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    KCWS Thesis Statement

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    shannonsamlal2021
    An effective thesis statement presents the main idea of a paper in a single sentence. It helps the writer organize their ideas, determine what information to include, and guide the reader. The thesis statement usually appears at the end of the introductory paragraph. For informative papers, the thesis introduces the topic without opinion. For persuasive papers, the thesis makes an arguable claim. In analysis papers, the thesis indicates the position and how details from the text support that position. Writers should generate a clear thesis by exploring their topic, narrowing their focus, taking a position if needed, ensuring unity and specificity, implying supporting points, reviewing language for clarity and conciseness, and getting feedback.

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    KCWS Thesis Statement

    Uploaded by

    shannonsamlal2021
    14 views3 pages
    An effective thesis statement presents the main idea of a paper in a single sentence. It helps the writer organize their ideas, determine what information to include, and guide the reader. The thesis statement usually appears at the end of the introductory paragraph. For informative papers, the thesis introduces the topic without opinion. For persuasive papers, the thesis makes an arguable claim. In analysis papers, the thesis indicates the position and how details from the text support that position. Writers should generate a clear thesis by exploring their topic, narrowing their focus, taking a position if needed, ensuring unity and specificity, implying supporting points, reviewing language for clarity and conciseness, and getting feedback.

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    An effective thesis statement presents the main idea of a paper in a single sentence. It helps the writer organize their ideas, determine what information to include, and guide the reader. The thesis statement usually appears at the end of the introductory paragraph. For informative papers, the thesis introduces the topic without opinion. For persuasive papers, the thesis makes an arguable claim. In analysis papers, the thesis indicates the position and how details from the text support that position. Writers should generate a clear thesis by exploring their topic, narrowing their focus, taking a position if needed, ensuring unity and specificity, implying supporting points, reviewing language for clarity and conciseness, and getting feedback.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    14 views3 pages

    KCWS Thesis Statement

    Uploaded by

    shannonsamlal2021
    An effective thesis statement presents the main idea of a paper in a single sentence. It helps the writer organize their ideas, determine what information to include, and guide the reader. The thesis statement usually appears at the end of the introductory paragraph. For informative papers, the thesis introduces the topic without opinion. For persuasive papers, the thesis makes an arguable claim. In analysis papers, the thesis indicates the position and how details from the text support that position. Writers should generate a clear thesis by exploring their topic, narrowing their focus, taking a position if needed, ensuring unity and specificity, implying supporting points, reviewing language for clarity and conciseness, and getting feedback.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    of 3

    Thesis

    Statements
    An effective thesis statement presents the main idea of a paper. It is not simply a title or
    statement of the general topic but a sentence that clearly indicates the scope of the paper and
    the perspective of the writer. For most academic papers, a thesis should be contained in one
    sentence. The thesis performs several key functions:
    • Helps the writer form and organize ideas
    • Requires the writer to distill their ideas down to one main point
    • Acts as a test to help the writer determine whether information should be included
    • Guides the reader through the paper so he or she can keep the main point in mind

    Placement
    Readers expect a thesis statement to appear at the end of the introductory paragraph. If you
    have a good reason to place it elsewhere, such as presenting background information first,
    then it is possible to put it later in the paper, but make sure the reader can still recognize it as
    the thesis statement

    Perspective
    The perspective of the thesis statement depends on the type of paper you are writing.

    Informative/Expository Essay
    If your paper is informative, you need only present the narrowed topic that the reader will
    learn about. Your thesis will not express any type of opinion, but rather introduce the
    information that will be covered. If you need to explain how a court case reaches the United
    States Supreme Court, a possible thesis might be...

    Example
    Cases heard by the United States Supreme Court come from a variety of lower courts
    and must meet certain requirements.

    Persuasive/Argumentative Essay
    For most academic assignments, the thesis statement will make an arguable claim that will be
    supported in order to persuade the reader of your perspective on an issue. For the same topic
    as above, an arguable thesis might be...
    2

    Example
    The current system of governmental checks and balances should be revised because the
    Supreme Court wields too much power.

    Analysis
    In this type of essay, the thesis will indicate the position you are taking, although it may not
    technically seem like an argument. For example, in a literary analysis, you may need to defend
    your interpretation of a character or symbol. For a piece of art, you may need to demonstrate
    how the elements come together to create a certain effect or message. The thesis will still need
    to be supported by details, but those details will come from the text/work.

    Generating a Clear Thesis Statement


    • Begin by carefully reading the assignment so you understand what perspec�ve is
    appropriate and what elements are required, including length.
    • Explore the topic. This may include research depending on the assignment or may just
    involve pre-writing, such as brainstorming.
    • Narrow the topic so that it is manageable within the given length. If you try to cover too
    much, you won’t be able to effectively support your viewpoint.
    • Write a working thesis statement that expresses the main focus of the essay, including your
    position if necessary to the assignment. In the next few steps you will review what you have
    written for key elements.
    • Make sure it takes a stand (unless for an informative essay). It should not just announce
    your topic, such as This paper is about why pesticides are harmful to humans.
    • Check for unity. Is more than one idea included? College students who struggle with
    depression need to seek help and colleges should offer free on-campus counseling. If so,
    perhaps you really have only point but you need to show a relationship between the two
    ideas: Because a significant percentage of college students struggle with depression,
    colleges should offer free counseling on campus.
    • Make sure it is specific enough. Does the thesis statement clearly indicate what portion of
    the topic is being addressed? Is it too broad for the length of the assignment? In a
    complicated topic, you can’t expect to convince the reader of multiple elements in a
    relatively short paper. For example, compare these two statements:

    Schools should offer healthier choices to students.

    Because half of all American elementary school children consume nine times the
    recommended daily allowance of sugar, schools should be required to replace
    the beverages in soda machines with healthy alternatives.

    The first statement doesn’t indicate the paper will focus on food choices at all, nor that
    it addresses sugar consumption rather than other unhealthy elements like fat or
    3

    preservatives. The second one gives more guidance to the reader about what the paper
    will actually include.

    • Indicate or imply the suppor�ng points. You don’t have to specifically state your main
    areas of support in the thesis (unless asked to do so by the instructor), but it should be
    implied or hinted at. The reader should have a sense of where the paper is headed.
    • Review the language for clarity. Can the statement easily be understood by your intended
    reader? Is it clear what position you are taking? Are your word choices too vague?
    • Review the language for conciseness. Is the sentence too long or too wordy? Get to the
    point.
    • Get input. Ask a family member or classmate to read the thesis and tell you what he or she
    thinks the paper will be about. If they are wrong, perhaps something is not clear enough or
    specific enough.
    • Check for grammatical errors such as comma placement or incorrect parallelism.

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