Let’s be honest: writing an analytical essay can feel like a slog. You can put hours of your life into it, only to get it back with comments like “too much summary” or “needs a stronger thesis.” It happens every day – let’s avoid it next time. The thing is, most of these mistakes are very fixable—they just need a sharper eye and a bit of guts in your writing. So, let’s dive into the top slip-ups students make and consider fixes that will actually make your essays stronger.
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1. Summarising Instead of Analysing
Mistake: Too many students play it safe by retelling the story. That’s not analysis—it’s basically writing a book report.
Fix: Stop telling me what happens. Start asking why it matters. Why did the author choose that symbol, or that line of dialogue? Push yourself to explain what the author is really getting at. Don’t write “Macbeth kills King Duncan so that he can become king.” Tell me that “Macbeth’s inability to refuse the urge to murder Duncan reveals his human frailty and failure to resist the influence of others and the lure of his own ambition.”
2. Weak or Vague Thesis Statements
Mistake: “The theme of love is in Romeo and Juliet.” Well, yeah—and water is wet.
Fix: Give your reader something they didn’t already know. Take a stand. Try: “In Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare portrays love as both intoxicating and destructive, suggesting that passion without reason is as immature as it is dangerous.” That’s something worth arguing.
3. Lack of Textual Evidence
Mistake: Bold claims with nothing to back them up. It’s like showing up to court with no witnesses.
Fix: Use quotes, paraphrases and details from the text as your ammo. Then actually use them—explain what they mean and why they matter. Don’t try to convince me that Hamlet’s madness is an act unless you can remind me that he planned in advance to put on an “antic disposition.”
4. Dropping Quotes Without Analysis
Mistake: Dumping a quote into your essay and running off like it explains itself. Spoiler: it doesn’t.
Fix: Introduce the quote, then dissect it. Your reader shouldn’t have to guess why it’s important—you need to follow through and do the work of explaining why it supports your argument. “Antic disposition.” Need I say more?
5. Disorganised Structure
Mistake: Bouncing from point to point like a pinball machine. Sure, the ideas might be good but they’re a mess.
Fix: Get ruthless with your structure. Use topic sentences like road signs and make sure each paragraph builds your case instead of wandering off. Try reading your intro, then just your topic sentences (skipping over what’s inside each body paragraph), then your conclusion. You should be able to see a coherent argument, with each point building to the next.
6. Ignoring Counterarguments or Complexity
Mistake: Pretending there’s only one way to read a text. That’s not analysis—it’s tunnel vision.
Fix: Show you’ve thought harder. Mention alternative readings and then explain why your take holds up. It’ll make you sound sharper, not weaker. It also gives you more depth and detail in your analysis (and we’ve all been told to include more of that).
7. Overuse of Formulaic Transitions (e.g., “This shows that…”)
Mistake: Repeating the same boring phrase until your essay sounds robotic.
Fix: Mix it up. “This highlights,” “This suggests,” “This reveals”—all fine. Or better yet, tailor your phrasing to what the text actually does. Is it offering a glimpse of something? Is it serving as an indictment of something else?
8. Overly Informal Language
Mistake: Dropping slang or half-baked phrases like “super important” or “kind of proves.” It makes your essay sound lazy and like you’re uncomfortable with taking a stand.
Fix: Keep your edge but tighten up. Swap casual filler for precise words that hit harder. You don’t need to sound stuffy—just sharp.
9. Forgetting the Conclusion’s Purpose
Mistake: Copy-pasting the thesis into the conclusion and calling it a day. Weak.
Fix: Your conclusion is your mic drop. Reflect on the bigger picture. Why should anyone care about your argument? Imagine you’ve just convinced us of your thesis – now tell us why we should care.
10. Neglecting Proofreading
Mistake: Handing in work full of typos, missed commas and clunky sentences. Nothing screams “I didn’t care” louder.
Fix: Proofread like your marks depend on it—because they do. Read it out loud, get someone else to look at it, or use an editing tool. Clean writing shows respect for your ideas. Better yet, you’re not just improving this essay – by editing, you’re sharpening your skills so that next time, you don’t make the same lazy mistakes in the first place.
Analytical essays aren’t about showing you’ve read the book—they’re about showing you can tear it apart and make sense of it. Ditch the weak language, sharpen your arguments and your writing will stand out. If you want personalised support to really level up, visit www.inkwelleducation.com—we’ll help you write essays that don’t just tick boxes but make an impact.