Paragraphs 101

Introductions•I

ndicate the Parts of Your Essay• The intro should indicate what is coming.

• In the middle of you paper develop each point into one or two paragraphs

• Take a bold stand• Start out with a strong statement of your position

Introductions•S

tart with the Other Side• Tell what you disagree with and who aid it. Give the opposing

reason so that you can later prove them wrong.

•Tell a Brief Story• Give one or two paragraphs to a single typical case, and then

make your general point.

•Use the News Lead• Write a sentence incorporating, who, what, when, where, how,

and sometimes why.

Introductions•M

ove from the General to the Specific• Begin with the wider context of the topic and the zero in on

the case at hand

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General statement introduction

Today smoking is an issue which is on everybody ’s mind. The whole country is divided on this issue. Some people believe that smoking should be banned everywhere while others are not so harsh. However, I believe that tobacco should be outlawed because smoking endangers everyone’s health, pollutes the environment, and drains us of valuable energy.( 57)

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Quotation introduction In The Monitor it was recently stated that smoking is the greatest threat to our health. The whole country is divided on this issue. I believe that tobacco should be outlawed because it endangers everyone’s health; it pollutes the environment, and it drains of valuable resources. (49)

Created by José J. González, Jr.Spring 2002 7

Final reminders !!!!•B

e concise and to the point!•D

o not go into too much detail!•A

t least 50 words minimum!•Y

ou must do three things . . . introduce topic

state position

provide reasons

Body Paragraphs

Paragraphs 101

Paragraphs – Long and Short•E

ach paragraph should make one point, and every sentence in it should relate to that one point. • Usually the paragraph begins by stating the point and then

goes on to explain it and make it specific.

•Indent the first line of the paragraph

Paragraphs – Long and Short•B

reak up Long Paragraphs• Find a natural point for division, such as:• A new subject or idea

• A turning point in a story

• The start of an example

• A change in location or time

•Expand short paragraphs• To many short paragraphs can make your thought seem

fragmented.

Paragraphs – Long and Short•E

xpand short paragraphs• Combine• Join two paragraphs on the same point

• Include examples in the same paragraph as the point they illustrate.

• Develop• Give examples or reasons to support your point

• Cite facts, statistics, or evidence to support your point

• Relate an incident or event that supports your point.

• Explain any important general terms

• Quote authorities to back up what you say.

Paragraphs – Long and Short• Omit• If you can’t expand, develop, or combine get rid of it.

•Check For Continuity• Link your paragraphs together with transitions; taking words

or ideas from one paragraph and using them at the beginning of the next one.

Conclusion

Introduction

Body paragraph #1

Body paragraph #2

Body paragraph #3

Support reason 1

Support reason 2

Support reason 3

Topicsentence

Conclusion

Topic sentence

Support sentence 1

Proof sentence 1

Support sentence 2

Proof sentence 2

Support sentence 3

Proof sentence 3

Concluding sentence

The McParagraph logic:

The McParagraphsentences:

Topic Sentences•T

opic sentences state the main idea of the paragraph.

•The rest of the paragraph must expand on, describe, or prove what the topic sentence states in some way.

•A good topic sentence make a point and suggests the logical structure of the rest of the paragraph.

Which are good topic sentences?

•Texas has 267,000 square miles.

•Texas is so big that you can find many things to do.

•There are several ways of accurately telling how old fossils are.

•The animal dies and sinks to the sea floor.

•A topic sentence is the first sentence in your body paragraph.

•A support sentence gives a reason in support of the paragraph’s topic sentence.

•A proof sentence proves a support sentence by providing a detail or quotation from a source.

•A conclusion (one sentence) refers back to the topic, provides a logical closing, and may provide a transition to the next body paragraph.

What makes each sentence in the following body paragraph what it is: a topic, support, proof, or concluding sentence?

