The assignment's two paragraph structure teaches students to develop a single argument. Pick one argument and develop it fully. They learn from this that a quotation, article, or book presents a series of interrelated points, and it is up to the writer to focus on one, omitting discussion of the others. AS such, the quote analysis is a rehearsal for writing a paper with a single, fully developed thesis. The quote analysis can also be used to enhance class discussion by asking students to read their work aloud.
Students often are surprised at the insights their peers discover.
One can also ask other students to respond to the presentation, or to present a counterargument. One can structure these oral presentations in a number of ways. Sometimes I will ask several students the location of their quotations and ask them to present them in the order they occur in the text. This becomes a way of reading through the text in class. This thematic approach brings out a number of facets of a single theme within a work.