develop a thesis practice quizlet

Developing a Thesis Statement

Many papers you write require developing a thesis statement. In this section you’ll learn what a thesis statement is and how to write one.

Keep in mind that not all papers require thesis statements . If in doubt, please consult your instructor for assistance.

What is a thesis statement?

A thesis statement . . .

Makes an argumentative assertion about a topic; it states the conclusions that you have reached about your topic.
Makes a promise to the reader about the scope, purpose, and direction of your paper.
Is focused and specific enough to be “proven” within the boundaries of your paper.
Is generally located near the end of the introduction ; sometimes, in a long paper, the thesis will be expressed in several sentences or in an entire paragraph.
Identifies the relationships between the pieces of evidence that you are using to support your argument.

Not all papers require thesis statements! Ask your instructor if you’re in doubt whether you need one.

Identify a topic

Your topic is the subject about which you will write. Your assignment may suggest several ways of looking at a topic; or it may name a fairly general concept that you will explore or analyze in your paper.

Consider what your assignment asks you to do

Inform yourself about your topic, focus on one aspect of your topic, ask yourself whether your topic is worthy of your efforts, generate a topic from an assignment.

Below are some possible topics based on sample assignments.

Sample assignment 1

Analyze Spain’s neutrality in World War II.

Identified topic

Franco’s role in the diplomatic relationships between the Allies and the Axis

This topic avoids generalities such as “Spain” and “World War II,” addressing instead on Franco’s role (a specific aspect of “Spain”) and the diplomatic relations between the Allies and Axis (a specific aspect of World War II).

Sample assignment 2

Analyze one of Homer’s epic similes in the Iliad.

The relationship between the portrayal of warfare and the epic simile about Simoisius at 4.547-64.

This topic focuses on a single simile and relates it to a single aspect of the Iliad ( warfare being a major theme in that work).

Developing a Thesis Statement–Additional information

Your assignment may suggest several ways of looking at a topic, or it may name a fairly general concept that you will explore or analyze in your paper. You’ll want to read your assignment carefully, looking for key terms that you can use to focus your topic.

Sample assignment: Analyze Spain’s neutrality in World War II Key terms: analyze, Spain’s neutrality, World War II

After you’ve identified the key words in your topic, the next step is to read about them in several sources, or generate as much information as possible through an analysis of your topic. Obviously, the more material or knowledge you have, the more possibilities will be available for a strong argument. For the sample assignment above, you’ll want to look at books and articles on World War II in general, and Spain’s neutrality in particular.

As you consider your options, you must decide to focus on one aspect of your topic. This means that you cannot include everything you’ve learned about your topic, nor should you go off in several directions. If you end up covering too many different aspects of a topic, your paper will sprawl and be unconvincing in its argument, and it most likely will not fulfull the assignment requirements.

For the sample assignment above, both Spain’s neutrality and World War II are topics far too broad to explore in a paper. You may instead decide to focus on Franco’s role in the diplomatic relationships between the Allies and the Axis , which narrows down what aspects of Spain’s neutrality and World War II you want to discuss, as well as establishes a specific link between those two aspects.

Before you go too far, however, ask yourself whether your topic is worthy of your efforts. Try to avoid topics that already have too much written about them (i.e., “eating disorders and body image among adolescent women”) or that simply are not important (i.e. “why I like ice cream”). These topics may lead to a thesis that is either dry fact or a weird claim that cannot be supported. A good thesis falls somewhere between the two extremes. To arrive at this point, ask yourself what is new, interesting, contestable, or controversial about your topic.

As you work on your thesis, remember to keep the rest of your paper in mind at all times . Sometimes your thesis needs to evolve as you develop new insights, find new evidence, or take a different approach to your topic.

Derive a main point from topic

Once you have a topic, you will have to decide what the main point of your paper will be. This point, the “controlling idea,” becomes the core of your argument (thesis statement) and it is the unifying idea to which you will relate all your sub-theses. You can then turn this “controlling idea” into a purpose statement about what you intend to do in your paper.

Look for patterns in your evidence

Compose a purpose statement.

Consult the examples below for suggestions on how to look for patterns in your evidence and construct a purpose statement.

Franco first tried to negotiate with the Axis
Franco turned to the Allies when he couldn’t get some concessions that he wanted from the Axis

Possible conclusion:

Spain’s neutrality in WWII occurred for an entirely personal reason: Franco’s desire to preserve his own (and Spain’s) power.

Purpose statement

This paper will analyze Franco’s diplomacy during World War II to see how it contributed to Spain’s neutrality.

The simile compares Simoisius to a tree, which is a peaceful, natural image.
The tree in the simile is chopped down to make wheels for a chariot, which is an object used in warfare.

At first, the simile seems to take the reader away from the world of warfare, but we end up back in that world by the end.

This paper will analyze the way the simile about Simoisius at 4.547-64 moves in and out of the world of warfare.

Derive purpose statement from topic

To find out what your “controlling idea” is, you have to examine and evaluate your evidence . As you consider your evidence, you may notice patterns emerging, data repeated in more than one source, or facts that favor one view more than another. These patterns or data may then lead you to some conclusions about your topic and suggest that you can successfully argue for one idea better than another.

For instance, you might find out that Franco first tried to negotiate with the Axis, but when he couldn’t get some concessions that he wanted from them, he turned to the Allies. As you read more about Franco’s decisions, you may conclude that Spain’s neutrality in WWII occurred for an entirely personal reason: his desire to preserve his own (and Spain’s) power. Based on this conclusion, you can then write a trial thesis statement to help you decide what material belongs in your paper.

Sometimes you won’t be able to find a focus or identify your “spin” or specific argument immediately. Like some writers, you might begin with a purpose statement just to get yourself going. A purpose statement is one or more sentences that announce your topic and indicate the structure of the paper but do not state the conclusions you have drawn . Thus, you might begin with something like this:

This paper will look at modern language to see if it reflects male dominance or female oppression.
I plan to analyze anger and derision in offensive language to see if they represent a challenge of society’s authority.

At some point, you can turn a purpose statement into a thesis statement. As you think and write about your topic, you can restrict, clarify, and refine your argument, crafting your thesis statement to reflect your thinking.

As you work on your thesis, remember to keep the rest of your paper in mind at all times. Sometimes your thesis needs to evolve as you develop new insights, find new evidence, or take a different approach to your topic.

Compose a draft thesis statement

If you are writing a paper that will have an argumentative thesis and are having trouble getting started, the techniques in the table below may help you develop a temporary or “working” thesis statement.

Begin with a purpose statement that you will later turn into a thesis statement.

Assignment: Discuss the history of the Reform Party and explain its influence on the 1990 presidential and Congressional election.

Purpose Statement: This paper briefly sketches the history of the grassroots, conservative, Perot-led Reform Party and analyzes how it influenced the economic and social ideologies of the two mainstream parties.

Question-to-Assertion

If your assignment asks a specific question(s), turn the question(s) into an assertion and give reasons why it is true or reasons for your opinion.

Assignment : What do Aylmer and Rappaccini have to be proud of? Why aren’t they satisfied with these things? How does pride, as demonstrated in “The Birthmark” and “Rappaccini’s Daughter,” lead to unexpected problems?

Beginning thesis statement: Alymer and Rappaccinni are proud of their great knowledge; however, they are also very greedy and are driven to use their knowledge to alter some aspect of nature as a test of their ability. Evil results when they try to “play God.”

Write a sentence that summarizes the main idea of the essay you plan to write.

Main idea: The reason some toys succeed in the market is that they appeal to the consumers’ sense of the ridiculous and their basic desire to laugh at themselves.

Make a list of the ideas that you want to include; consider the ideas and try to group them.

nature = peaceful
war matériel = violent (competes with 1?)
need for time and space to mourn the dead
war is inescapable (competes with 3?)

Use a formula to arrive at a working thesis statement (you will revise this later).

although most readers of _______ have argued that _______, closer examination shows that _______.
_______ uses _______ and _____ to prove that ________.
phenomenon x is a result of the combination of __________, __________, and _________.

What to keep in mind as you draft an initial thesis statement

Beginning statements obtained through the methods illustrated above can serve as a framework for planning or drafting your paper, but remember they’re not yet the specific, argumentative thesis you want for the final version of your paper. In fact, in its first stages, a thesis statement usually is ill-formed or rough and serves only as a planning tool.

As you write, you may discover evidence that does not fit your temporary or “working” thesis. Or you may reach deeper insights about your topic as you do more research, and you will find that your thesis statement has to be more complicated to match the evidence that you want to use.

You must be willing to reject or omit some evidence in order to keep your paper cohesive and your reader focused. Or you may have to revise your thesis to match the evidence and insights that you want to discuss. Read your draft carefully, noting the conclusions you have drawn and the major ideas which support or prove those conclusions. These will be the elements of your final thesis statement.

Sometimes you will not be able to identify these elements in your early drafts, but as you consider how your argument is developing and how your evidence supports your main idea, ask yourself, “ What is the main point that I want to prove/discuss? ” and “ How will I convince the reader that this is true? ” When you can answer these questions, then you can begin to refine the thesis statement.

Refine and polish the thesis statement

To get to your final thesis, you’ll need to refine your draft thesis so that it’s specific and arguable.

Ask if your draft thesis addresses the assignment
Question each part of your draft thesis
Clarify vague phrases and assertions
Investigate alternatives to your draft thesis

Consult the example below for suggestions on how to refine your draft thesis statement.

Sample Assignment

Choose an activity and define it as a symbol of American culture. Your essay should cause the reader to think critically about the society which produces and enjoys that activity.

Ask The phenomenon of drive-in facilities is an interesting symbol of american culture, and these facilities demonstrate significant characteristics of our society.This statement does not fulfill the assignment because it does not require the reader to think critically about society.

Drive-ins are an interesting symbol of American culture because they represent Americans’ significant creativity and business ingenuity.

