Writing the Thesis Statement
What is it?
• for most student work, it's a one- or two- sentence
statement that explicitly outlines the purpose or
point of your paper.
• It is generally a complex, compound sentence
What does it do?
• it should point toward the development or
course of argument the reader can expect your
argument to take
Where does it go?
• because the rest of the paper will support or
back up your thesis, a thesis is normally placed
at or near the end of the introductory
paragraph.
What does it contain?
• The thesis sentence must contain an arguable
point.
• A thesis sentence must not simply make an
observation -- for example, "Writer X seems in
his novel Y to be obsessed with lipstick."
• Rather, it must assert a point that is arguable:
• “Writer X uses lipstick to point to his novel's
larger theme: the masking and unmasking of
the self."
What it determines
• The thesis sentence must control the entire argument.
• Your thesis sentence determines what you are
required to say in a paper.
• It also determines what you cannot say.
• Every paragraph in your paper exists in order to
support your thesis.
• Accordingly, if one of your paragraphs seems
irrelevant to your thesis you have two choices: get rid
of the paragraph, or rewrite your thesis.
Is it fixed in concrete?
• Imagine that as you are writing your paper you
stumble across the new idea that lipstick is used in
Writer X's novel not only to mask the self, but also to
signal when the self is in crisis.
• This observation is a good one; do you really want to
throw it away? Or do you want to rewrite your thesis
so that it accommodates this new idea?
A contract
• Understand that you don't have a third option:
you can't simply stick the idea in without
preparing the reader for it in your thesis.
• The thesis is like a contract between you and
your reader.
• If you introduce ideas that the reader isn't
prepared for, you've violated that contract.
It provides structure for your
paper
• The thesis sentence should provide a structure for
your argument.
• A good thesis not only signals to the reader what your
argument is, but how your argument will be
presented.
• In other words, your thesis sentence should either
directly or indirectly suggest the structure of your
argument to your reader.
• Say, for example, that you are going to argue that
"Writer X explores the masking and unmasking of the
self in three curious ways: A, B, and C.”
• In this case, the reader understands that you are
going to have three important points to cover, and
that these points will appear in a certain order.
Other Attributes
• it takes a side on a topic rather than simply
announcing that the paper is about a topic (the title
should have already told your reader your topic).
Don't tell readers about something; tell them what
about something. Answer the questions "how?" or
"why?”
• it is sufficiently narrow and specific that your
supporting points are necessary and sufficient, not
arbitrary; paper length and number of supporting
points are good guides here.
More Attributes
• it argues one main point and doesn't squeeze
three different theses for three different papers
into one sentence;
• And most importantly, it passes The "So
What?" Test.
An Equation
• thesis statements are basically made up of your
topic and a specific assertion about that topic,
therefore,
• THESIS = TOPIC + SPECIFIC ASSERTION
The four “shoulds” of a thesis
statement:
• a good thesis statement should take a
stand - don't be afraid to have an opinion; if
after your research, your opinion changes,
all the better - means you have been
thinking; you can write a new thesis
statement!
• a good thesis statement should
justify discussion - don't leave your
readers saying to themselves "So
what" or "duh?" or "like what's your
point?"
• a good thesis statement should express
one main idea or a clear relationship
between two specific ideas linked by words
like "because," "since," "so," "although,"
"unless," or "however."
Example
• Poor: Stephen King writes readable books.
• Good: Stephen King’s books are so good
because they are about normal people
who get into supernatural situations.
What is not a thesis statement?
A thesis is never a question; it could be the answer to
a question.
A thesis is not an announcement of purpose.
A thesis is not simply a topic.
A thesis is not a fact.
Writing a Thesis
• A thesis has two parts
– Topic: the main subject to be discussed in the essay
– Opinion: what the writer thinks about the main subject to
be discussed (the topic)
Topic: Community College Students
Opinion: Work diligently to pass class, to transfer to
universities, and to earn four-year degrees.
Thesis: Community college students work diligently to pass
class, to transfer to universities, and to earn four-year
degrees.
Determine whether the following is a good
or poor thesis statement
What causes violence in children?
Poor
A thesis statement is not a question!
Determine whether the following is a good
or poor thesis statement
The purpose of my paper is to
identify the causes of violence.
Poor
A thesis is not an announcement of purpose!
Determine whether the following is a good
or poor thesis statement
The education system in the United
States.
