Transcript Organizing Your Essay

Charting a plan for success
A thesis statement in an essay is a sentence
that clearly identifies the purpose of the
paper or previews its main ideas.
It appears IN the introduction of your paper. It
is not the introduction.
Developing a thesis by asking . . .
Narrow a Topic
Who?
After thinking about your subject,
selecting some aspects you find
interesting, and answering the
who/what/when/where questions
from the flowchart, you're ready to
write your research statement/thesis.
For this sample project your thesis
statement will look like this:
In F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel, The
Great Gatsby, the character, Daisy, is
representative of the new concept of
women which emerged in the United
States during the 1920s.
What?
When?
Where?
Why?

A thesis statement is an assertion, not a statement of fact or
an observation.
Fact or observation: People use many lawn chemicals.
Thesis: People are poisoning the environment with chemicals
merely to keep their lawns free of weeds.

A thesis takes a stand rather than just announcing a subject
or asking a question.
Announcement: The thesis of this paper is the difficulty of
solving our environmental problems.
Question: Do you want to know more about how we might go
about solving our environmental problems?
Thesis: Solving our environmental problems will be more
difficult than many environmentalists believe.

A thesis is the main idea, not the title. It must be a complete
sentence that explains in some detail what you expect to
write about.
Title: Social Security and Old Age
Thesis: Continuing changes in the Social Security system make
it almost impossible to plan intelligently for one’s retirement.

A thesis is narrow rather than broad. If it is narrow it can be
fully supported.
Broad: The American steel industry has many problems.
Narrow: The primary problem of the American steel industry is
the lack of funds to renovate outdated plants and equipment.
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A thesis is specific rather than vague or general.
Vague: Ernest Hemingway’s war stories are very good.
Specific: Hemingway’s stories helped create a new writing style
by using a lot of dialogue and shorter sentences.

A thesis statement has one main point rather than several
points. More than one point may be too difficult for the
reader to understand and the writer to support.
More than one point: Stephen Hawking’s physical disability has
not prevented him from becoming a world renowned
physicist, and his book is the subject of a movie.
Specific: Stephen Hawking’s physical disability has not
prevented him from becoming a world renowned physicist,

You can revise your thesis statement
whenever you want to while you are writing
your essay
End of Part 1
Introduction
Body one
Body two
50 words, 3 to 5
sentences
100 words, 7 to 10
sentences
100 words, 7 to 10
sentences
Body three
100 words, 7 to 10
sentences
Conclusion
50 words, 3 to 5
sentences


An introduction is the first paragraph of any
written work.
To write a good introduction you need to:
◦ Briefly introduce the topic
◦ Clearly and unequivocally state your position
◦ Provide three reasons that support your position

Topic sentence

Transition sentences

Thesis sentence

50 words minimum =
3 to 5 sentences
Parts of an introduction
Today smoking is an issue
which is on everybody’s
mind. The whole country is
divided on this issue. Some
people believe that smoking
should be banned while
others are not so harsh.
However, I believe that
tobacco should be
outlawed because it
endangers everyone’s
health, pollutes the
environment, and harms
our economy.
Example

Another example:
This is the section of the paper in which you offer the
.
If the purpose of your paper is to explain an important idea, then
your discussion should present details that clarify the point. If the
purpose of your paper is to explain and defend the opinion you have
formed after studying an issue or problem, then
.



First, you should divide your material into its obvious parts. What
are these parts? Are they reasons why you believe your opinion is
true? Make a list of these parts.
Then make a plan for discussing these parts, one at a time. Most
often, you would plan to write a separate paragraph about each
part.
Next, decide on the order that makes the most sense. If you will
be giving reasons to support a point, are your reasons equally
important? Think about whether you should discuss the most
important one first and then the rest-or if you should start with
the less important examples or reasons and end with the most
important.
Each paragraph in the body of your essay has:

Topic sentence
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Example and/or statistics
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Example and/or statistics
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Example and/or statistics
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Restate (NOT repeat) topic sentence
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Paragraphs should each be about 100 words = 8 to 10 sentences
In the first place, smoking is not only dangerous for
smokers, but also for those who inhale second hand
smoke. Several scientific investigations have proven
that young people who consistently inhale second hand
smoke are ten times more likely to develop heart
problems later in life (Wallin 56). Moreover, second
hand smoke is especially bad for expectant mothers. If
a pregnant woman inhales second hand smoke, her
unborn child may experience serious side effects (Mayo
study164). Another study concluded that people that
are exposed to second hand smoke are also more likely
to be depressed and suffer from other emotional
problems (Sauvigon 22). So, in the end, second hand
smoke is physically and emotionally dangerous.
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Failure to give enough content.

Failure to stay on the topic.

Failure to keep an academic focus.
The conclusion rounds out the "package," giving it a sense of
completeness. Without it, the paper would just stop, leaving the
reader in the middle of things and wondering what the ideas all add
up to. Also, the conclusion is a valuable opportunity for the writer to
show the
that have gone into
the work and
.

Restates the thesis
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Restates the reasons
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Makes final plea for position
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In a paper of medium length (four to seven
paragraphs), the conclusion should be at
least 50 words = 4 sentences
In conclusion, smoking must be banned without
delay. The United States is paying a high price,
physically and emotionally, because of smokers.
Moreover, smokers pollute the environment
unnecessarily, and are less productive on the job
than non-smokers. We have no choice but to
reverse this destructive and costly habit by making
smoking illegal.
Remember this introduction for a paper about
humans vs. the natural world?
Complacency . . . has put us on the brink of disaster" (Fisher
18). We like to think that we can control our world and that
our expertise will keep us safe. Certainly, we have achieved
success in building dams, driving off wild beasts, and
spraying bugs. However, believing that we have protected
ourselves from every natural threat is a dangerous
miscalculation of our knowledge and our skills. Such
confidence in our ability to control the environment is
foolish. We will regret such arrogance when the next drought
cycle occurs or a hurricane approaches.
Thesis.
Re-stated thesis.
To believe that we are in control-that we can redesign the
environment around us-is ludicrous. If we want to survive, we'll
have to recognize how insignificant we actually are and then
learn how to cope with the reality of the natural world. It may
not be the world we want, but it's the only one we have.
Strong, memorable last sentence.