Among the types of drive-in facilities familiar during the twentieth century, drive-in movie theaters best represent American creativity, not merely because they were the forerunner of later drive-ins and drive-throughs, but because of their impact on our culture: they changed our relationship to the automobile, changed the way people experienced movies, and changed movie-going into a family activity.

While drive-in facilities such as those at fast-food establishments, banks, pharmacies, and dry cleaners symbolize America’s economic ingenuity, they also have affected our personal standards.

While drive-in facilities such as those at fast- food restaurants, banks, pharmacies, and dry cleaners symbolize (1) Americans’ business ingenuity, they also have contributed (2) to an increasing homogenization of our culture, (3) a willingness to depersonalize relationships with others, and (4) a tendency to sacrifice quality for convenience.

This statement is now specific and fulfills all parts of the assignment. This version, like any good thesis, is not self-evident; its points, 1-4, will have to be proven with evidence in the body of the paper. The numbers in this statement indicate the order in which the points will be presented. Depending on the length of the paper, there could be one paragraph for each numbered item or there could be blocks of paragraph for even pages for each one.

Complete the final thesis statement

The bottom line.

As you move through the process of crafting a thesis, you’ll need to remember four things:

Context matters! Think about your course materials and lectures. Try to relate your thesis to the ideas your instructor is discussing.
As you go through the process described in this section, always keep your assignment in mind . You will be more successful when your thesis (and paper) responds to the assignment than if it argues a semi-related idea.
Your thesis statement should be precise, focused, and contestable ; it should predict the sub-theses or blocks of information that you will use to prove your argument.
Make sure that you keep the rest of your paper in mind at all times. Change your thesis as your paper evolves, because you do not want your thesis to promise more than your paper actually delivers.

In the beginning, the thesis statement was a tool to help you sharpen your focus, limit material and establish the paper’s purpose. When your paper is finished, however, the thesis statement becomes a tool for your reader. It tells the reader what you have learned about your topic and what evidence led you to your conclusion. It keeps the reader on track–well able to understand and appreciate your argument.

Writing Process and Structure

This is an accordion element with a series of buttons that open and close related content panels.

Getting Started with Your Paper

Interpreting Writing Assignments from Your Courses

Generating Ideas for

Creating an Argument

Thesis vs. Purpose Statements

Architecture of Arguments

Working with Sources

Quoting and Paraphrasing Sources

Using Literary Quotations

Citing Sources in Your Paper

Drafting Your Paper

Generating Ideas for Your Paper

Introductions

Paragraphing

Developing Strategic Transitions

Conclusions

Revising Your Paper

Peer Reviews

Reverse Outlines

Revising an Argumentative Paper

Revision Strategies for Longer Projects

Finishing Your Paper

Twelve Common Errors: An Editing Checklist

How to Proofread your Paper

Writing Collaboratively

Collaborative and Group Writing

The Writing Center • University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Thesis Statements

What this handout is about.

This handout describes what a thesis statement is, how thesis statements work in your writing, and how you can craft or refine one for your draft.

Introduction

Writing in college often takes the form of persuasion—convincing others that you have an interesting, logical point of view on the subject you are studying. Persuasion is a skill you practice regularly in your daily life. You persuade your roommate to clean up, your parents to let you borrow the car, your friend to vote for your favorite candidate or policy. In college, course assignments often ask you to make a persuasive case in writing. You are asked to convince your reader of your point of view. This form of persuasion, often called academic argument, follows a predictable pattern in writing. After a brief introduction of your topic, you state your point of view on the topic directly and often in one sentence. This sentence is the thesis statement, and it serves as a summary of the argument you’ll make in the rest of your paper.

What is a thesis statement?

A thesis statement:

tells the reader how you will interpret the significance of the subject matter under discussion.
is a road map for the paper; in other words, it tells the reader what to expect from the rest of the paper.
directly answers the question asked of you. A thesis is an interpretation of a question or subject, not the subject itself. The subject, or topic, of an essay might be World War II or Moby Dick; a thesis must then offer a way to understand the war or the novel.
makes a claim that others might dispute.
is usually a single sentence near the beginning of your paper (most often, at the end of the first paragraph) that presents your argument to the reader. The rest of the paper, the body of the essay, gathers and organizes evidence that will persuade the reader of the logic of your interpretation.

If your assignment asks you to take a position or develop a claim about a subject, you may need to convey that position or claim in a thesis statement near the beginning of your draft. The assignment may not explicitly state that you need a thesis statement because your instructor may assume you will include one. When in doubt, ask your instructor if the assignment requires a thesis statement. When an assignment asks you to analyze, to interpret, to compare and contrast, to demonstrate cause and effect, or to take a stand on an issue, it is likely that you are being asked to develop a thesis and to support it persuasively. (Check out our handout on understanding assignments for more information.)

How do I create a thesis?

A thesis is the result of a lengthy thinking process. Formulating a thesis is not the first thing you do after reading an essay assignment. Before you develop an argument on any topic, you have to collect and organize evidence, look for possible relationships between known facts (such as surprising contrasts or similarities), and think about the significance of these relationships. Once you do this thinking, you will probably have a “working thesis” that presents a basic or main idea and an argument that you think you can support with evidence. Both the argument and your thesis are likely to need adjustment along the way.

Writers use all kinds of techniques to stimulate their thinking and to help them clarify relationships or comprehend the broader significance of a topic and arrive at a thesis statement. For more ideas on how to get started, see our handout on brainstorming .

How do I know if my thesis is strong?

If there’s time, run it by your instructor or make an appointment at the Writing Center to get some feedback. Even if you do not have time to get advice elsewhere, you can do some thesis evaluation of your own. When reviewing your first draft and its working thesis, ask yourself the following :

Do I answer the question? Re-reading the question prompt after constructing a working thesis can help you fix an argument that misses the focus of the question. If the prompt isn’t phrased as a question, try to rephrase it. For example, “Discuss the effect of X on Y” can be rephrased as “What is the effect of X on Y?”
Have I taken a position that others might challenge or oppose? If your thesis simply states facts that no one would, or even could, disagree with, it’s possible that you are simply providing a summary, rather than making an argument.
Is my thesis statement specific enough? Thesis statements that are too vague often do not have a strong argument. If your thesis contains words like “good” or “successful,” see if you could be more specific: why is something “good”; what specifically makes something “successful”?
Does my thesis pass the “So what?” test? If a reader’s first response is likely to be “So what?” then you need to clarify, to forge a relationship, or to connect to a larger issue.
Does my essay support my thesis specifically and without wandering? If your thesis and the body of your essay do not seem to go together, one of them has to change. It’s okay to change your working thesis to reflect things you have figured out in the course of writing your paper. Remember, always reassess and revise your writing as necessary.
Does my thesis pass the “how and why?” test? If a reader’s first response is “how?” or “why?” your thesis may be too open-ended and lack guidance for the reader. See what you can add to give the reader a better take on your position right from the beginning.

Suppose you are taking a course on contemporary communication, and the instructor hands out the following essay assignment: “Discuss the impact of social media on public awareness.” Looking back at your notes, you might start with this working thesis:

Social media impacts public awareness in both positive and negative ways.

You can use the questions above to help you revise this general statement into a stronger thesis.

Do I answer the question? You can analyze this if you rephrase “discuss the impact” as “what is the impact?” This way, you can see that you’ve answered the question only very generally with the vague “positive and negative ways.”
Have I taken a position that others might challenge or oppose? Not likely. Only people who maintain that social media has a solely positive or solely negative impact could disagree.
Is my thesis statement specific enough? No. What are the positive effects? What are the negative effects?
Does my thesis pass the “how and why?” test? No. Why are they positive? How are they positive? What are their causes? Why are they negative? How are they negative? What are their causes?
Does my thesis pass the “So what?” test? No. Why should anyone care about the positive and/or negative impact of social media?

After thinking about your answers to these questions, you decide to focus on the one impact you feel strongly about and have strong evidence for:

Because not every voice on social media is reliable, people have become much more critical consumers of information, and thus, more informed voters.

This version is a much stronger thesis! It answers the question, takes a specific position that others can challenge, and it gives a sense of why it matters.

Let’s try another. Suppose your literature professor hands out the following assignment in a class on the American novel: Write an analysis of some aspect of Mark Twain’s novel Huckleberry Finn. “This will be easy,” you think. “I loved Huckleberry Finn!” You grab a pad of paper and write:

Mark Twain’s Huckleberry Finn is a great American novel.

You begin to analyze your thesis:

Do I answer the question? No. The prompt asks you to analyze some aspect of the novel. Your working thesis is a statement of general appreciation for the entire novel.

Think about aspects of the novel that are important to its structure or meaning—for example, the role of storytelling, the contrasting scenes between the shore and the river, or the relationships between adults and children. Now you write:

In Huckleberry Finn, Mark Twain develops a contrast between life on the river and life on the shore.

Do I answer the question? Yes!
Have I taken a position that others might challenge or oppose? Not really. This contrast is well-known and accepted.
Is my thesis statement specific enough? It’s getting there–you have highlighted an important aspect of the novel for investigation. However, it’s still not clear what your analysis will reveal.
Does my thesis pass the “how and why?” test? Not yet. Compare scenes from the book and see what you discover. Free write, make lists, jot down Huck’s actions and reactions and anything else that seems interesting.
Does my thesis pass the “So what?” test? What’s the point of this contrast? What does it signify?”

After examining the evidence and considering your own insights, you write:

Through its contrasting river and shore scenes, Twain’s Huckleberry Finn suggests that to find the true expression of American democratic ideals, one must leave “civilized” society and go back to nature.

This final thesis statement presents an interpretation of a literary work based on an analysis of its content. Of course, for the essay itself to be successful, you must now present evidence from the novel that will convince the reader of your interpretation.

