1 Introduction and Thesis Introduction: The introduction relates the topic to the main point of the essay. The introduction is composed of topic material and the thesis. The introduction funnels general topic information towards the specific thesis. The introduction often contains the necessary background information that your reader needs to understand your points. The introduction may also contain: a hook, a quote, a shocking fact, background information, a story, a definition, or a summary of an event in order to draw the reader’s attention into the essay. Narrowing a topic One effective way of focusing on your Topic is to develop a list of specific questions about at the start. This strategy has a number of advantages. Each question narrows the general topic area, suggesting a more manageable essay. Also, simply phrasing your topic as a question gives you a starting point; your work has focus and direction from the outset. Finally, a one-or-two-sentence answer to your questions often provides you with a preliminary thesis statement. Consider the following general topic of CELL PHONES. From it a series of questions could be asked to begin to “funnel” down toward a position, a statement of belief, or an opinion about the topic, called the thesis. CELL PHONES Why did the cell phone get started? What is so great about owning a cell phone? How have cell phones changed American life? What kinds of functions do cell phones offer?
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Introduction and Thesis
Introduction:
The introduction relates the topic to the main point of the essay.
The introduction is composed of topic material and the thesis.
The introduction funnels general topic information towards the specific thesis.
The introduction often contains the necessary background information that your reader needs to
understand your points.
The introduction may also contain: a hook, a quote, a shocking fact, background information, a story, a
definition, or a summary of an event in order to draw the reader’s attention into the essay.
Narrowing a topic
One effective way of focusing on your Topic is to develop a list of specific questions about at the start.
This strategy has a number of advantages. Each question narrows the general topic area, suggesting a more
manageable essay. Also, simply phrasing your topic as a question gives you a starting point; your work has
focus and direction from the outset. Finally, a one-or-two-sentence answer to your questions often provides you
with a preliminary thesis statement. Consider the following general topic of CELL PHONES. From it a series
of questions could be asked to begin to “funnel” down toward a position, a statement of belief, or an opinion
about the topic, called the thesis.
CELL PHONES
Why did the cell phone get started?
What is so great about owning a cell phone?
How have cell phones changed American life?
What kinds of functions do cell phones offer?
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What do people today look for when choosing a cell phone?
Preliminary (Working) Thesis Statement: The fact that the CELL PHONE today is not just a mode of verbal and
aural communication, but also a camera, a computer messaging system, an internet access point, and even a
GPS system, makes owning a cell phone in today’s world an absolute for the average person.
Thesis:
The thesis should be towards the beginning of your paper and is often the last sentence of your
introduction.
For short academic essays, the thesis is usually only one sentence long.
The thesis is the central point or the main controlling idea of the essay.
o Note: There is a difference between a “Subject” and a “Topic". A subject is the main agent in a
sentence. A topic is the main focus of an essay.
Try to keep the thesis simple; too many details will give away what is to come later in the body of the
paper.
The thesis is the reason for the paper to exist, but it should not expressly state “this paper will
cover/explain/etc.”. The author should not draw attention to the essay in this way.
The thesis gives the paper a direction, therefore the essay must support the thesis and the thesis must
match the paper.
Writing a Thesis Statement
I. Determine what kind of paper you are writing.
An analytical paper breaks down an issue or an idea into its component parts, evaluates the issue or
idea, and presents this breakdown and evaluation to the audience.
An analytical thesis statement will explain:
a. What you are analyzing
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b. the parts of your analysis
c. The order of your evidence/analysis
- Example of an analytical thesis statement:
An analysis of the college admission process reveals two principle problems facing counselors: accepting
students with high test scores or students with strong extracurricular backgrounds.
The paper that follows should:
- explain the analysis of the college admission process
- explain the two problems facing admission counselors
An expository (explanatory) paper explains something to the audience.
An expository thesis statement will explain:
a. What you are going to explain to them
b. The categories you are using to organize your explanation
c. The order of your categories
- Example of an expository thesis statement:
The life of the typical college student is characterized by time spent studying, attending class, and socializing
with peers.
The paper that follows should:
- explain how students spend their time studying, attending class, and socializing with peers
An argumentative paper makes a claim about a topic and justifies this claim with specific evidence.
The claim could be an opinion, a policy proposal, an evaluation, a cause-and effect statement or an
interpretation. The goal of the argumentative paper is to convince the audience that the claim is true
based on the evidence provided.
An argumentative thesis statement explains:
a. Your claim or assertion
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b. The reasons/evidence that support your claim
c. The order in which you will be presenting your reasons and evidence.
- Example of an argumentative thesis statement:
High school graduates should be required to take a year off to pursue community service projects before
entering college in order to increase their maturity and global awareness.
The paper that follows should:
- present an argument and give evidence to support the claim that students should pursue community
projects before entering college.
If you are writing a text that does not fall under these three categories (ex. narrative), a thesis
statement somewhere in the first paragraph could still be helpful to your reader and is often
subtly worked into the opening just like any other paper.
A narrative essay tells a story. Usually you will want to indicate the lesson you learned because of an
event, and how you were changed by this event.
A narrative thesis statement will tell your audience:
a. The event (with details).
b. How it was important (what it meant to you as a person).
c. What you learned or how you grew, and how you are different as a result of this event.
II. Begin with a working thesis.
Don’t expect to write your thesis exactly how you want it on the first try. Just like your essay as a whole,
your thesis statement should be a work-in-progress, so expect to revise and edit it. If you are having trouble
starting your thesis statement, a good way to begin may be to state the opinion or idea that your wish to focus
on throughout your paper. Later, you will probably want to revise or reword your thesis so that it doesn’t sound
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so simplistic.
Some easy procedures to make a working thesis:
1. Start with your topic and an argument
(i.e. “Dogs are better than cats.”)
2. Tack on a “because”…
3. Think of some reasons you could use to support this idea.
(i.e. “loyalty, intelligence, trainability, usefulness, maintenance, and friendliness.”)
4. Pick around 2-4 of your favorite reasons and list them after the “because”.
(i.e. “Dogs are better than cats because they are more loyal, friendlier, and smarter than cats.”)