Close reading is a method of literary analysis that involves a careful and sustained interpretation of a brief passage of a text. It emphasizes the single and the particular over the general, through close attention to individual words, syntax, and the order in which sentences unfold ideas, as well as formal structures. Close reading is about thinking about both what is said in a passage (the content) and how it is said (the form), leading to possibilities for observation and insight.

Close reading is a process of finding as much information as possible in order to form as many questions as possible. It involves paying attention to a literary works language, style, and overall meaning, looking for patterns, repetitions, oddities, and other significant features of a text. The primary difference between simply reading a work and doing a close reading is that, in the latter, you approach the text as a kind of detective.

A successful close reading pays attention to both the form and content of a literary work, including literal content, tone, characterization, structure, figurative language, diction, sound, style, and context. Close reading should never be the first reading of a text, and it is important to have an understanding of the text as a whole before focusing on the details of a text or passage.

Close reading is a mode of analysis that moves a reader beyond the larger narrative and examines the constituent parts of a text. It is a process of finding deeper meaning present in a text by focusing on the specific details of a passage or text. Close reading is also known as Practical Criticism, and it is rooted in the techniques espoused by the Cambridge critic I. A. Richards.

In summary, close reading is a method of literary analysis that involves a careful and sustained interpretation of a brief passage of a text, emphasizing the single and the particular over the general, through close attention to individual words, syntax, and the order in which sentences unfold ideas, as well as formal structures. It is a process of finding deeper meaning present in a text by focusing on the specific details of a passage or text.