Works consulted

We consulted these works while writing this handout. This is not a comprehensive list of resources on the handout’s topic, and we encourage you to do your own research to find additional publications. Please do not use this list as a model for the format of your own reference list, as it may not match the citation style you are using. For guidance on formatting citations, please see the UNC Libraries citation tutorial . We revise these tips periodically and welcome feedback.

Anson, Chris M., and Robert A. Schwegler. 2010. The Longman Handbook for Writers and Readers , 6th ed. New York: Longman.

Lunsford, Andrea A. 2015. The St. Martin’s Handbook , 8th ed. Boston: Bedford/St Martin’s.

Ramage, John D., John C. Bean, and June Johnson. 2018. The Allyn & Bacon Guide to Writing , 8th ed. New York: Pearson.

Ruszkiewicz, John J., Christy Friend, Daniel Seward, and Maxine Hairston. 2010. The Scott, Foresman Handbook for Writers , 9th ed. Boston: Pearson Education.

You may reproduce it for non-commercial use if you use the entire handout and attribute the source: The Writing Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

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Developing a Thesis Statement

Updated Jun 2022

A thesis statement defines the core elements involved in the question around which a research project is built. With it you can shape and implement a plan of action for conducting your research. You begin by creating one or more suppositions-or hypotheses-as to what the answer to that question might be. Think of them as preliminary thesis statements.

The difference between a preliminary and a final thesis can be thought of as the difference between:

"I don't know, but I'm thinking such and such." -and- "Trust me on this one thing."

A final thesis statement removes the doubt inherent in a preliminary thesis and provides a solid basis for your project. The rightness of you position will be advanced and argued in your research paper.

Creating a Preliminary Thesis Statement

Creating a preliminary thesis is the first step. For this, you must already have a research question. Examine it carefully and do a little brainstorming as to what the possible answer(s) might be: make some educated guesses and write them down.

You want to end up with a statement that isn't necessarily conclusive but gets you thinking and started on building one that is: a final statement around which your research can be focused. Let's use an environmental question fueling the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge drilling debate (circa 2006) to build a thesis statement.

Research Question: What is the impact of China's rapidly expanding economy on global oil markets and how does it affect the argument against drilling for oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge?

Formulate a preliminary answer; add some supporting facts or observations-in this case both-as well as a preliminary conclusion, as in the following:

Preliminary Thesis Statement: The growth of China's rapidly expanding economy is radically changing the playing field in a global oil-market dominated for decades by the United States and Japan. Currently the second largest consumer of petroleum products in the world, China may very well become the largest, possibly importing as much as two-thirds of its requirement by 2025. This may be due to the growing Chinese auto market. It may also be due to an inability to meet established nuclear power plant construction targets. Regardless, the stakes are high. The question of where enough energy to satisfy global needs is going to come from cannot be downplayed. Despite the protests of environmental activists across the United States, the increasing needs of China to sustain their growing economy by contracting with nations deemed hostile by the United States may very well change the tone of the debate about drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. It may tilt away from environmentalist conservation positions toward those who favor exploration and production.

This preliminary thesis provides some direction for your inquiry. In one short paragraph, four things are accomplished:

A preliminary answer to the first part of a two-part question has been given: "China's economy is radically changing the global, oil-market playing-field."
A hypothetical observation has been added: "In time, China might become the largest player in the field."
A supporting fact is also added: "China is currently the second largest petroleum-product consumer in the world."
Finally, a concluding supposition or hypothesis is suggested: "The tone of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge drilling debate may change."

Reviewing the Preliminary Thesis Statement

Reviewing the preliminary thesis is the second step. In this example you'll notice that the preliminary statement is a little bit loose, a little broad. This is not unusual, and it's okay. It suggests too much information, but at least there is something with which to work.

In the example, the two-part question has both a "what" and a "how" component. The preliminary thesis briefly answers the "what" component, makes a credible observation regarding "why", and then suggests a hypothetical answer to the "how" component.

So, where did the "why" come from: that wasn't part of the original question? The interesting thing about questions is how often they lead to others. The important thing to note here is that an answer to an unasked question is a good indicator that something needs to be revised. And perhaps it's in the question itself. Sometimes a research question needs revising before the preliminary thesis can be revised. How about, something like this:

Revised Research Question: Why is the expanding Chinese economy exerting so much pressure on global oil markets and how will it affect the debate between corporate America and environmentalists over drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge?

Considering Your Purpose and Audience

Consider both your purpose and the interest of your audience next. Notice that the new question is more purpose driven. The inquiry is more specific. It asks: "Why" does one situation exist and "how" will it affect another? Notice that the "what" component has been removed, replaced by a fact and a rephrased question that incorporates the "why" component.

With a clearer purpose the interest of the audience will be much easier to hold. In this case, two groups with opposing views have been identified. Each has a vested interest in what you have to say. With a more purposeful question a more precise thesis can now be shaped.

Revised Preliminary Thesis Statement: Currently the second largest consumer of petroleum products in the world, China may very well become the largest, possibly importing as much as two-thirds of its requirement by 2025. This rapidly expanding demand for oil may be caused, in part, by their exploding automobile industry and, in part, by an inability to meet their nuclear power plant construction targets. Regardless, the stakes are high and oil resources are limited. With increased global competition, the demand will rapidly outpace current production capabilities in the oil producing nations. Such increased competition is going to seriously impact the current debate between environmentalists and corporate America regarding drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. And, in the end, the environmentalists may not like the outcome.

You can see that, with just a little tweaking, the preliminary thesis has taken on a sharper focus, one that will attract the attention of an audience that includes people on both sides of this divisive issue. It begins with a simple statement of fact supported by reasons that address the new "why" in the revised question. A very transparent conclusion suggesting the direction the research paper will take follows.

Considering the Scope of Your Thesis

Finally, consider the scope of your statement. There's still something a little bulky about the preliminary thesis. It's time to hone it down, narrow it to where the actual research won't be overwhelming. Here's a possibility:

Further Revised Preliminary Thesis Statement: China, currently the second largest consumer of petroleum products in the world, is poised to become the largest. Projections indicate that it will be importing as much as two-thirds of its nation's requirement by 2025. Regardless of the reasons for this-and there are many-global resources are limited as demand soars. With production capabilities in the oil producing nations maxed at current levels and increased competition from China to secure enough oil to sustain their economic growth, the current debate between environmentalists and corporate America over drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is going to ratchet up a decibel or two. And the environmentalists are going to be hard-pressed to win the argument.

Converting Your Preliminary to a Final Thesis

Converting from a preliminary to a final thesis is the last step. You've come a long way. It's shorter, but still bulky. Let's set the first few sentences aside and tweak the last to see what happens.

Final Thesis Statement: With production capabilities in the oil producing nations maxed at their current levels, and increased competition from China to import that oil, the current debate between environmentalists and corporate America over drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is going to ratchet up a decibel or two. And the environmentalists are going to be hard-pressed to win the argument.

An Even Better Final Thesis Statement: Environmentalists are likely to lose ground in the current debate over drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge as oil producing nations struggle to meet the increased demands of an emerging industrial China competing for limited supplies in the global oil market.

Okay. There you have it, a final thesis statement. The preliminary statement has been honed down and tightened up. And guess what? The sentences that were set aside, as well as all the others you have worked on during your revision, aren't a waste. They, or any combination of them, might make an excellent opening paragraph. You may want to include some version of your original research question, also. It's a great way to get started:

Plausible Opening Paragraph: China, currently the second largest consumer of petroleum products in the world, is poised to become the largest. Projections indicate that it will be importing as much as two-thirds of its nation's requirement by 2025. Regardless of the reasons for this-and there are many-global resources are limited as international demand soars. How will this affect the current debate between environmentalists and corporate America over drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge?

Palmquist, Mike & Peter Connor. (2008). Developing a Thesis Statement. Writing@CSU . Colorado State University. https://writing.colostate.edu/guides/guide.cfm?guideid=21

Research Basics

Develop a Thesis Statement

Now that you've learned about your topic through background research and developed your topic into a research question, you can formulate a solid thesis statement. The thesis statement can be looked at as the answer to your research question. It guides the focus of your research and the direction of your arguments, and also prevents any unnecessary tangents within your project. A strong thesis statement will always make it easier to maintain a clear direction while conducting your information search.

Thesis statements are one sentence long and are focused, clear, declarative, and written in third person voice. Read the sections below for more information and view examples.

Focus on a single position or point of view in your thesis statement. You cannot effectively address multiple perspectives within a single paper, as you want to make coherent points to support your position.

Weak Thesis: Underfunded arts programs, underpaid teachers, and standardized testing are all factors in underachieving students in public schools.

Stronger Thesis: The emphasis on standardized testing is a critical factor in the underperformance of public school students.

Present your argument or position clearly and precisely. A clear thesis statement will avoid generalizations and make your position known.

Weak Thesis: The lack of funding in public schools is a major issue in the American education system.

Stronger Thesis: Underfunding arts programs in public schools does not adequately prepare students for college.

3. Declarative

Present your position or point of view as a statement or declarative sentence. Your research question helped guide your initial searching so you could learn more about your topic. Now that you have completed that step, you can extract a thesis statement based on the research you have discovered.

Weak Thesis: Does car exhaust impact climate change?

Stronger Thesis: Car exhaust is a leading contributor to climate change.

4. Third Person

Write your thesis statement in third person voice. Rather than addressing "I," "we," "you," "my," or "our" in your thesis, look at the larger issues that affect a greater number of participants. Think in terms like "citizens," "students," "artists," "teachers," "researchers," etc.

Weak Thesis: I think using your cell phone while driving is the leading cause of traffic deaths for people in my age group.

Stronger Thesis: Cell phone use is the leading cause of traffic deaths in teenagers.

