Writing A Reaction Paper, Review, and

Writing a Reaction Paper,
Review, and Critique

What are Reaction Papers, Reviews, and Critique?
A reaction paper, a review, and a critique are specialized forms of writing in

which a reviewer or reader evaluates any of the following:
 A scholarly work (e.g., academic books and articles)
 A work of art (e.g., performance art, play, dance, sports, film, exhibits)
 Designs (e.g., industrial designs, furniture, fashion design)
 Graphic designs (e.g., posters, billboards, commercials, and digital media)
Reaction papers, reviews, and critiques usually range in the length from 250
to 750 words. They are not simply summaries but are critical assessments,
analyses, or evaluation of different works. As advanced forms of writing, they
involve your skills in critical thinking and recognizing arguments. However,
you should not connect the word critique to cynicism and pessimism.
Reviewers do not simply rely on mere opinions; they use both proofs and
logical reasoning to substantiate their comments. They process ideas and
theories, revisit and extend ideas in a specific field of study, and the present
an analytical response to a book or article.
Critical Approaches in Writing a Critique
There are various ways or standpoints by which you can analyse and critique a
certain material. You can critique a material based on its technical aspects, its
approach to gender, your reaction as the audience, or through its portrayal of
class struggle and social structure.
1. Formalism claims that literary works contain intrinsic properties and treats
each work as a distinct work of art. In short, it posits that the key to
understanding a text is through the text itself; the historical context, the
author, or any other external contexts are not necessary in interpreting the
meaning.
Following are the common aspects looked into in formalism:
 Author’s techniques in resolving contradictions within the work

 Central passage that sums up the entirety of the work
 Contribution of parts and the work as a whole to its aesthetic quality
 Contribution of rhymes and rythms to the meaning to the meaning or effect of
the work
 Relationship of the form and the content
 Use of imagery to develop the various parts of the work
 Interconnectedness of various parts of the work
 Paradox, ambiguity, and irony in the work
 Unity in the work
2. Another popular approach is feminist criticism. Feminist criticism or
feminism focuses on how literature presents women as subject of socio-
political, psychological, and economic oppression. It also reveals how aspects
of our culture are patriarchal, i.e., how our culture views men as superior and
women as inferior. The common aspects looked into when using feminism are
as follows:
 How culture determines gender

