Close Reading How-To Tip (for concerned Eng 221 students)

Question: How do I start my close reading?
Answer: Identify the "problem" or question your thesis will attempt to answer.

Example:

"Robinson's 275th sonnet, part of the Tangerine Sequence, asserts the sinful nature of citrus fruit and the complications this causes for the greengrocer. In the 240 preceding sonnets, the speaker has consistently praised all fruit--particularly citrus--as paragons of botanical virtue and beauty. However, in 275, remarkably, the speaker condemns all citrus for its 'stinkinge oyle' and 'bitter odoriferous rinde,' and pleads with the greengrocer to 'banish these false seed-containing globes' from the market."