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Last Updated: Jan 12, 2023 5:06 PM
URL: https://libguides.daemen.edu/researchbasics

Practice in Identifying Effective Thesis Statements

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An Introduction to Punctuation
Ph.D., Rhetoric and English, University of Georgia
M.A., Modern English and American Literature, University of Leicester
B.A., English, State University of New York

This exercise will help you understand the difference between an effective and ineffective thesis statement , ie a sentence that identifies the main idea and central purpose of an essay .

Instructions

For each pair of sentences below, select the one that you think would make the more effective thesis in the introductory paragraph of a short essay (approximately 400 to 600 words). Keep in mind that an effective thesis statement should be sharply focused and specific , not just a general statement of fact.

When you're done, you may want to discuss your answers with your classmates, and then compare your responses with the suggested answers on page two. Be ready to defend your choices. Because these thesis statements appear outside the context of complete essays, all responses are judgment calls, not absolute certainties.

(a) The Hunger Games is a science fiction adventure film based on the novel of the same name by Suzanne Collins. (b) The Hunger Games is a morality tale about the dangers of a political system that is dominated by the wealthy.
(a) There is no question that cell phones have changed our lives in a very big way. (b) While cell phones provide freedom and mobility, they can also become a leash, compelling users to answer them anywhere and at any time.
(a) Finding a job is never easy, but it can be especially hard when the economy is still feeling the effects of a recession and employers are reluctant to hire new workers. (b) College students looking for part-time work should begin their search by taking advantage of job-finding resources on campus.
(a) For the past three decades, coconut oil has been unjustly criticized as an artery-clogging saturated fat. (b) Cooking oil is plant, animal, or synthetic fat that is used in frying, baking, and other types of cooking.
(a) There have been over 200 movies about Count Dracula, most of them only very loosely based on the novel published by Bram Stoker in 1897. (b) Despite its title, Bram Stoker's Dracula , a film directed by Francis Ford Coppola, takes considerable liberties with Stoker's novel.
(a) There are several steps that teachers can take to encourage academic integrity and curtail cheating in their classes. (b) There is an epidemic of cheating in America's schools and colleges, and there are no easy solutions to this problem.
(a) J. Robert Oppenheimer, the American physicist who directed the building of the first atomic bombs during World War II, had technical, moral, and political reasons for opposing the development of the hydrogen bomb. (b) J. Robert Oppenheimer often referred to as "the father of the atomic bomb," was born in New York City in 1904.
(a) The iPad has revolutionized the mobile-computing landscape and created a huge profit stream for Apple. (b) The iPad, with its relatively large high-definition screen, has helped to revitalize the comic book industry.
(a) Like other addictive behaviors, Internet addiction may have serious negative consequences, including academic failure, job loss, and a breakdown in personal relationships. (b) Drug and alcohol addiction is a major problem in the world today, and many people suffer from it.
(a) When I was a child I used to visit my grandmother in Moline every Sunday. (b) Every Sunday we visited my grandmother, who lived in a tiny house that was undeniably haunted.
(a) The bicycle was introduced in the nineteenth century and rapidly grew into a worldwide phenomenon. (b) In several ways, bicycles today are better than they were 100 or even 50 years ago.
(a) Although many varieties of beans belong in a healthy diet, among the most nutritious are black beans, kidney beans, chickpeas, and pinto beans. (b) Although beans are generally good for you, some kinds of raw beans can be dangerous if they're not well cooked.

C1-c: Drafting and revising a working thesis statement

For many types of writing, you will be able to assert your central idea in a sentence or two. Such a statement, which ordinarily appears in the opening paragraph of your finished essay, is called a thesis .

What makes an effective thesis statement?

A successful thesis statement is a central idea that requires supporting evidence; its scope is appropriate for the assigned length of the essay; and it is focused and specific. A thesis is a promise to readers. It is often one or more of the following:

your answer to a question you have posed
the resolution for a problem you have identified
a statement that announces your position on a debatable topic

Drafting a working thesis

As you explore your topic, you will begin to see possible ways to focus your material. At this point, try to settle on a tentative central idea, or working thesis statement. The more complex your topic, the more your focus may change. As your ideas develop, you’ll need to revisit your working thesis to see if it represents the position you want to take or if it can be supported by the sources of evidence you have accumulated.

You’ll find that the process of answering a question you have posed, resolving a problem you have identified, or taking a position on a debatable topic will focus your thinking and lead you to develop a working thesis. Here, for example, are one student’s efforts to pose a question and draft a working thesis for an essay in his ethics course.

Should athletes who enhance their performance through biotechnology be banned from athletic competition?

working thesis

Athletes who boost their performance through biotechnology should be banned from athletic competition.

MORE HELP IN YOUR HANDBOOK

The thesis statement is central to many types of writing.

Writing about texts: A1

Constructing arguments: A4

Writing research papers: MLA-1 , APA-1 , and CMS-1

The working thesis offers a useful place to start writing—a way to limit the topic and focus a first draft—but it doesn’t take into consideration the expectations of readers who will ask “Why?” and “So what?” The student has taken a position—athletes who boost their performance through biotechnology should be banned—but he hasn’t answered why these athletes should be banned. To fully answer his own question and to claim something specific in his thesis, he might push his own thinking with the word because.

stronger working thesis

Athletes who boost their performance through steroids should be banned from competition because biotechnology gives athletes an unfair advantage and disrupts the sense of fair play.

Revising a working thesis

As you move to a clearer and more specific position you want to take, you’ll start to see ways to revise your working thesis. You may find that the evidence you collected supports a different thesis; or you may find that your position has changed as you learned more about your topic.

One effective way to revise a working thesis is to put it to the “So what?” test (see the box below). Such questions help you keep audience and purpose—and the expectations of your assignment—in mind as you revise.

Using a problem/strategy approach to revise a working thesis

Revising a working thesis is easier if you have a method or an approach. The following problem/strategy approach is an effective way to evaluate and revise a working thesis, especially if you tend to start out with thesis statements that are too factual, too broad, too narrow, or too vague.

A thesis should require proof or further development through facts and details; it cannot itself be a fact or a description.

A thesis should be an answer to a question, not a question itself.

A thesis should be of sufficient scope for your assignment; it should not be too broad.

A thesis also should not be too narrow.

A thesis should be sharply focused, not too vague. Avoid fuzzy, hard-to-define words such as interesting , good , or disgusting .

Putting your working thesis to the “So what?” test

Use the following questions to help you revise your working thesis.

Why would readers want to read an essay with this thesis? How would you respond to a reader who hears your thesis and asks “So what?” or “Why does it matter?”
Does your thesis answer a question, propose a solution to a problem, or take a position in a debate? Why will readers be interested in your answer, solution, or position?
Will any readers disagree with this thesis? If so, what might they say?
Is the thesis too obvious? If you cannot come up with interpretations that oppose your own, consider revising your thesis.
Can you support your thesis with the evidence available?

Want to create or adapt books like this? Learn more about how Pressbooks supports open publishing practices.

9.3 Putting It Together: Steps to Complete Your Introduction

Learning objectives.

Clearly identify why an audience should listen to a speaker.
Discuss how you can build your credibility during a speech.
Understand how to write a clear thesis statement.
Design an effective preview of your speech’s content for your audience.

Erin Brown-John – puzzle – CC BY-NC 2.0.

Once you have captured your audience’s attention, it’s important to make the rest of your introduction interesting, and use it to lay out the rest of the speech. In this section, we are going to explore the five remaining parts of an effective introduction: linking to your topic, reasons to listen, stating credibility, thesis statement, and preview.

Link to Topic

After the attention-getter, the second major part of an introduction is called the link to topic. The link to topic is the shortest part of an introduction and occurs when a speaker demonstrates how an attention-getting device relates to the topic of a speech. Often the attention-getter and the link to topic are very clear. For example, if you look at the attention-getting device example under historical reference above, you’ll see that the first sentence brings up the history of the Vietnam War and then shows us how that war can help us understand the Iraq War. In this case, the attention-getter clearly flows directly to the topic. However, some attention-getters need further explanation to get to the topic of the speech. For example, both of the anecdote examples (the girl falling into the manhole while texting and the boy and the filberts) need further explanation to connect clearly to the speech topic (i.e., problems of multitasking in today’s society).

Let’s look at the first anecdote example to demonstrate how we could go from the attention-getter to the topic.

In July 2009, a high school girl named Alexa Longueira was walking along a main boulevard near her home on Staten Island, New York, typing in a message on her cell phone. Not paying attention to the world around her, she took a step and fell right into an open manhole. This anecdote illustrates the problem that many people are facing in today’s world. We are so wired into our technology that we forget to see what’s going on around us—like a big hole in front of us.

In this example, the third sentence here explains that the attention-getter was an anecdote that illustrates a real issue. The fourth sentence then introduces the actual topic of the speech.

Let’s now examine how we can make the transition from the parable or fable attention-getter to the topic:

The ancient Greek writer Aesop told a fable about a boy who put his hand into a pitcher of filberts. The boy grabbed as many of the delicious nuts as he possibly could. But when he tried to pull them out, his hand wouldn’t fit through the neck of the pitcher because he was grasping so many filberts. Instead of dropping some of them so that his hand would fit, he burst into tears and cried about his predicament. The moral of the story? “Don’t try to do too much at once.” In today’s world, many of us are us are just like the boy putting his hand into the pitcher. We are constantly trying to grab so much or do so much that it prevents us from accomplishing our goals. I would like to show you three simple techniques to manage your time so that you don’t try to pull too many filberts from your pitcher.

In this example, we added three new sentences to the attention-getter to connect it to the speech topic.

Reasons to Listen

Once you have linked an attention-getter to the topic of your speech, you need to explain to your audience why your topic is important. We call this the “why should I care?” part of your speech because it tells your audience why the topic is directly important to them. Sometimes you can include the significance of your topic in the same sentence as your link to the topic, but other times you may need to spell out in one or two sentences why your specific topic is important.

