Critical Analysis of an Article Reading Guide
This guide is designed to assist you through a critical reading of an assigned essay, journal article, or
chapter.
The main argument of this text is: (Paraphrase as accurately as possible)
The most important information in the text is:
(What supporting evidence, facts, experience, or data is presented to support the main argument?)
The key concept(s) we need to understand in the text is/are:
What important ideas does the reader need to understand in order to understand the authors’ line of
reasoning?
Some key assumption(s) informing the authors’ thinking is/are: (What concepts, ideas, and modes of
thinking used by the author might be questioned?)
If we take this line of reasoning seriously, the implications are:
(The “so what?” question: Why does this argument matter? Why should we care? What consequences
are likely to follow if people take the authors’ line of reasoning seriously?)
What are your reactions to the text?
What questions do you have about the text?
You can fail this assignment if you do not correctly identify the main argument of the text. Incorrectly identifying the main argument will cause you to incorrectly answer the above questions for your essay.
