6.1 Purpose, Audience, Tone, and Content

Analysis Paragraphs

An analysis separates complex materials into their different parts and studies how the parts relate to one another. For example, the analysis of simple table salt would require a deconstruction of its parts—the elements sodium (Na) and chloride (Cl). Then, scientists would study how the two elements interact to create the compound NaCl, or sodium chloride, which is also called simple table salt.

The analysis is not limited to the sciences, of course. An analysis paragraph in academic writing fulfills the same purpose. Instead of deconstructing compounds, academic analysis paragraphs typically deconstruct documents. An analysis takes apart a primary source (an essay, a book, an article, etc.) point by point. It communicates the document’s main points by examining individual points and identifying how they relate to one another.

The analysis does not simply repeat information from the original report but considers how the points within the report relate to one another. By doing this, the student uncovers a discrepancy between the points backed up by statistics and those requiring additional information. Analyzing a document involves a close examination of each of the individual parts and how they work together.