People in today’s world are very busy, and they do not like their time wasted. Nothing is worse than having to sit through a speech that has nothing to do with you. Imagine sitting through a speech about a new software package you don’t own and you will never hear of again. How would you react to the speaker? Most of us would be pretty annoyed at having had our time wasted in this way. Obviously, this particular speaker didn’t do a great job of analyzing her or his audience if the audience isn’t going to use the software package—but even when speaking on a topic that is highly relevant to the audience, speakers often totally forget to explain how and why it is important.

Appearing Credible

The next part of a speech is not so much a specific “part” as an important characteristic that needs to be pervasive throughout your introduction and your entire speech. As a speaker, you want to be seen as credible (competent, trustworthy, and caring/having goodwill). As mentioned earlier in this chapter, credibility is ultimately a perception that is made by your audience. While your audience determines whether they perceive you as competent, trustworthy, and caring/having goodwill, there are some strategies you can employ to make yourself appear more credible.

First, to make yourself appear competent, you can either clearly explain to your audience why you are competent about a given subject or demonstrate your competence by showing that you have thoroughly researched a topic by including relevant references within your introduction. The first method of demonstrating competence—saying it directly—is only effective if you are actually a competent person on a given subject. If you are an undergraduate student and you are delivering a speech about the importance of string theory in physics, unless you are a prodigy of some kind, you are probably not a recognized expert on the subject. Conversely, if your number one hobby in life is collecting memorabilia about the Three Stooges, then you may be an expert about the Three Stooges. However, you would need to explain to your audience your passion for collecting Three Stooges memorabilia and how this has made you an expert on the topic.

If, on the other hand, you are not actually a recognized expert on a topic, you need to demonstrate that you have done your homework to become more knowledgeable than your audience about your topic. The easiest way to demonstrate your competence is through the use of appropriate references from leading thinkers and researchers on your topic. When you demonstrate to your audience that you have done your homework, they are more likely to view you as competent.

The second characteristic of credibility, trustworthiness, is a little more complicated than competence, for it ultimately relies on audience perceptions. One way to increase the likelihood that a speaker will be perceived as trustworthy is to use reputable sources. If you’re quoting Dr. John Smith, you need to explain who Dr. John Smith is so your audience will see the quotation as being more trustworthy. As speakers we can easily manipulate our sources into appearing more credible than they actually are, which would be unethical. When you are honest about your sources with your audience, they will trust you and your information more so than when you are ambiguous. The worst thing you can do is to out-and-out lie about information during your speech. Not only is lying highly unethical, but if you are caught lying, your audience will deem you untrustworthy and perceive everything you are saying as untrustworthy. Many speakers have attempted to lie to an audience because it will serve their own purposes or even because they believe their message is in their audience’s best interest, but lying is one of the fastest ways to turn off an audience and get them to distrust both the speaker and the message.

The third characteristic of credibility to establish during the introduction is the sense of caring/goodwill. While some unethical speakers can attempt to manipulate an audience’s perception that the speaker cares, ethical speakers truly do care about their audiences and have their audience’s best interests in mind while speaking. Often speakers must speak in front of audiences that may be hostile toward the speaker’s message. In these cases, it is very important for the speaker to explain that he or she really does believe her or his message is in the audience’s best interest. One way to show that you have your audience’s best interests in mind is to acknowledge disagreement from the start:

Today I’m going to talk about why I believe we should enforce stricter immigration laws in the United States. I realize that many of you will disagree with me on this topic. I used to believe that open immigration was a necessity for the United States to survive and thrive, but after researching this topic, I’ve changed my mind. While I may not change all of your minds today, I do ask that you listen with an open mind, set your personal feelings on this topic aside, and judge my arguments on their merits.

While clearly not all audience members will be open or receptive to opening their minds and listening to your arguments, by establishing that there is known disagreement, you are telling the audience that you understand their possible views and are not trying to attack their intellect or their opinions.

Thesis Statement

A thesis statement is a short, declarative sentence that states the purpose, intent, or main idea of a speech. A strong, clear thesis statement is very valuable within an introduction because it lays out the basic goal of the entire speech. We strongly believe that it is worthwhile to invest some time in framing and writing a good thesis statement. You may even want to write your thesis statement before you even begin conducting research for your speech. While you may end up rewriting your thesis statement later, having a clear idea of your purpose, intent, or main idea before you start searching for research will help you focus on the most appropriate material. To help us understand thesis statements, we will first explore their basic functions and then discuss how to write a thesis statement.

Basic Functions of a Thesis Statement

A thesis statement helps your audience by letting them know “in a nutshell” what you are going to talk about. With a good thesis statement you will fulfill four basic functions: you express your specific purpose, provide a way to organize your main points, make your research more effective, and enhance your delivery.

Express Your Specific Purpose

To orient your audience, you need to be as clear as possible about your meaning. A strong thesis will prepare your audience effectively for the points that will follow. Here are two examples:

“Today, I want to discuss academic cheating.” (weak example)
“Today, I will clarify exactly what plagiarism is and give examples of its different types so that you can see how it leads to a loss of creative learning interaction.” (strong example)

The weak statement will probably give the impression that you have no clear position about your topic because you haven’t said what that position is. Additionally, the term “academic cheating” can refer to many behaviors—acquiring test questions ahead of time, copying answers, changing grades, or allowing others to do your coursework—so the specific topic of the speech is still not clear to the audience.

The strong statement not only specifies plagiarism but also states your specific concern (loss of creative learning interaction).

Provide a Way to Organize Your Main Points

A thesis statement should appear, almost verbatim, toward the end of the introduction to a speech. A thesis statement helps the audience get ready to listen to the arrangement of points that follow. Many speakers say that if they can create a strong thesis sentence, the rest of the speech tends to develop with relative ease. On the other hand, when the thesis statement is not very clear, creating a speech is an uphill battle.

When your thesis statement is sufficiently clear and decisive, you will know where you stand about your topic and where you intend to go with your speech. Having a clear thesis statement is especially important if you know a great deal about your topic or you have strong feelings about it. If this is the case for you, you need to know exactly what you are planning on talking about in order to fit within specified time limitations. Knowing where you are and where you are going is the entire point in establishing a thesis statement; it makes your speech much easier to prepare and to present.

Let’s say you have a fairly strong thesis statement, and that you’ve already brainstormed a list of information that you know about the topic. Chances are your list is too long and has no focus. Using your thesis statement, you can select only the information that (1) is directly related to the thesis and (2) can be arranged in a sequence that will make sense to the audience and will support the thesis. In essence, a strong thesis statement helps you keep useful information and weed out less useful information.

Make Your Research More Effective

If you begin your research with only a general topic in mind, you run the risk of spending hours reading mountains of excellent literature about your topic. However, mountains of literature do not always make coherent speeches. You may have little or no idea of how to tie your research all together, or even whether you should tie it together. If, on the other hand, you conduct your research with a clear thesis statement in mind, you will be better able to zero in only on material that directly relates to your chosen thesis statement. Let’s look at an example that illustrates this point:

Many traffic accidents involve drivers older than fifty-five.

While this statement may be true, you could find industrial, medical, insurance literature that can drone on ad infinitum about the details of all such accidents in just one year. Instead, focusing your thesis statement will help you narrow the scope of information you will be searching for while gathering information. Here’s an example of a more focused thesis statement:

Three factors contribute to most accidents involving drivers over fifty-five years of age: failing eyesight, slower reflexes, and rapidly changing traffic conditions.

This framing is somewhat better. This thesis statement at least provides three possible main points and some keywords for your electronic catalog search. However, if you want your audience to understand the context of older people at the wheel, consider something like:

Mature drivers over fifty-five years of age must cope with more challenging driving conditions than existed only one generation ago: more traffic moving at higher speeds, the increased imperative for quick driving decisions, and rapidly changing ramp and cloverleaf systems. Because of these challenges, I want my audience to believe that drivers over the age of sixty-five should be required to pass a driving test every five years.

This framing of the thesis provides some interesting choices. First, several terms need to be defined, and these definitions might function surprisingly well in setting the tone of the speech. Your definitions of words like “generation,” “quick driving decisions,” and “cloverleaf systems” could jolt your audience out of assumptions they have taken for granted as truth.

Second, the framing of the thesis provides you with a way to describe the specific changes as they have occurred between, say, 1970 and 2010. How much, and in what ways, have the volume and speed of traffic changed? Why are quick decisions more critical now? What is a “cloverleaf,” and how does any driver deal cognitively with exiting in the direction seemingly opposite to the desired one? Questions like this, suggested by your own thesis statement, can lead to a strong, memorable speech.

Enhance Your Delivery

When your thesis is not clear to you, your listeners will be even more clueless than you are—but if you have a good clear thesis statement, your speech becomes clear to your listeners. When you stand in front of your audience presenting your introduction, you can vocally emphasize the essence of your speech, expressed as your thesis statement. Many speakers pause for a half second, lower their vocal pitch slightly, slow down a little, and deliberately present the thesis statement, the one sentence that encapsulates its purpose. When this is done effectively, the purpose, intent, or main idea of a speech is driven home for an audience.

How to Write a Thesis Statement

Now that we’ve looked at why a thesis statement is crucial in a speech, let’s switch gears and talk about how we go about writing a solid thesis statement. A thesis statement is related to the general and specific purposes of a speech as we discussed them in Chapter 6 “Finding a Purpose and Selecting a Topic” .

Choose Your Topic

The first step in writing a good thesis statement was originally discussed in Chapter 6 “Finding a Purpose and Selecting a Topic” when we discussed how to find topics. Once you have a general topic, you are ready to go to the second step of creating a thesis statement.

Narrow Your Topic

One of the hardest parts of writing a thesis statement is narrowing a speech from a broad topic to one that can be easily covered during a five- to ten-minute speech. While five to ten minutes may sound like a long time to new public speakers, the time flies by very quickly when you are speaking. You can easily run out of time if your topic is too broad. To ascertain if your topic is narrow enough for a specific time frame, ask yourself three questions.