The political success of Lincoln‘s speech - the last speech in a series sponsored by the Young Men’s Central Republican Union of New York that winter (Holtzer, 1999) - had something to do with timing and luck. A sizable number of Republican leaders were worried that the front-running candidate, New York Senator William Henry Seward, was perceived by the Northern electorate as too close to the unpopular abolitionist movement (Holtzer, 1999). According to Holtzer (1999),“Lincoln’s best ally in the winter of 1860 was his lack of association with the abolitionists in the mind of New Yorkers,”. Republicans were worried also that Seward has little appeal in the West (Illinois, Ohio, etc.) (Burris 2002). Burris (2002) asserts that “Indiana and Illinois Republicans perceived Seward as an Eastern liberal”. Lincoln also benefited from the political machinations of the speech series’s sponsors. The Young Republicans planned the speech series ostensibly to introduce alternative candidates to Seward, but the real motivation of the group's leader, James A. Briggs, was to damage Seward enough to promote his favorite alternative, Ohio governor Salmon P. Chase (Holtzer, 1999). The Republican party’s soul-searching and the secret motivations of the series sponsors gave Lincoln the opening he needed.

Topic

Support

Proof

Support

Proof

Support

Proof

Conclusions

Paragraphs 101

The conclusion paragraph in an essay of literary analysis functions as follows:

•It finishes off the essay and tells the reader where the writer has brought them.

•It restates the thesis and contains echoes of the introduction and body paragraphs without listing the points covered in the essay.

•It creates a broader implication of the ideas discussed and answers the questions: so what? Or why do we care?

Anatomy of the Conclusion:

•The conclusion begins with a restatement of the thesis, not a repetition, and gradually widens toward a final , broad statement of implication.

•Borrows from the body paragraphs, without being flatly repetitive or listing points already covered.

•Creates echoes of the introduction and body paragraphs to reinforce analysis/ ideas.

•Moves outward with a statement that relates the thesis to a broader implication so the reader can see the analytical focus in a larger perspective or application.

Strategies for Composing Conclusions:

•Strike a note of hope or despair.

•Give a symbolic or powerful detail/fact.

•Create an analogy that relates your topic to a larger implication.

•Give an especially compelling example.

•Use a meaningful quotation. (If you used a meaningful quotation in your introduction, refer back to this quote and tie it in with your overall analysis.)

•Recommend a course of action without being “preachy.”

•Echo the language and approach of the introduction.

•Reference and make meaning of the title of the work you are analyzing.

Consider the following checklist when writing a conclusion:

•Avoid first-person point of view, abstract/vague language, poor diction, and slang.

•Avoid simply repeating the thesis and/or listing the main points.

•Don’t conclude more than you reasonably can from the evidence you have presented.

•Echo the language and ideas from your introduction and body paragraphs.

•Expand on the implications of your analysis: So what? Why do we care about these ideas? What’s so important about what you’ve developed in your paper? Are there any other applications for your ideas?

•Avoid any attempts at humor, cuteness, or sarcasm.

•The conclusion need not be longer than four to six sentences, as with the introduction, but must be adequately developed.

•Include the title(s) and author(s) once more.

Sample Conclusions:

•Evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of the sample conclusions to follow.

•Identify possible references to the thesis statements, introduction, and body paragraphs.

•Identify broader implications.

•Identify and evaluate other strategies used.

Sample 1:

Both great works of epic literature from historical India and Japan certainly provide fascinating insights into the study of the idealization of women and wives. We can see how the different social conventions of each time and place have a defined impact on women’s roles within the institution of marriage. In reflecting on the societal expectations of a wife as represented in classical world literature we can gain new insights into women’s roles within marriage in a contemporary world. Future generations will look to our contemporary literature as a depiction of our society’s expectations and values of women not only as wives, but as single and independent women, as well.

Sample 2:

Edna’s character transforms from sleeping through life by meeting expectations to a great awakening, in which her thoughts and actions are consistent with each other. Edna’s struggle between her inner desires and her outward conformity is one in which her best solution was to satisfy no roles and expectations, including her own. Her character is so memorable because the reader can empathize with Edna’s internal conflict to both conform and defy. She is unforgettable because she does what each of us has wanted to do; her character resonates with the universal human condition of defying and abandoning societal expectations and impositions.

Sample 3:

The culmination of Stephen Dedalus’ linguistic and artistic development in James Joyce’s A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man in indicated at the end of the novel when his story is no longer dependent on a narrator, but is told by Stephen himself through his journal. The journal entries are projected forth in the unfiltered language of the artist. He completes his linguistic journey, coming full circle from a child who merely perceives others’ language to the artist, who creates his own. The language implicit (cont.)

Paragraphs 101