ESSAY POINTERS

ESSAY POINTERS

THESIS STATEMENT

Your thesis statement is the central argument of your essay. Your thesis goes in the introductory paragraph. Your thesis must make an argument. The key difference between an opinion statement and thesis statement is that a thesis conveys to the reader that the claim being offered has been thoroughly explored and is defendable by evidence. It should also provide the reader with some indication of why your argument is persuasive.SIGNAL PHRASE

A phrase, clause, or even sentence, which leads into a quotation or statistic. These generally include the speaker/authors name and some justification for using him or her as an expert in this context; it may also help establish the context for the quotation.

Acknowledges

Adds

Admits

Addresses

Argues

Asserts

Believes

Claims

Comments

Compares

ConfirmsContends

Declares

Denies

Disputes

Emphasizes

Endorses

Grants

Illustrates

Implies

Insists

NotesObserves

Points out

Reasons

Refutes

Rejects

Reports

Responds

Suggests

Thinks

Writes

CONCLUSION PARAGRAPH

The conclusion is no place to bring up new ideas.

It is a good idea to recapitulate what you said in yourthesis statements in order to suggest to your reader that you have accomplished what you set out to accomplish.

It is important to:

Emphasize thepurposeandimportanceof your essay

Explain thesignificanceorconsequencesof your findings

Establish your essay as thebasisfor further investigation To showother directions of inquiryinto the subject