Personal Response to Literature

The key to write a good personal response to literature is to be specific.Tell exactly how the story made you feel and precisely what thoughts it stirred in you. Use language that is specific and concrete rather than general, vague, or abstract.

Evaluating a text (short story, novelette, novel, play or movie) implies examples from the work in itself to back up your points. You might, in addition, include quotations from other works or from other critics.

While it is acceptabe to cite a personal experience related to the analysed masterpiece, be careful to keep your focus on it, not on thoughts about your own life.