First, is your thesis statement narrow or is it a broad overgeneralization of a topic? An overgeneralization occurs when we classify everyone in a specific group as having a specific characteristic. For example, a speaker’s thesis statement that “all members of the National Council of La Raza are militant” is an overgeneralization of all members of the organization. Furthermore, a speaker would have to correctly demonstrate that all members of the organization are militant for the thesis statement to be proven, which is a very difficult task since the National Council of La Raza consists of millions of Hispanic Americans. A more appropriate thesis related to this topic could be, “Since the creation of the National Council of La Raza [NCLR] in 1968, the NCLR has become increasingly militant in addressing the causes of Hispanics in the United States.”

The second question to ask yourself when narrowing a topic is whether your speech’s topic is one clear topic or multiple topics. A strong thesis statement consists of only a single topic. The following is an example of a thesis statement that contains too many topics: “Medical marijuana, prostitution, and gay marriage should all be legalized in the United States.” Not only are all three fairly broad, but you also have three completely unrelated topics thrown into a single thesis statement. Instead of a thesis statement that has multiple topics, limit yourself to only one topic. Here’s an example of a thesis statement examining only one topic: “Today we’re going to examine the legalization and regulation of the oldest profession in the state of Nevada.” In this case, we’re focusing our topic to how one state has handled the legalization and regulation of prostitution.

The last question a speaker should ask when making sure a topic is sufficiently narrow is whether the topic has direction. If your basic topic is too broad, you will never have a solid thesis statement or a coherent speech. For example, if you start off with the topic “Barack Obama is a role model for everyone,” what do you mean by this statement? Do you think President Obama is a role model because of his dedication to civic service? Do you think he’s a role model because he’s a good basketball player? Do you think he’s a good role model because he’s an excellent public speaker? When your topic is too broad, almost anything can become part of the topic. This ultimately leads to a lack of direction and coherence within the speech itself. To make a cleaner topic, a speaker needs to narrow her or his topic to one specific area. For example, you may want to examine why President Obama is a good speaker.

Put Your Topic into a Sentence

Once you’ve narrowed your topic to something that is reasonably manageable given the constraints placed on your speech, you can then formalize that topic as a complete sentence. For example, you could turn the topic of President Obama’s public speaking skills into the following sentence: “Because of his unique sense of lyricism and his well-developed presentational skills, President Barack Obama is a modern symbol of the power of public speaking.” Once you have a clear topic sentence, you can start tweaking the thesis statement to help set up the purpose of your speech.

Add Your Argument, Viewpoint, or Opinion

This function only applies if you are giving a speech to persuade. If your topic is informative, your job is to make sure that the thesis statement is nonargumentative and focuses on facts. For example, in the preceding thesis statement we have a couple of opinion-oriented terms that should be avoided for informative speeches: “unique sense,” “well-developed,” and “power.” All three of these terms are laced with an individual’s opinion, which is fine for a persuasive speech but not for an informative speech. For informative speeches, the goal of a thesis statement is to explain what the speech will be informing the audience about, not attempting to add the speaker’s opinion about the speech’s topic. For an informative speech, you could rewrite the thesis statement to read, “This speech is going to analyze Barack Obama’s use of lyricism in his speech, ‘A World That Stands as One,’ delivered July 2008 in Berlin.”

On the other hand, if your topic is persuasive, you want to make sure that your argument, viewpoint, or opinion is clearly indicated within the thesis statement. If you are going to argue that Barack Obama is a great speaker, then you should set up this argument within your thesis statement.

Use the Thesis Checklist

Once you have written a first draft of your thesis statement, you’re probably going to end up revising your thesis statement a number of times prior to delivering your actual speech. A thesis statement is something that is constantly tweaked until the speech is given. As your speech develops, often your thesis will need to be rewritten to whatever direction the speech itself has taken. We often start with a speech going in one direction, and find out through our research that we should have gone in a different direction. When you think you finally have a thesis statement that is good to go for your speech, take a second and make sure it adheres to the criteria shown in Table 9.1 “Thesis Checklist”

Table 9.1 Thesis Checklist

Preview of Speech

The final part of an introduction contains a preview of the major points to be covered within your speech. I’m sure we’ve all seen signs that have three cities listed on them with the mileage to reach each city. This mileage sign is an indication of what is to come. A preview works the same way. A preview foreshadows what the main body points will be in the speech. For example, to preview a speech on bullying in the workplace, one could say, “To understand the nature of bullying in the modern workplace, I will first define what workplace bullying is and the types of bullying, I will then discuss the common characteristics of both workplace bullies and their targets, and lastly, I will explore some possible solutions to workplace bullying.” In this case, each of the phrases mentioned in the preview would be a single distinct point made in the speech itself. In other words, the first major body point in this speech would examine what workplace bullying is and the types of bullying; the second major body point in this speech would discuss the common characteristics of both workplace bullies and their targets; and lastly, the third body point in this speech would explore some possible solutions to workplace bullying.

Key Takeaways

Linking the attention-getter to the speech topic is essential so that you maintain audience attention and so that the relevance of the attention-getter is clear to your audience.
Establishing how your speech topic is relevant and important shows the audience why they should listen to your speech.
To be an effective speaker, you should convey all three components of credibility, competence, trustworthiness, and caring/goodwill, by the content and delivery of your introduction.
A clear thesis statement is essential to provide structure for a speaker and clarity for an audience.
An effective preview identifies the specific main points that will be present in the speech body.
Make a list of the attention-getting devices you might use to give a speech on the importance of recycling. Which do you think would be most effective? Why?
Create a thesis statement for a speech related to the topic of collegiate athletics. Make sure that your thesis statement is narrow enough to be adequately covered in a five- to six-minute speech.
Discuss with a partner three possible body points you could utilize for the speech on the topic of volunteerism.
Fill out the introduction worksheet to help work through your introduction for your next speech. Please make sure that you answer all the questions clearly and concisely.

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Writing based on Texts

Developing support.

Note the phrase “working thesis.” As you start developing support for your thesis, you may find that the support yields information that the thesis does not plan for. So you may need to edit your thesis or else decide not to pursue that line of support. You review and finalize your thesis once you fully develop your support.

The following video, while focused on writing a single paragraph, offers solid information to explain the concept of support and how support relates to a main idea.

Here’s one process to follow in order to develop support for your working thesis:

Analyze your working thesis to see what type of insights and information you’ve promised your reader in the angle.
Create working topic sentences to address the promise in the thesis’ angle. Extract ideas one by one from the thesis’ angle, and write a topic sentence for each idea, with its own topic and angle. Remember that topic sentences offer general ideas that your support will then specify.
Fill in with examples and details under each topic sentence, to fully explain each topic sentence’s angle. Start with the topic sentence about which you have the most to say, even though you may not end up placing that topic sentence first in the finished essay. Just start in the place that’s easiest for you, to get started writing.
Understand that writing is an iterative process. As you start to develop your support, you may decide to circle back to your thesis and topic sentences as well as move forward with developing details, examples, and insights. For example, while developing support, you may decide that you need to add another topic sentence that did not occur to you initially.

Working Thesis: Because images in advertising art reflect their social context, you can infer what’s important to the general public at different eras through analyzing ads.

If you’re using this as your working thesis, you’ll need to determine how many and which eras you want to include. You know that you can’t write about all eras, because you’re only writing a 3-5 page essay. And you know that you want to write about advertising in the U.S. as opposed to other cultures, because as a U.S. resident, that’s the one you know the most about. You decide that you want to focus on latter 20th century ads, and decide to write about particular decades instead of eras as a way of narrowing your scope, which will enable you to delve more deeply into the support. You end up choosing the 1960s, 70s, 80s, and 90s. You develop a topic sentence for each decade:

Ads in the 1960s tended to use bright colors and highlight conventional values; their glossy look essentially glossed over the social upheaval and changing value systems that were considered “anti-establishment” at the time.
Ads in the 1970s tended to use a more subdued palette and less conventional images, as fuller infusion and popularization of skepticism and counter-culture, as well as emerging new technologies, were highlighted.
Ads in the 1980s were bright, eye-popping, highly stylized productions, in sync with the swing back to big business and power of certain groups.
Ads in the 1990s remained colorful, but started to push previously accepted limits of “appropriateness” with newly provocative images, as well as focus more fully on celebrities. Both of these developments may have occurred because of the safer economic and social climate of the time, which provided a stable base for experimentation.

After developing these working topic sentences, you have an additional insight—that ads during these four decades started to define two contentious strains in contemporary society. You decide to circle back to revise your working thesis, and then add another topic sentence to deal with this insight as a way of putting your thoughts into broader context toward the end of the essay. You also realize that you focused on color palette, style, and content of ads, so you revise your working thesis to specify it further. You end up with the following working thesis.

Revised Working Thesis: Images in advertising art reflect their social context. From analyzing the color palette, style, and content of ads in the 1960s through the 1990s, you can both infer what was important to society during those decades as well as see how those decades laid the groundwork for the more divisive rifts between tradition and experimentation in contemporary society.

As you can see from this example, it can be helpful to lay out the conceptual structure—the structure of ideas—of an essay, before you flesh out that structure with support. However, if this process does not resonate with you, there are other methods of approach.

Here’s another process to follow to develop support for your working thesis:

Just start writing based on your working thesis to see what topic sentences and supporting examples evolve.
Or you may want to use lists or mind maps to develop topic sentences and supporting details.
Once you have developed a substantial amount of information, categorize it and name the categories. Any method is o.k. You’ll eventually end up with a thesis, topic sentences and paragraphs of support, in order to have an essay whose ideas a reader can follow.
enough support (if there are categories with very little information)
slanted support (categories overloaded with information)
inappropriate support (categories that are too general), or
support only marginally related to your thesis (category names that don’t quite relate to the angle in the thesis)

Here’s the start of a mind map to develop support for the working thesis that advertising art reflects its social context.

mind mapping software courtesy of bubbl.us

From the start of this mind map, you can see a few things. One is that categories are starting to emerge. The writer has identified two decades, so it makes sense to categorize by decade. Another is that the writer was able to think of some detailed examples, but may need to add more general examples that show how ads reflect their cultural contexts (e.g., the writer needs more than just “risque” for the 1990s). You can also see that a mind map is a good way to differentiate levels of detail.

