Close reading of Jane Eyre. short passage from Jane Eyre–this should be no more than a few sentences, the point is to focus on a very small amount of text.

Close reading of Jane Eyre.  short passage from Jane Eyre–this should be no more than a few sentences, the point is to focus on a very small amount of text. The purpose of a close reading is to dive in deep, to examine very closely the language of passage, to deconstruct and explore each word, each choice the author made, each literary device. Some questions to think through: Why did the author write these exact words in this order? Why did they chose these words over other words? Why is this sentence very long, or short? Why did they use this punctuation? How does this passage relate to the larger work? Why does this character or narrator say this exact thing at this exact moment? In addition to this, a close reading should have an interpretation, what is your take on this passage? How does it work? Why does it work? Does it work at all? Most importantly, what do you think it is trying to say? For example, is this a commentary about women’s role, a critique of capitalism, a religious metaphor, a turning point in the poem, a moment of foreshadowing, a reference to a historical event, a divergence from / great example of a literary convention of the period/genre, etc. (these are just some of an endless list of ways to interpret a text). In summary: a close reading is a mix of analyzing the language of a text and providing your take on what the text is saying/doing.