Thursday, July 24, 2008

Thesis Statement.

Learning how to write a good thesis statement is not easy as it appears. The thesis statement states the main point of your essay. It often answers the following questions:

“What is the topic of the essay? “
“What does the writer think about it? “
“What message does the writer convey through his essay? “

Follow these steps in building up your thesis statement:

• Look for interesting appealing facts, controversial issues and arguments in your primary sources, analyze them.

• Write down a working thesis.

• Place your thesis at the end of an introductory paragraph.

• Think of the counter-arguments to your thesis. It will help you to polish it.

These are the features of a good thesis statement:

• A good thesis presents the writer’s clearly defined position on the topic. (Don’t beat around the bush. Express your point of view briefly and accurately)

• A good thesis is meaningful.

• A good thesis does not promise to cover more than the essay affords.

• An efficient thesis has a manageable, debatable claim.

• A good thesis is presented in the end of the first paragraph.

• A good thesis comprises two parts: - first, it informs what you are going to discuss and then how you are going to do it.

Mind the three “NEVER” rules for thesis statements:

• A thesis is never a questioning sentence.

• A thesis is never a detail.

• A thesis should never be unclear, aggressive or confrontational.

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