lack structure and there is limited evidence of wider reading

So how can we move from being descriptive to being critically analytic? The table below outlines the difference between the two…

Descriptive	Critically Analytic
States what happened	Identifies the significance
States what something is like	Identifies the significance
Gives the story so far	Evaluates strengths and weaknesses
States the order things in which things happened	Weighs one piece of information against another Makes reasoned judgments
Says how to do something	Argues a case according to the evidence
Explains what a theory says	Shows why something is relevant or suitable
Explains how something works	Indicates why something will work best
Notes the methods used	Identifies whether something is appropriate or suitable
Says when something occurred	Weighs up the importance of the component parts
States the different components	Evaluates the relative significance of details Structures information in order of importance
States options Lists details	Shows the relevance of links between pieces of information
Lists in any order States links between items	Draws conclusions Identifies why the timing is of importance
Gives information	Gives the reasons for selecting each option

Source – University of Bradford academic skills workshop

Looking at other examples

• Essay examples/Example essays
• 15 Top Essay Writing Tips for Midwifery and Nursing Students
• A guide to literature reviewing

And remember…

•  If you are a student writing an assignment, use this guide together with any assignment specific brief, guideline or marking criteria you may also have been given relating directly to your course.
• It is also important to think about how you will apply your critical analysis to ‘real world’ scenarios – This requires a critical thinking approach, which many writers neglect.

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Until next time…Look after yourselves and each other 💚💙💜❤

References

• Plymouth University. (2008) Critical Thinking. Plymouth: Plymouth University. [online]
  Available at: http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/study/cll/othercourses/itt/resource_bank/studyskills/study/rea
  dingskills/8_criticalthinking_summary1.pdf [Accessed 3.6.2015]
• Foucault, M. (1981/1988). Practicing criticism (A. Sheridan, Trans.). In M. Foucault & L. D.
  Kritzman, (Ed), Politics, philosophy, culture: Interviews and other writings, 1977-1984 (pp. 152-158). New York, NY: Routledge.