 How gender equality (or the lack of it) is presented in the text
 How gender issues are presented in literary works and other aspects of human
production and daily life
 How women are socially, politically, and economically oppressed by patriarchy
 How patriarchal ideology is an overpowering presence
3. Reader response criticism is concerned with the reviewer’s reaction as an audience of a work. This
approach claims that the reader’s role cannot be separated from the understanding of the work; a text does
not have meaning until the reader reads it and interprets it. Readers are therefore not passive and distant, but
are active consumers of the material presented to them. The common aspects looked into when using reader
response criticism are as follows:
 Interaction between the reader and the text in creating meaning
 The impact of reader’s delivery of sound visuals on enhancing and changing meaning
4. Marxist criticism is concerned with differences between economic classes and implications of a
capitalist system, such a s the continuing conflicts between the working class and the elite. Hence, it
attempts to reveal that the ultimate source of people’s experience is the socioeconomic system. The common
aspects looked into when using Marxist criticism are as follows:
 Social class as represented in the work
 Social class of the writer/creator
 Social class of the characters
 Conflicts and interactions between economic class
Structure of a Reaction Paper, Review, or Critique
You have to follow a logical organization and structure for your reaction paper or review to be
able to present your critical evaluation effectively.
Structure For Critiques of Academic Researches and Articles
Introduction (around 5% of the paper)
 Title of the book/article/work
 Writer’s name
 Thesis statement
Summary (around 10% of the paper)
 Objective or purpose
 Methods used (if applicable)
 Major findings, claims, ideas, or messages
Review/Critique (in no particular order and around 75% of the paper)
 Appropriateness of methodology to support the arguments (foe books and articles) or appropriateness of
mode of presentation (other works)
 Theoretical soundness, coherence of ideas
 Sufficiency and soundness of explanation in relation to other available information and experts
 Other perspectives in explaining the concepts ideas
 It is best to ask the following questions during this point
 Does the writer explicitly state his/her thesis statement?
 What are the assumptions (i.e., a scientific/logical/literary explanation without evidence) mentioned in
the work? Are they explicitly discussed?
 What are the contributions of the work to the field where it belongs?
 What kinds of information (e.g., observation, survey, statistics, historical accounts) are presented in the
work? How are they used to support the arguments or thesis?
 Are there other ways of supporting the arguments or thesis aside from the information used in the work?
Is the author or creator silent about these alternative ways of explanation?
Conclusion (around 10% of the paper)
 Overall impression of the work
 Scholarly or literary value of the reviewed article, book, and work
 Benefits for the intended audience or field
 Suggestion for the future direction of research
For other types or reviews, there is no prescribed structure, but the following sections are
almost always present.
Introduction
 Gist of the plot
 Simple description of the artwork
Analysis/Interpretation
 Discussion and analysis of the work (you may employ the critical approach here)
 It is best to ask the following questions during this part.
 What aspects of the work make you think it is a success or failure?
 Were there unanswered questions or plot lines? If yes, how did they affect the story?
 Does the work remind you of other things you have experienced through analogies,
metaphors, or other figurative devices? How does this contribute to the meaning?
 What stood out while you were watching the film or the performance?
Conclusion/Evaluation
 Reinforcement of main assessment
 Comparison to a similar work
 Recommendation of the material (if you liked it)
Guidelines in Writing a Reaction Paper, Review, or Critique
1. For articles or journals
a) Read, view, listen to the work to be reviewed carefully to get the main topic or the concepts presented. Then revisit the
work to further identify its arguments or message.
b) Relate the content of the work to what you already know about the topic. This will make you more engaged in the article
or book.
c) Focus on discussing how the book treats the topic and not the topic itself. Use phrases such as this book/work presents
and the author argues.
d) Situate your review. This means that your analysis should be anchored on the theories presented by the writer or creator.
e) Report the type of analysis or more of presentation the writer/creator used and how this type of analysis supports the
arguments and claims.
f) Examine whether the findings are adequately supported and how the connections between ideas affect the conclusions
and findings.
g) Suggest points for improvement of the reasoning, explanation, presentation of ideas, as well as alternative methods and
processes of reasoning.
h) Compare the writer’s or creator’s explanation of the topic to that of another expert from the same field of study.
I ) Point out other conclusions or interpretations that the writer/ creator missed out. Present
other ideas that need to be examined.
J ) Show your agreement with the writer’s or creator’s ideas and present an explanation for
this agreement.
2. For artworks and other media
a) When critiquing artworks or posters, make sure to use speculative verbs such as evoke,
create, appear, and suggest to show that your interpretation of the artist’s work is just
that-an interpretation.
b) Presume that the reader has not yet seen the material you are reviewing, so make sure to
describe it to them. For reviews of films or plays, make sure not to spoil key events
unless they figure in your review, in which case always add a disclaimer.
c) For artworks, describe the material in simple terms to help your audience visualize it;
refrain from being vague or abstract.
3. On a general note, your reaction paper’s conclusion may focus on the following ideas.
a) Did the work hold your interest?

b) Did the work annoy or excite you?
c) Did the work prompt you to raise questions to the author?
d) Did the work lead you to some realizations?
e) Did the work remind you of other material that you have read, reviewed or listened to in
the past?

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Writing a Reaction Paper,

Review, and Critique

A reaction paper, a review, and a critique are specialized forms of writing in

 Author’s techniques in resolving contradictions within the work

 How culture determines gender

a) Did the work hold your interest?

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