Poor
A thesis statement is not just a topic!
Determine whether the following is a good
or poor thesis statement
Teen pregnancy can be reduced with good
education, parental support, and birth control.
Yes, a thesis statement reflects a position!
Determine whether the following is a good
or poor thesis statement
I would like to discuss how teachers and
students can develop better relationships.
Poor
A thesis is not an announcement of purpose!
Determine whether the following is a good
or poor thesis statement
I had squash, tomatoes, and corn in
my garden last year.
Poor
A thesis statement is not too narrow!
Determine whether the following is a good
or poor thesis statement
Vegetable gardening can be a frustrating hobby.
Yes, a thesis statement reflects a position!
Determine whether the following is a good
or poor thesis statement
Honesty and trust in the classroom.
Poor
A thesis statement is not just a topic!
Determine whether the following is a good
or poor thesis statement
Honesty and trust play an important role in
successful teacher-student relationships.
Yes, a thesis statement reflects a position!
Determine whether the following is a good
or poor thesis statement
Advertising has bad effects on all of society.
Poor
A thesis statement is not too broad!
Determine whether the following is a good
or poor thesis statement
What can be done to reduce violence in
schools? Who is to blame-- the parents,
the schools, or society in general?
Poor
A thesis statement is not a question!
Determine whether the following is a good
or poor thesis statement
Toy ads on television teach children to be
greedy, competitive, and snobbish.
Yes, a thesis statement reflects a position!
• A good thesis statement should be
restricted to a specific and manageable
topic - readers are more likely to reward a
paper that does a small task well than a
paper that takes on an unrealistic task and
fails
Topic Sentences
What we’ve learnt so far…
• Macro level: exposition structure
– Introduction (background, thesis statement)
– Body (at least 3 arguments)
– Conclusion (restatement of thesis)
• Micro level (paragraph structure)
– Argument = point + elaboration
– Typically, 1 argument corresponds to 1 paragraph
– Use top-level structure to organise these
paragraphs
Topic Sentences
Apart from relating the paragraph to the essay
thesis, a topic sentence:
– Makes a claim
– Defines the scope of the paragraph
Topic sentence analysis
• [Insert topic sentence]. The first is the wear-and-tear
hypothesis that suggests the body eventually succumbs
to the environmental insults of life. The second is the
notion that we have an internal clock which is
genetically programmed to run down. Supporters of the
wear-and-tear theory maintain that the very practice of
breathing causes us to age because inhaled oxygen
produces toxic by-products. Advocates of the internal
clock theory believe that individual cells are told to
stop dividing and thus eventually to die by, for
example, hormones produced by the brain or by their
own genes.
Topic sentence analysis
• My Biology professor gave an interesting lecture on
Thursday. The first is the wear-and-tear hypothesis
that suggests the body eventually succumbs to the
environmental insults of life. The second is the notion
that we have an internal clock which is genetically
programmed to run down. Supporters of the wear-andtear theory maintain that the very practice of breathing
causes us to age because inhaled oxygen produces toxic
by-products. Advocates of the internal clock theory
believe that individual cells are told to stop dividing
and thus eventually to die by, for example, hormones
produced by the brain or by their own genes.
Topic sentence analysis
• We all must die some day. The first is the wear-andtear hypothesis that suggests the body eventually
succumbs to the environmental insults of life. The
second is the notion that we have an internal clock
which is genetically programmed to run down.
Supporters of the wear-and-tear theory maintain that the
very practice of breathing causes us to age because
inhaled oxygen produces toxic by-products. Advocates
of the internal clock theory believe that individual cells
are told to stop dividing and thus eventually to die by,
for example, hormones produced by the brain or by
their own genes.
Topic sentence analysis
• Some scientists believe that humans contain an
internal time clock which forces them eventually to
die. The first is the wear-and-tear hypothesis that
suggests the body eventually succumbs to the
environmental insults of life. The second is the notion
that we have an internal clock which is genetically
programmed to run down. Supporters of the wear-andtear theory maintain that the very practice of breathing
causes us to age because inhaled oxygen produces toxic
by-products. Advocates of the internal clock theory
believe that individual cells are told to stop dividing
and thus eventually to die by, for example, hormones
produced by the brain or by their own genes.
