writing in the disciplines

writing in biology

critical analysis

A critical analysis essay is a common biology assignment at the University of Minnesota. While it takes many forms depending on the course, a typical critical analysis assignment asks students to do the following:

choose a source

The instructor generally tells you what type of source you must select. Typical sources include

• an advertisement from the popular media
• a popular journal article
• a research or review article from a disciplinary journal

briefly summarize the source

As this assignment is not a book review, the summary need not be extensive—the bulk of the essay should focus on analysis. The summary should provide a brief description of the source.

If you are analyzing an advertisement or popular journal article, a summary should include the author of the source, the publication in which it appears, the main claim made by the source, and the evidence used to support the claim.

If you are analyzing a research article, a summary should include authors' names and journal name as well as answers to the following questions:

• What questions are the authors asking?
• Why are they conducting these experiments?
• What are their hypotheses, their methods, and their key results?

critique the source

If you are analyzing an advertisement or popular journal article, ask yourself questions like...

• What is the major claim of this source?
• Is the claim scientifically accurate?

If you are analyzing a research or review article, ask yourself questions like...

• Does this research have merit? Why or why not?
• Is the methodology appropriate to the questions being asked? Can I suggest any alternative methods?
• What contributions do the results make to the literature on the topic? Do the results justify the authors' conclusions? Do the authors answer the questions they posed in the introduction?
• Is this a good scientific study/paper? Why or why not?

generate a thesis

Based on your answers to the above questions—especially the last question under each type of source—generate an argument (a thesis) to guide your essay. For advice on writing a strong thesis statement, see Indiana University's How to Write a Thesis Statement.

support your critique

Use evidence from your source as well as from other appropriate sources to support your arguments. If you are uncertain about what types of sources are acceptable, it is always best to check with your instructor or TA.