ENG4U1
THE FORMAL LITERARY ESSAY: LESSON #2
Remembering How to P.E.E.
Body Paragraphs and Quotation Incorporation
Format: Body paragraphs in a formal literary essay follow a very
specific P.E.E. formula . “Urine” big trouble if you don’t use this
formula!
Your literary essay will have a minimum of 3 body paragraphs, each
of which will have 2 – 3 P.E.E.s for a grand total of 6 – 9 P.E.E.s
overall !
Ingredient What Is It?
1. Topic Sentence ● First sentence of your paragraph
● Begins with an appropriate transition word
● Introduces one of your essay’s lines of
argument –a focus that supports your thesis
Formal Literary Essay: Body Paragraphs and Quotation Incorporation
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without being too broad or too specific
● Should echo key ideas in your thesis –use a
thesaurus to help you reword those ideas
● No more than 1 sentence long
2. Transition
Word and Point
(P)
● Transition words :
– help your writing flow and move from one
idea to the next
– e.g. To begin, Secondly, Thirdly, Next,
Similarly, In contrast to (etc)
– see hand out
● Point :
– An idea that supports your topic sentence
and, by extension, your thesis which is then
followed up with a specific example
– IMPORTANT: Make sure you are not
confusing a point with an example! A point is
a little argument or idea that is supported by a
specific quotation from the text!
3. Evidence (E)
(a.k.a. Proof)
● A quotation —an excerpt from the text
(dialogue, stage direction, descriptive
passage) that helps prove your point
● Must be incorporated smoothly — lead-in
to your quotation by briefly indicating who
is speaking to whom, when, and where
Formal Literary Essay: Body Paragraphs and Quotation Incorporation
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● You must include the correct page number
(for short stories, novels, or plays written in
prose) or (Act.scene.line) reference (for
plays written in verse) at the end of your
quotation
4. Explanation
(E)
(a.k.a. Comment)
Review the Tips
for Analysis
document that is
posted in our
Classroom!
● At least 5 sentences per point
● Part#1 : links back to your point —explains
how your evidence (proof) proves the point
that you are trying to make
● Part #2 : links back to your topic sentence
and thesis —explains how your evidence
(proof) proves the argument that you are
trying to make
● Often it is useful to re-quote important
words from the quotation in your
explanation–target SPECIFIC DETAILS !
● … shows…illustrates…reveals…highlights…e
mphasizes…displays…
● Use a thesaurus to find appropriate
synonyms for key words
5. Concluding ● Last sentence of your paragraph
Formal Literary Essay: Body Paragraphs and Quotation Incorporation
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Sentence ● Begins with an
appropriate transition
word (ex. In conclusion,
Thus, Therefore)
● Sums up your paragraph’s
main idea—basically, your topic sentence
reworded
● Use a thesaurus ! Don’t copy and paste!
You must P.E.E. 2-3 times in your paragraph!
Topic Sentence
P.E.E. #1
P.E.E. #2
P.E.E. #3
Concluding Sentence
1. Order your paragraphs in this way:
1st = medium strength argument
2nd = weakest argument
3rd = strongest argument
2. Order your P.E.E.s in this way:
1st = medium strength P.E.E.
2nd = weakest P.E.E.
3rd = strongest P.E.E.
Formal Literary Essay: Body Paragraphs and Quotation Incorporation
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Body Paragraph Exemplar
1. Read it.
2. Read it again, this time dissecting it for the elements of a body
paragraph. Use different colours/strategies to identify the
following elements:
a) all transition words
b) the topic sentence –also identify paragraph’s focus and thesis
connection
c) the points
d) the examples that illustrate the points
e) the lead-ins
f) the evidence (quotations)
g) Part 1 of explanation (evidence←→ point analysis)
h)Part 2 of explanation (evidence←→ topic sentence/thesis link)
i) the concluding sentence
Formal Literary Essay: Body Paragraphs and Quotation Incorporation
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WHOSE LINE IS IT ANYWAYS?
INCORPORATING QUOTATIONS IN YOUR FORMAL LITERARY ESSAY
Quotations are an important source of evidence in a formal literary essay.
Using them shows your reader that you know and understand the text about
which you are making your argument, and helps make that argument stronger
and more convincing. There is, however, a certain procedure that one must
follow when incorporating them.
1. Short Quotations : Less than four (4) lines of type when typed out
i) Insert right into the paragraph after your lead-in.
ii) Put quotation marks around your quotation.
iii) Put the citation in brackets after the quotation (#)
iv) Periods or commas come after iii)!
a) When introducing a short quotation after a full sentence , use a colon (:) instead of a comma
While Blanche bathes in the bathroom on the night of her birthday party, Stanley eagerly reveals
Blanche’s lies to Stella: “Lie Number One: All this squeamishness she puts on! You should just know
the line she’s been feeding to Mitch. He thought she had never been more than kissed by a fellow! But
Sister Blanche is no lily! Ha-ha! Some lily she is!” (98).
b) When incorporating a short quotation into a sentence , use a comma (,)
Stella is shocked by Stanley’s revelation and asks, “`What have you heard and who from?” (99).
Formal Literary Essay: Body Paragraphs and Quotation Incorporation
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2. Long Quotations : Four (4) lines or more of type when typed out
i) End your lead-in with a colon , even if it is not a complete sentence.
ii) DO NOT put quotation marks around your quotation.
iii) Center the entire quotation (one inch from the left and right margins) and single space
it.
iv) Periods or commas come after the citation!
v) Explanation begins back at the left margin (not indented) and is double spaced.
While on a date, Mitch and Blanche discuss their loneliness and mutual desire to find someone.
Blanche confides in Mitch and shares the story behind her first husband, Allan Grey:
He was a boy, just a boy, when I was a very young girl.
When I was sixteen, I made the discovery–love. All at
once and much, much too completely. It was like you
suddenly turned a blinding light on something that had
always been half in shadow, that’s how it struck the world
for me. But I was unlcuky. Deluded. There was somthing
different about the boy, a nervousness, a softness and
tenderness which wasn’t like a man’s, although he wasn’t
the least bit effeminate looking–still–that thing was
there…(95)
Blanche’s story shows that…
3. Other Important Details:
a) You may use ellipsis points (…) to omit sections that are unnecessary in your quotations. Be
careful, though, not to change the overall meaning of your quotation!
b) Dialogue: If there’s a back-and-forth exchange between two characters, be clear as to who’s
speaking to whom and incorporate the dialogue smoothly.
Formal Literary Essay: Body Paragraphs and Quotation Incorporation

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