Your Thesis Statement:
The Only Sentence Worth More
Than A Thousand Words
Your Introduction Paragraph
First, grab you readers attention with a general
statement about your topic .
Then, give your reader a brief explanation (2-5 sentences)
of what you will be explaining about your topic.
End your introduction with a strong statement/claim that
tells your reader what you intend to prove to them
about your topic.
Attention
Grabbing
Thesis
What to think about…
• Define a problem and state your opinion about it
• Put forth a possible solution to a problem
• Look at an issue/topic from a new, interesting
perspective
• Theorize how the world might be different today if
something had or had not happened in the past
• Put out your ideas about how something was
influenced to be the way it is or was.
Thesis Statements Are Not
As Hard As You May Think…
First, let’s look at
what a Thesis Statement
is NOT!
Your Thesis Statement is NOT Your Topic!
Your topic tells your reader
what you are talking about.
For Example:
I will discuss WWI.
This is not a thesis, it is only a
topic.
Your thesis tells your reader
your position on your topic. For
Example:
WWI was a direct result of the
alliance system; had it not been for
the alliance in place previous to the
start of the war, WWI may have not
involved as many countries.
This is a successful thesis
statement!
The Thesis Statement is NOT JUST A FACT About Your
Topic!
Surprisingly, your thesis should
be an arguable OPINION backed
on fact – NOT JUST A FACT!
WHY? …Because that is what
makes your paper interesting to
your reader!
Your thesis should always be a
statement that demands PROOF!
If not, what will you write
in the following pages?
You spend the rest of your
paper CONVINCING your
reader of why YOUR
OPINION is TRUE!
Your thesis prepares your
reader for the facts that will
prove your opinion about
Your Thesis your topic to be true -- it
Should Take A can not be a fact itself.
STAND!
Let’s Look At An Example
Native Americans have
the ability to live off of
the land without any
modern technology.
That is a
fact, not a
strong
thesis!
Since the Native Americans
knew how to hunt, make
weapons, and housing, they
were smarter than the settlers
from Europe who needed the
Native Americans to help
them survive.
Now, that
is a
strong
thesis!
What a Thesis Statement is…
It is the sentence that answers your
readers biggest question:
By telling your reader your point
in the first paragraph, you set the
tone and make sure they are not
frustrated and confused while
reading the rest of your paper.
Requirements For a Strong
Thesis:Let’s look at each of
1. It should not be
TOO BROAD!
2. It should not be
TOO NARROW!
3. It should not be
TOO VAGUE!
these requirements
a bit closer…
There Are Three (3)
Requirements For A
Strong Thesis
Statement.
A Strong Thesis Should Not Be Too Broad!
You may find
yourself
drowning in
information,
unable to prove your
point!
A Strong Thesis Should Not Be Too Broad!
Let’s Look At An Example
People liked helping during
World War II because of
propaganda.
That would
definitely
leave you
drowning:
TOO
BROAD!
The propaganda committee initiated
by President Wilson was so effective
that by the time President Roosevelt
was in office, he had millions of
Americans volunteering during World
War II.
Much Better!
That definitely is
an opinion
narrow enough
to be proven in
an essay!
A Strong Thesis Should Not Be Too Narrow Either!
You may find
yourself trying to
stretch your
information and
begin repeating
yourself too much
in the paper!
Let’s Look At An Example
Though this may be
interesting, it would take
some tugging to stretch it
into an entire essay!
Most girls living in the
Midwest, in the town of
Oklahoma City, were
married before they
were 18 years old,
which caused them to
be mothers at a young
age.
That looks like a thesis
statement we wouldn’t
have to stretch far!
At the turn of the 19th
century, females were
viewed as adults by the
time they were
teenagers, which
caused their lifestyle to
be vastly different than
the teenagers in 2011.
A Strong Thesis Should Not Be
Vague!
Your paper
will
not make
any
sense
Requirements For a Strong Thesis:
A Strong Thesis Should Not Be Vague
Let’s Look At An Example
The word
HORRIBLE is
hard to define! It
makes this
thesis
Too VAGUE!
If the United States were to
eliminate the welfare system, it
would aggravate an already
severe homeless problem and
cause a rise in crime.
To Fix It
Getting rid of
welfare in the
United States is
a horrible idea.
Define the term “horrible
idea” for your reader.
Outlining the major points of
your essay would also help.
Where To Start
Once you have gathered your information,
Ask Yourself a Few Questions:
What has my research
shown me about my topic?
What is the most
important thought
that I have about
my topic?
What will be the point
of my paper?
What would my
reader want to
know about my
topic?
Remember the
structure of your
THESIS
Thesis
A Thesis is Made Up of Two Parts:
AND
For Example:
Planes during World War II should be viewed as best type of
new technology that changed the world, especially
since the Atomic Bomb was released from a plane over
Japan.
Refining Your Working Thesis
To turn your Working Thesis into a Final Thesis Statement,
compare it to the requirements for a strong thesis statement:
1. Is it TOO BROAD?
2. Is it TOO NARROW?
3. Is it TOO VAGUE?
IT IS PERFECTLY ACCEPTABLE TO REWORD YOUR THESIS, ESPECIALLY ONCE
YOU’VE FOUND MORE INFORMATION!