As you do more writing, you’ll create and refine your own process for developing support. Just make sure that you’re developing support for topic sentences that relate to your overall thesis.

Types of Support

There are many types of support that specify ideas in topic sentences. You’ll use some or all types of support, depending on the purpose of your essay. Commonly-used types of support consist of the following:

Personal Observations

The type of support you include in an essay will depend on your writing purpose and audience. For example, if you’re attempting to analyze an issue in order to persuade your audience to take a particular position on that issue, you might rely on facts, statistics, and concrete examples, rather than personal opinions, to provide logical evidence. If you’re writing an essay to offer a personal reaction to something you observed, you might rely on observations, examples, and details. If you are writing a research essay which synthesizes information from many texts, you’ll include more summaries, paraphrases, and quotations from sources, along with reasons and facts. If you’re writing any of these essays for an audience that is not familiar with your topic, you’ll include more concrete details and examples to make sure they understand your points. Realize that all types of support are usable in all types of essays, and that it’s typical to blend many or all of these types of support when supporting a topic sentence. Also understand that although it’s useful to recognize different types of support, writers don’t necessarily think in terms of “I need a fact here” or “I need an observation there.” Writers just write. Conscious consideration of different types of support occurs as you continue to work with and review your support, in terms of your thesis, topic sentences, purpose, and audience.

The two videos that follow explain different types of support.

Two key, inter-related skills in developing support are 1) the ability to distinguish between more general and more specific information, as units of support usually move from general –> specific, and 2) the ability to figure out a logical sequence of information.

Practice these skills by ranking the sentences below from most general (topic sentence) to most specific, a ranking which should also move logically from more basic to more specialized information.

One 12-gram serving of Crisco contains 3g of saturated fat, 0g of trans fat, 6g of polyunsaturated fat, and 2.5g of monounsaturated fat.
There are different types of unsaturated fats: monounsaturated, polyunsaturated, and omega-3 fatty acids.
According to its label, Crisco contains a higher percentage of unsaturated than saturated fat.
Mono and polyunsaturated fats can lower your risk of Type II diabetes.
Unsaturated fats provide a number of benefits to the body.
All three types of unsaturated fats can help lower your risk of heart disease.
One 12-gram serving of Crisco contains 3g of saturated fat, 0g of trans fat, 6g of polyunsaturated fat, and 2.5g of monounsaturated fat.

Units of Support

When you’re developing support, think in terms of “units of support” as opposed to paragraphs. A unit of support develops the ideas in topic sentence, and that unit of support may include more than one paragraph.

As you develop units of support, keep in mind that those units usually move from more general (the unit’s topic sentence) to more specific (details and examples that explain and support the angle in the topic sentence) and optionally back to more general (re-statement of the topic sentence, as a lead-in to the next topic sentence and unit of support, if it makes sense within the flow of the essay). Also remember to paragraph when needed within each unit of support.

Paragraphing within the Draft/Units of Support

Like sentence length, paragraph length varies. There is no single ideal length for “the perfect paragraph.” Know, though, that if you have lengthy units of support and don’t paragraph within them, your readers might wonder if the paragraph is ever going to end, and they might lose interest.

The most important thing to keep in mind is that the amount of space needed to develop one idea will likely be different than the amount of space needed to develop another. In general, start a new paragraph when:

You’re ready to begin developing a new idea.
You want to emphasize a point by setting it apart.
You’re getting ready to continue discussing the same idea but in a different way (e.g., shifting from comparison to contrast).
You notice that your current paragraph is getting too long (more than three-fourths of a page or so), and you think your writers will need a visual break.

On the other hand, you don’t want your essay to include too many short paragraphs in a series. In general, combine paragraphs when:

You notice that some of your paragraphs appear to be short and choppy.
You have multiple paragraphs on the same topic.
You have undeveloped material that needs to be united under a clear topic.

Enough Support

How much support is “enough?” That’s a question that only you as a writer can answer. Know that the number of paragraphs in an essay as well as the number of topic sentences and units of support depend on what’s needed to fully support the angle in the thesis sentence. There’s really no way to know that until you start writing.

However, one good method to gauge “enough” is to put yourself into a reader’s role. Draft your essay, set the draft aside, and then re-read the draft. Ask if a reader can easily relate your concepts to real life, based on the support you have provided. If you’re analyzing an issue, ask if you’ve provided different viewpoints and shown how yours is the most valid, through your evidence and explanations. You may circle back to develop fuller support, or to hone your existing support, once you write and then consider your essay draft. So, just start developing your support using a process that makes sense to you, and see how your draft develops. There will be plenty of time to add, delete, and re-organize paragraphs and units of support in the revision process.

Developing Support/Drafting the essay, includes material adapted from College Writing and The Word on College Reading and Writing; attributions below. Authored by : Susan Oaks. Project : Introduction to College Reading & Writing. License : CC BY-NC-SA: Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike
College writing, pages on Types of Support, Working with Support. Authored by : Susan Oaks. Located at : https://courses.lumenlearning.com/suny-esc-wm-englishcomposition1/ . License : CC BY-NC-SA: Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike
The Paragraph Body: Supporting Your Ideas. Authored by : Carol Burnell, Jaime Wood, Monique Babin, Susan Pesznecker, and Nicole Rosevear. Provided by : OpenOregon. Located at : https://openoregon.pressbooks.pub/wrd/chapter/the-paragraph-body-supporting-your-ideas/ . License : CC BY-NC: Attribution-NonCommercial
image of woman typing at computer. Authored by : StockSnap. Provided by : Pixabay. Located at : https://pixabay.com/photos/girl-woman-working-office-business-2618562/ . License : CC0: No Rights Reserved
image of a person's hands typing on a laptop. Authored by : Pexels. Provided by : Pixabay. Located at : https://pixabay.com/photos/business-computer-connection-2178566/ . License : CC0: No Rights Reserved
image of man typing on computer. Authored by : Gerd Altmann. Provided by : Pixabay. Located at : https://pixabay.com/photos/entrepreneur-start-start-up-career-696976/ . License : CC0: No Rights Reserved
video Supporting Sentences. Authored by : Jonathan Newsome. Located at : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nWKMLadQbrc . License : Other . License Terms : YouTube video
video Essay Writing - Body Paragraphs - Supporting Details. Provided by : GoReadWriteNow. Located at : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Y0hM5Ck4T0&feature=youtu.be&t=148 . License : Other . License Terms : YouTube video
video Essay Writing - Body Paragraphs - Insightful Analysis. Provided by : GoReadWriteNow. Located at : https://youtu.be/_Mr6n9ZgQMI?t=177 . License : Other . License Terms : YouTube video
image of hand coming out of laptop screen, holding a question mark. Authored by : Gerd Altmann. Provided by : Pixabay. Located at : https://pixabay.com/photos/question-mark-laptop-hand-keep-3717894/ . License : CC0: No Rights Reserved

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2.1: Introduction to Prewriting Strategies

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The Writing Process

Writing is considered a process because we take several steps before the final product is ready. No matter what type of writing we are engaging in, academic writing, professional writing, or personal writing, we follow a number of steps in the writing process. These steps are necessary in creating a meaningful piece of writing. Although different sources may label the steps in various ways, the stages of the writing process are essentially as follows:

Prewriting – This is the process of generating ideas about the the topic, gathering information to support or explain what we want to say about our subject, and planning how to organize our ideas to effectively develop the topic.

Drafting -This is the process of writing the first copy of the piece (essay, article, etc.), often called the rough draft. Ultimately, we should have multiple copies or drafts of our work.

Revising -This is the process of reconsidering the ideas and content of the essay as well as refining the style and structure of the paper. At this point we might revise our thesis, add another body paragraph, or sharpen the focus of the essay.

Editing/Proofreading – This is the process of correcting errors in grammar, punctuation, spelling, and mechanics.

Final Draft – This is the process of sharing the final draft with others.

Preparing to write, or prewriting, strategies are activities that help us explore a subject and generate ideas about it. Our focus at this stage is to stimulate our thinking before and during the act of writing. Whenever we generate new material throughout the writing process, we are prewriting. The most popular and effective prewriting activities are brainstorming, clustering/mapping, discussing, free writing, informal outlining, and asking reporter’s questions.

Prewriting describes all of the thinking, planning, and generation of ideas that precedes the actual writing of a paper.

Much careful thought needs to be given to the assignment before we start prewriting.

First, we must understand the writing assignment and its limits. What is the assignment’s length? A four-page paper would have a much narrower thesis than a ten-page research paper would have. If there is no page limit, we must consider the nature of the assignment to suggest its length . A summary of a chapter will be much shorter than the original chapter. An analysis of a poem may likely be longer than the poem itself.
Expressive writing conveys personal feelings or impressions to the audience.
Informative writing enlightens the audience about something.
Persuasive writing attempts to convince the audience to think or act in a certain way.
Argumentative writing attempts to take a clear stand and create a solid argument.

Other more specific purposes can include entertaining, analyzing, hypothesizing, assessing, summarizing, questioning, reporting, recommending, suggesting, evaluating, describing, recounting, requesting, and instructing.