Topic sentence analysis
• There are two broad theories concerning what
triggers a human’s inevitable decline to death. The
first is the wear-and-tear hypothesis that suggests the
body eventually succumbs to the environmental insults
of life. The second is the notion that we have an
internal clock which is genetically programmed to run
down. Supporters of the wear-and-tear theory maintain
that the very practice of breathing causes us to age
because inhaled oxygen produces toxic by-products.
Advocates of the internal clock theory believe that
individual cells are told to stop dividing and thus
eventually to die by, for example, hormones produced
by the brain or by their own genes.
Topic sentence analysis
• [Insert topic sentence]. The strictest military
discipline imaginable is still looser than that
prevailing in the average assembly-line. The soldier,
at worst, is still able to exercise the highest
conceivable functions of freedom -- that is, he or
she is permitted to steal and to kill. No discipline
prevailing in peace gives him or her anything
remotely resembling this. The soldier is, in war, in
the position of a free adult; in peace he or she is
almost always in the position of a child. In war all
things are excused by success, even violations of
discipline. In peace, speaking generally, success is
inconceivable except as a function of discipline.
Topic sentence analysis
• Soldiers need discipline. The strictest military
discipline imaginable is still looser than that prevailing
in the average assembly-line. The soldier, at worst, is
still able to exercise the highest conceivable functions
of freedom -- that is, he or she is permitted to steal and
to kill. No discipline prevailing in peace gives him or
her anything remotely resembling this. The soldier is, in
war, in the position of a free adult; in peace he or she is
almost always in the position of a child. In war all
things are excused by success, even violations of
discipline. In peace, speaking generally, success is
inconceivable except as a function of discipline.
Topic sentence analysis
• Although soldiers are not always disciplined, they
serve an important social function in wartime. The
strictest military discipline imaginable is still looser
than that prevailing in the average assembly-line. The
soldier, at worst, is still able to exercise the highest
conceivable functions of freedom -- that is, he or she is
permitted to steal and to kill. No discipline prevailing in
peace gives him or her anything remotely resembling
this. The soldier is, in war, in the position of a free
adult; in peace he or she is almost always in the
position of a child. In war all things are excused by
success, even violations of discipline. In peace,
speaking generally, success is inconceivable except as a
function of discipline.
Topic sentence analysis
• We commonly look on the discipline of war as more
rigid than any other forms of discipline necessary in
times of peace, but this is a misconception. The
strictest military discipline imaginable is still looser
than that prevailing in the average assembly-line. The
soldier, at worst, is still able to exercise the highest
conceivable functions of freedom -- that is, he or she is
permitted to steal and to kill. No discipline prevailing in
peace gives him or her anything remotely resembling
this. The soldier is, in war, in the position of a free
adult; in peace he or she is almost always in the
position of a child. In war all things are excused by
success, even violations of discipline. In peace,
speaking generally, success is inconceivable except as a
function of discipline.
Write a topic sentence
• [Insert your topic sentence]. In Montreal, a flashing red
traffic light instructs drivers to careen even more wildly
through intersections heavily populated with pedestrians
and oncoming vehicles. In startling contrast, an amber light
in Calgary warns drivers to scream to a halt on the off
chance that there might be a pedestrian within 500 metres
who might consider crossing at some unspecified time
within the current day. In my home town in New
Brunswick, finally, traffic lights (along with painted lines
and posted speed limits) do not apply to tractors, all terrain
vehicles, or pickup trucks, which together account for most
vehicles on the road. In fact, were any observant Canadian
dropped from an alien space vessel at an unspecified
intersection anywhere in this vast land, he or she could
almost certainly orient him-or-herself according to the
surrounding traffic patterns.
Write a topic sentence
• Although the interpretation of traffic signals may seem
highly standardised, close observation reveals regional
differences across Canada. In Montreal, a flashing red traffic
light instructs drivers to careen even more wildly through
intersections heavily populated with pedestrians and oncoming
vehicles. In startling contrast, an amber light in Calgary warns
drivers to scream to a halt on the off chance that there might be
a pedestrian within 500 metres who might consider crossing at
some unspecified time within the current day. In my home
town in New Brunswick, finally, traffic lights (along with
painted lines and posted speed limits) do not apply to tractors,
all terrain vehicles, or pickup trucks, which together account
for most vehicles on the road. In fact, were any observant
Canadian dropped from an alien space vessel at an unspecified
intersection anywhere in this vast land, he or she could almost
certainly orient him-or-herself according to the surrounding
traffic patterns.