Within your masters dissertation you will be asked to write a literature review.  This section will appear near the start of your dissertation and it should summarize the secondary material on your dissertation subject.

The literature review

The literature review can be a key part of your dissertation structure.  It is unlikely that you will have the time to read every word available on your topic, however in the literature review you should aim to demonstrate wide reading.  The literature review will focus on authoritative works.  You will not be discussing a popular, mass market text on the subject (unless that book has been written by an expert or led to an academic response).  Evaluate each relevant book or article you discover to assess whether it is written for an academic audience or written by an academic.

Critical analysis essay

Read sources critically with regard to the question that you are aiming to research for your dissertation.  Keep this  question or issue in your mind at all times.  Your literature review will examine each text in the light of that question.

Your literature review must provide a critique of each work, not simply a summary of the books and articles to which you refer.  Did the author tackle their subject well?  Are there flaws in the argument presented?  Did other academics criticize this work or use it as a springboard to further research?

Dissertation structure

Paragraphs giving the title of each book and then summarizing their contents do not constitute a literature review.  You need to look for themes that several authors mention and discuss the ways the different authorities have tackled them.

Finally, when you have done all your reading and note-taking, you will need to order the material appropriately.  For example, you might choose to decide on a chronology, discussing the oldest works first and moving up to the most recent.  Alternatively, you could decide to write the review by collating all the material about each theme together in separate paragraphs.  The structure of the book review is important to your grade.  The marker will be asking themselves whether you have set out the work in the best possible way.

Literature review assignment

On an Masters course you may be given the opportunity to practice literature reviews before you need to write one for inclusion in the dissertation.  This could be in the form of a literature review assignment, where you will deliver a short literature review for marking.

Have you started work on your literature review?  Let us know about your literature review experiences!  Post a comment below.