Writing a thesis statement essay 3tto

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Thesis statements

Anatomy of a thesis statement

We are going to write a Thesis Statement Essay

What is a thesis statement ?

The one or two sentences at the beginning of your essay which contains the main point, idea or theme of your paper, reflected throughout your essay, is what we call the thesis statement.

Not only does the thesis statement state your ideas in one or two sentences, but it also exposes the topic of your essay and your position thereon. It should tell your reader what the essay is about and should help guide your writing and focus your argument.

In Things Fall Apart, Chinua Achebe explores the effects of colonialism on a particular society. Your approach may be to focus on the impact such action had on Ibo culture, its beliefs and its laws, or you could focus on its influence on individuals, such as the protagonist, Okonkwo . You may extend the focus of your essay to discuss the effects of Imperialism on the Ibo society as a whole and mention its influence on individuals. You may consider either the positive or negative outcomes, or focus on...

 1 - Develop a thesis

Your thesis statement is the main point of your essay. It is essentially one sentence that says what the essay is about. For example, your thesis statement might be "Dogs are descended from wolves." You can then use this as the basic premise to write your entire essay, remembering that all of the different points throughout need to lead back to this one main thesis. You should usually state your thesis in your introductory paragraph.

The thesis statement should be broad enough that you have enough to say about it, but not so broad that you can't be thorough.

A good thesis will be: 

• Arguable. “The Great Gatsby describes New York society in the 1920s” isn’t a thesis—it’s a fact.
  
• Provable through  evidence from the book:  “Hamlet is a confusing but ultimately very well-written play” is a weak thesis because it offers the writer’s personal opinion about the book. Yes, it’s arguable, but it’s not a claim that can be proved or supported with examples taken from the play itself. 


GOOD THESIS STATEMENT

• Question: Would Piggy in The Lord of the Flies make a good island leader if he were given the chance? 
  
• Thesis: “Though the intelligent and rational Piggy has the mental characteristics of a good leader, he  lacks the social skills necessary to be an effective one. Golding emphasizes this point by giving Piggy a foil (a character who contrasts with another character)  in the charismatic Jack, whose magnetic personality allows him to capture and wield power effectively, if not always wisely.” 
  

 1 - Develop a thesis

Your thesis statement is the main point of your essay. It is essentially one sentence that says what the essay is about. For example, your thesis statement might be "Dogs are descended from wolves." You can then use this as the basic premise to write your entire essay, remembering that all of the different points throughout need to lead back to this one main thesis. You should usually state your thesis in your introductory paragraph.

The thesis statement should be broad enough that you have enough to say about it, but not so broad that you can't be thorough.

• Discuss the differences between Garden Heights Starr and Williamson Starr. How does Starr reconcile her two identities over the course of the novel

A good topic sentence is specific enough to give a clear sense of what to expect from the paragraph, but general enough that it doesn’t give everything away. You can think of it like a signpost: it should tell the reader which direction your argument is going in.