Analisi testuale
Analisi testuale  processo di scrittura che deriva da una serie di relazioni per SPIEGARE AL LETTORE il messaggio di un testo letterario spiegando chiaramente quali sono state le scelte tecniche( scelte di titolo, layout, struttura e come il contenuto è stato costruito linguisticamente: perchè lo scrittore si è avvalso di quei suoni e strutture di parole, e come queste scelte fonologiche hanno creato e delineato il testo/messaggio, la scelta delle parole e i campi semantici      privilegiati per capire che quelle scelte hanno contribuito a rendere chiaro il messaggio; analisi delle scelte sintattiche, il modo in cui è costruita la frase, la punteggiatura, la posizione che le parole hanno nella frase, per capire a cosa viene dato rilievo e perchè, utilizzo di figure retoriche, la loro decodificazione e il valore che assumono) solo dopo aver effettuato tutti questi processi si potrà parlare messaggi lanciati dal testo e quindi, individuare il lettore ideale e la tipicità della scrittura(poetica/narrativa/drammatica).
Nessuna conclusione personale è possibile senza queste operazioni, neppure da parte da parte di un critico letterario, in quanto qualsiasi cosa   risulta effettuando le sopracitate operazioni, risulta in un'impressione e non in un giudizio ragionato. 
1° individuare le aspettative create dal titolo e ipotizzare un possibile percorso 
2°attenta osservazione del layout per ricavare informazioni sull'organizzazione del testo sottoposto ad analisi 
3° lettura almeno 3 volte e traduzione delle parole e per           
4° capire il livello DENOTATIVO (quello di cui parla il testo) altrimenti ricominciare da capo. La lettura da indicazioni anche alla storicità della lingua
 5° fare l'analisi strutturale del testo(individuare le sequenze che costituiscono il testo nella sua unità e capirne la singola funzione per poter individuare le relazioni esistenti tra le diverse parti che sono quell'aspetto organizzativo/testuale che permettono la composizione di un testo coerente e coeso.
N.B. coerenza=legami logici di contenuto   
coesione=legami linguistici(sintassi e morfologia)  
 6°analisi denotativa: esprimere con un uso personale del linguaggio, il contenuto del testo  
7° procedere con l'analisi del testo connotativo 
8° presupporre un lettore ideale (colui che capisce il significato e le ragioni delle scelte stilistiche effettuate); il lettore comune non corrisponde al lettore ideale. Il compito non è quello di fare analisi testuali. Il lettore intelligente analizza il testo e, se richiesto, esprimere delle considerazioni sulla base di un'analisi precisa, dettagliata e ragionata.

The extract is taken from the epic poem Beowulf. It consist of a single section which deals about Beowulf’s voyage to help his neighbor Heorot. It is a narrative text organized into couplets and mainly focuses on the hero’s departure and communicates all the actions done and needed to go to see.
It goes without saying that it tells about Beowulf, the protagonist, providing his characterization as well as the idea of the setting, so that intelligent reader can make up a mental picture of what he is reading.
One cannot forget that the language of the extract is not the original version, but is rather a contemporary rendering of an epic poem written in Old English. Old English was a German dialect and could not be understood today.
The text opens with immediate reference to Grendel, so that the reader understands who the monster is and who the protagonist Beowulf is going to fight again. The danger represented by the monster is suggested by the verb “heard” which comes right at the beginning of the line in an alliterative use of the language. This is done on purpose to convey its terrible reputation. Immediately after, the reader is provided with information, details about the setting, so that he can better understand where events take place. “Geatland” is the focus of the setting. Immediately the intelligent reader understands the narrative strategy of the composer. The narrator wants to highlight the unique qualities of the hero that may become such just because he is ready to risk his life for a good cause: showing generosity and solidarity with they who are in danger. Beowulf is created as sort of a single personality, not as an ordinary man. “No one else” and “like him” make that clear right from the start. In addiction expressions like “alive” and “on earth” underline his peculiar strength and courage, suggesting that people different from him could not remain alive. Besides reinforcing his highly-positive reputation, the narrator underlines his feasibility in doing any sort of duty. He was “the mightiest man”. Again the use of alliteration of the sound “m” anticipates other features of this character protagonist who is from a prestigious family (“high-born”) and who has got a power that nobody wants to put into discussion. He was a smart man, able to make the right choice at the right time. He managed to choose the most suitable boat for the voyage, one “that would ply the waves”.

Afterwards, Beowulf announced his plain: he wanted to go to that king who needed defenders. The function of alliteration of the “a” sound is to underline the keyword “plan” that refers to the voyage: the TOPIC. The intelligent reader immediately understands Beowulf was the strongest man in country that is why “nobody tried to keep him from going” and “they inspected omens and spurred his ambition to go”.These lines highlight the leader's reputation  He was self-confident and strong-minded in what he would be ready to do.Besides he enlisted men who were the best he could find to underline the importance and difficult of the mission. What is more, the warriors were fourteen  that is why the task required skills difficult to find in warriors.
The relationship between Beowulf and his warriors is founded on respect towards the thane.
From 17th  line  to 30th narrator refers to the voyage on a wood ship.In these lines verbs try to underline the the difficulty in carrying out the voyage. Alliterations of "s" "w" and "l" highlight the semantic field of the natural elements like "sand" ,"surf","waves", "wind","sunlit","sheer", "looming headlands" and "landfall". Alliteration of "s" sound is to give the idea of the sound of the sea. This semantic field culminates in the sentence "she flew like a bird".
The last part of the text (from line 31 up to 35) tells about Beowulf's arrival in Heorot. The setting in this sequence is a seaside,underlined by the repetition in line 32: "over the side ,out in the sand". When they arrived there, they firstly thanked God. The narrator wants to underline their strong religious bond.