Third, we must determine the assignment’s audience . An audience can be an individual or a group. An audience can be general or specialized. Once we define our audience, we must determine how much the audience already knows about the subject to know how much or little background information should be included. We should also determine how best to approach our audience in terms of language, rhetorical strategies, purposes for reading, and background knowledge.
Fourth, we must consider the assignment’s occasion . The occasion for which we are writing will determine the formality and scope of a writing project. An in-class writing assignment will differ from an out-of-class formal assignment such as a research paper written in the MLA format. A memo for fellow office workers will differ from a report written for the company’s president. A letter to an aunt will differ from a letter written to a bank to request a personal loan.
Finally, we must assess our own previous knowledge of the subject . Before writing, we need to determine what we already know about a subject, what we need to find out about the subject, and what we think about the subject. Personal essays draw upon our own experiences and observations; research essays require us to gain new knowledge through research.

The following video by Isabelle Poore discusses the most common prewriting strategies which we will discuss in detail in the next few pages:

2.1.1: Freewriting
2.1.2: Outlining
2.1.3: Clustering
2.1.4: Reporter's Questions
2.1.5: Brainstorming

IMAGES

Thesis storyline Diagram
Thesis Statement Practice Worksheet
1c. Develop a Thesis (if required)
Thesis Statement Diagram
Identifying Thesis Statements Worksheet
Developing a thesis statement

VIDEO

Bboy Thesis practice
How to Write an Essay in 40 Minutes
ChatGPT and your brain
Creating a Quizlet set from a book page in less than 5 minutes
How to Write an A+ Thesis Statement
Importing a Quizlet set into Quizizz

COMMENTS

Develop a Thesis Flashcards
Study with Quizlet and memorize flashcards containing terms like Which of the following statements about developing an effective, audience-focused thesis statement is false?, Frame your thesis as a(n) ____________ statement, not as a question., Gerald has just finished presenting the main points of his speech. Which of the following is the best way for him to conclude? and more.
Thesis Statement Practice Flashcards
Study with Quizlet and memorize flashcards containing terms like Where does the thesis statement go?, What is a thesis statement, What does ICE method stand for? and more. ... Choose a Topic and Develop a Thesis. 5 terms. fstroven. Preview. Thesis statement practice. Teacher 42 terms. wrlyons. Preview. English vocab unit 2 NO 8. 20 terms. gavin ...
Thesis Statements Flashcards
What main three things does a thesis statement include? The issue (subject), position (what is to be proven), and 2-3 reasons. What does a good thesis statement include? It will contain three elements: issue, position, and reasons, will be a complete sentence and gives the reader uncommon knowledge.
Developing a Thesis Statement
A thesis statement . . . Makes an argumentative assertion about a topic; it states the conclusions that you have reached about your topic. Makes a promise to the reader about the scope, purpose, and direction of your paper. Is focused and specific enough to be "proven" within the boundaries of your paper. Is generally located near the end ...
How to Write a Thesis Statement
Step 2: Write your initial answer. After some initial research, you can formulate a tentative answer to this question. At this stage it can be simple, and it should guide the research process and writing process. The internet has had more of a positive than a negative effect on education.
Thesis Statements
A thesis statement: tells the reader how you will interpret the significance of the subject matter under discussion. is a road map for the paper; in other words, it tells the reader what to expect from the rest of the paper. directly answers the question asked of you. A thesis is an interpretation of a question or subject, not the subject itself.
How to Write a Thesis Statement
Use words like "because" and language which is firm and definitive. Example thesis statements with good statement language include: "Because of William the Conqueror's campaign into England, that nation developed the strength and culture it would need to eventually build the British Empire.". "Hemingway significantly changed ...
Guide: Developing a Thesis Statement
A thesis statement defines the core elements involved in the question around which a research project is built. With it you can shape and implement a plan of action for conducting your research. You begin by creating one or more suppositions-or hypotheses-as to what the answer to that question might be. Think of them as preliminary thesis ...
Library: Research Basics: Develop a Thesis Statement
A strong thesis statement will always make it easier to maintain a clear direction while conducting your information search. Thesis statements are one sentence long and are focused, clear, declarative, and written in third person voice. Read the sections below for more information and view examples. 1. Focused.
9.1 Developing a Strong, Clear Thesis Statement
You can cut down on irrelevant aspects and revise your thesis by taking the following steps: 1. Pinpoint and replace all nonspecific words, such as people, everything, society, or life, with more precise words in order to reduce any vagueness. Working thesis: Young people have to work hard to succeed in life.
Practice in Identifying Effective Thesis Statements
Be ready to defend your choices. Because these thesis statements appear outside the context of complete essays, all responses are judgment calls, not absolute certainties. (a) The Hunger Games is a science fiction adventure film based on the novel of the same name by Suzanne Collins. (b) The Hunger Games is a morality tale about the dangers of ...
Skills Lesson: Creating and Using Thesis Statements Practice
The following steps will help you to develop this working thesis statement. Step 1: Write down a description of your research subject. Study with Quizlet and memorize flashcards containing terms like Which thesis statement is well worded?, Read the sentence below and complete the instruction that follows. Requiring that students wear uniforms ...
PDF Developing a Thesis and Crafting an Effective Thesis Statement
Revising your introduction and thesis statement so that they match what your paper is actually about are often vital steps to take after completing a first draft. Not a Thesis: In today's society, children are not allowed to vote. Thesis: Children should not be allowed to vote. Better Thesis: Children should not be allowed to vote because they are
Developing your Thesis Statement
This thesis statement, in turn, needs to be tweaked and revised until it becomes the best possible articulation of your paper's claim. The best way to revise your thesis statement is to ask questions about it and then examine the answers to those questions. By challenging your own ideas and forming definite reasons for those ideas, you can ...
PDF Tutorial #26: Thesis Statements and Topic Sentences
5. A troublesome thesis is a fragment; a good thesis statement is expressed in a complete sentence. Example: How life is in New York after September 11th. Better: After September 11th, the city of New York tends to have more cases of post-traumatic disorder than other areas of the United States and rightfully so.
PDF Thesis Statements
4 Contributors: Dr. Emily Heady, Todd Atkins, Jeff Valerioti; Editor: Jeff Valerioti ©2007, 2008, 2013, 2021 by Liberty University Online Writing Center
How to develop a thesis statement?
The essential point of your essay is summarized in your thesis statement, which also serves as an explanation, analysis, or argument.Ask yourself questions like "What will be the focus of my topic?"and "What will I need to discuss in my paper?" It can assist you in formulating your thesis statement and generating all the necessary thoughts that will support your content.
C1-c: Drafting and revising a working thesis statement
A thesis is a promise to readers. It is often one or more of the following: your answer to a question you have posed. the resolution for a problem you have identified. a statement that announces your position on a debatable topic. Drafting a working thesis. As you explore your topic, you will begin to see possible ways to focus your material.
9.3 Putting It Together: Steps to Complete Your Introduction
A thesis statement should appear, almost verbatim, toward the end of the introduction to a speech. A thesis statement helps the audience get ready to listen to the arrangement of points that follow. Many speakers say that if they can create a strong thesis sentence, the rest of the speech tends to develop with relative ease.
Developing Support
Here's one process to follow in order to develop support for your working thesis: Analyze your working thesis to see what type of insights and information you've promised your reader in the angle. Create working topic sentences to address the promise in the thesis' angle. Extract ideas one by one from the thesis' angle, and write a ...
Skills Lesson: Creating and Using Thesis Statements Practice ...
A thesis statement has all of the following purposes except __________. to create a longer conclusion to the essay. Study with Quizlet and memorize flashcards containing terms like Read the sentence below and complete the instruction that follows. Requiring that students wear uniforms is a bad idea. Refine and polish this sentence into a well ...
2.1: Introduction to Prewriting Strategies
Preparing to write, or prewriting, strategies are activities that help us explore a subject and generate ideas about it. Our focus at this stage is to stimulate our thinking before and during the act of writing. Whenever we generate new material throughout the writing process, we are prewriting. The most popular and effective prewriting ...

What is a thesis statement?

Identify a topic

Consider what your assignment asks you to do

Sample assignment 1

Sample assignment 2

Developing a Thesis Statement–Additional information

Derive a main point from topic

Look for patterns in your evidence

Purpose statement

Derive purpose statement from topic

Compose a draft thesis statement

Question-to-Assertion

What to keep in mind as you draft an initial thesis statement

Refine and polish the thesis statement

Sample Assignment

Complete the final thesis statement

Writing Process and Structure

Getting Started with Your Paper

Creating an Argument

Working with Sources

Drafting Your Paper

Revising Your Paper

Finishing Your Paper

Writing Collaboratively

Thesis Statements

Introduction

What is a thesis statement?

How do I create a thesis?

How do I know if my thesis is strong?

Works consulted

Developing a Thesis Statement

Creating a Preliminary Thesis Statement

Reviewing the Preliminary Thesis Statement

Considering Your Purpose and Audience

Considering the Scope of Your Thesis

Converting Your Preliminary to a Final Thesis

Research Basics

3. Declarative

4. Third Person

Practice in Identifying Effective Thesis Statements

Instructions

Suggested Answers

C1-c: Drafting and revising a working thesis statement

MORE HELP IN YOUR HANDBOOK

Putting your working thesis to the “So what?” test

9.3 Putting It Together: Steps to Complete Your Introduction

Link to Topic

Reasons to Listen

Appearing Credible

Thesis Statement

Basic Functions of a Thesis Statement

Express Your Specific Purpose

Provide a Way to Organize Your Main Points

Make Your Research More Effective

Enhance Your Delivery

How to Write a Thesis Statement

Choose Your Topic

Narrow Your Topic

Put Your Topic into a Sentence

Add Your Argument, Viewpoint, or Opinion

Use the Thesis Checklist

Preview of Speech

Key Takeaways

Share This Book

Writing based on Texts

Here’s one process to follow in order to develop support for your working thesis:

Here’s another process to follow to develop support for your working thesis:

Types of Support

Units of Support

Paragraphing within the Draft/Units of Support

Enough Support

2.1: Introduction to Prewriting Strategies

The Writing Process

IMAGES

VIDEO

COMMENTS