Conclusions
• Introductions and conclusions are often the
toughest paragraphs to write in an essay.
• Many writers find the body relatively easy,
because the writer simply takes the 3 points
and proves/discusses them, one per
paragraph.
• You’ve mastered introductions, so let’s talk
about conclusions.
Purpose of a Conclusion
• Help readers see why all your analysis and
information should matter to them.
• The conclusion allows you to demonstrate
the importance of your ideas, and to propel
your reader to a new view of the subject.
Purpose of a Conclusion
• The conclusion pushes beyond the
boundaries of the prompt and allows you to
consider broader issues, make new
connections, and elaborate on the
significance of your findings.
Conclusion Strategies
1. Find out why your topic matters. One way to do
this is to play the “So What?” Game. If you’re
stuck and feel like your conclusion isn’t saying
anything new or interesting, ask a friend to read it
with you.
• Whenever you make a statement from your
conclusion, ask the friend to say, “So what?” or
“Why should anybody care?” Then ponder that
question and answer it.
Conclusion Strategies
You: Basically, I’m saying that education was
important to Douglass.
Friend: So what?
You: Well, it was important because it was a key to
him feeling like a free and equal citizen.
Friend: Why should anybody care?
You: That’s important because plantation owners
tried to keep slaves from being educated so that they
could maintain control. When Douglass obtained an
education, he undermined that control personally.
Conclusion Strategies
• This strategy will help you realize and verbalize the
implications of your argument and how they apply
to your reader.
Conclusion Strategies
2. Point to broader implications.
• For example, if your paper examines the
Greensboro sit-ins or another event in the
Civil Rights Movement, you could point out
its impact on the Civil Rights Movement as a
whole.
• A paper about the style of writer Virginia
Woolf could point to her influence on other
writers or on later feminists.
Conclusion Strategies
3. Return to the theme or themes in the
introduction.
• This strategy brings the reader full circle.
• For example, if you begin by describing a
scenario (word picture), you can end with the
same scenario as proof that your essay is helpful
in creating a new understanding.
• You may also refer to the introductory paragraph
by using key words or parallel concepts and
images that you also used in the introduction.
Conclusion Strategies
4. Propose a course of action, a solution to an
issue, or issues for further study.
• Tell what specific action you want your
audience to take in the real world, or how
what you write should change your own or
other people's lives.
• This can redirect your reader’s thought
process and help her to apply your info and
ideas to her own life or to see the broader
implications.
Conclusion Strategies
5. Tell what good will happen if one accepts
your standpoint, and what the negative
consequences will be if one fails to accept
it.
• That is, discuss the real-world implications of
what you say in the paper. Reassure your
audience that they have more to gain than to
lose if they agree with what you say in the
paper, but without using "you."
Conclusion Strategies
6. Challenging the reader.
• By issuing a challenge to your readers, you
are helping them to redirect the information
in the paper, and they may apply it to their
own lives.
Conclusion Strategies
Though serving on a jury is not only a civic
responsibility but also an interesting
experience, many people still view jury duty as
a chore that interrupts their jobs and the
routine of their daily lives. However, juries are
part of America's attempt to be a free and just
society. Thus, jury duty challenges us to be
interested and responsible citizens.
Conclusion Strategies
7. Look to the future.
• Looking to the future can emphasize the
importance of your paper or redirect the
readers' thought process. It may help them
apply the new information to their lives or
see things more globally.
Conclusion Strategies
Without well-qualified teachers, schools are
little more than buildings and equipment. If
higher-paying careers continue to attract the
best and the brightest students, there will not
only be a shortage of teachers, but the
teachers available may not have the best
qualifications. Our youth will suffer. And when
youth suffers, the future suffers.
Conclusions to AVOID
Here are some types of conclusions to avoid:
1. Ending with a rephrased thesis statement.
This conclusion just restates the thesis and
is usually painfully short. It does not push
the ideas forward.
DO NOT restate the thesis statement in your
conclusion at all!
Conclusions to AVOID
2. Beginning with an unnecessary, overused
phrase such as “in conclusion,” “in
summary,” or “in closing.” They come
across as artificial, wooden, and trite in
writing.
3. Stating the thesis for the very first time in
the conclusion.
Too late!
Conclusions to AVOID
4. Introducing a new idea or subtopic in your
conclusion.
Too late!
Conclusions to AVOID
5. Including evidence (quotations, statistics,
etc.) that should be in the body of the
paper.
• People write this kind of conclusion when
they can’t think of anything else to say.
Example:
In conclusion, Frederick Douglass was, as we
have seen, a pioneer in American education,
proving that education was a major force for
social change with regard to slavery.
Conclusions to AVOID
6. The “America the Beautiful”/”We Shall
Overcome” Conclusion.
• This kind of conclusion usually draws on
emotion to make its appeal, but while this
emotion and even sentimentality may be
very heartfelt, it is usually out of character
with the rest of an analytical paper.
• In this kind of conclusion, you can almost
hear the heroic theme music rising in the
background.
Conclusions to AVOID
Example:
Because of the efforts of fine Americans like
Frederick Douglass, countless others have seen
the shining beacon of light that is education.
His example was a torch that lit the way for
others. Frederick Douglass was truly an
American hero.
• A more sophisticated commentary, rather
than emotional praise, would be a more
fitting tribute to the topic.
Conclusions to AVOID
7. The “Grab Bag” Conclusion.
• This kind of conclusion includes extra
information that the writer found or thought
of but couldn’t integrate into the main paper.
• You may find it hard to leave out details that
you discovered after hours of research and
thought, but adding random facts and bits of
evidence at the end of an otherwise well
organized essay can just create confusion.
Conclusions to AVOID
Example:
In addition to being an educational pioneer,
Frederick Douglass provides an interesting case
study for masculinity in the American South.
He also offers historians an interesting glimpse
into slave resistance when he confronts Covey,
the overseer. His relationships with female
relatives reveal the importance of family in the
slave community.
Conclusions to AVOID
8. Focusing on a minor point in the essay.
9. Apologizing for your view by saying such
things as “I may not be an expert” or “At
least this is my opinion.”
10. Ending with a quote. As with
introductions, use your own words. Using
someone else’s words looks lazy. It also
seems – even after all that research and
writing – you have nothing of your own to
contribute.
Sources
• The Writing Center, University of North Carolina at
Chapel Hill
http://leo.stcloudstate.edu/acadwrite/conclude.html
• The Write Place, St. Cloud State University
http://leo.stcloudstate.edu/acadwrite/conclude.html
• University of Texas at El Paso,
http://utminers.utep.edu/omwilliamson/engl1311/intr
o_conclu.htm
• Writing Center, University of Richmond
http://writing2.richmond.edu/writing/wweb/conclude.
html