Argument Writing The thesis statement and five parts of a successful argument essay

Five Ways of Looking At a Thesis

A thesis says something a little strange. A: By telling the story of Westley and Buttercup's triumph over evil, The Princess Bride affirms the power of true love. B: Although the main plot of The Princess Bride rests on the natural power of true love, an examination of the way that fighting sticks (baseball bats, tree branches, and swords) link the frame story to the romance plot suggests that the grandson is being trained in true love, that it is not natural but socialized. Both of these statements, I would contend, are perfectly correct. Only the second one says something, well, weird. Weird is good. Sentence A encourages the paper to produce precisely the evidence that everybody always talks about in The Princess Bride; sentence B ensures that the paper will talk about something new. Women are oppressed in Maria. Frankenstein warns society against taking science too far. The creature starts out good and becomes bad because of society. Yup. How can you make those things unusual? Many good papers start by pointing out something that seems not to make sense and then making sense of it.

A thesis creates an argument that builds from one point to the next. A: The Rules and Jane Austen's Northanger Abbey both tell women how to act. B: By looking at The Rules, a modern conduct book for women, we can see how Jane Austen's Northanger Abbey is itself like a conduct book, questioning the rules for social success in her society and offering a new model. This applies mostly to comparison/contrast papers. If the components of your argument can be rearranged without changing the thesis, your thesis has a problem.

A thesis fits comfortably into the Magic Thesis Sentence (MTS). The MTS: By looking at _____, we can see _____, which most readers don't see; this is important because _____. Try it out with the above examples. I think it will please you.

A thesis says something about the text(s) you discuss exclusively. Back to the first example: A: By telling the story of Westley and Buttercup's triumph over evil, The Princess Bride affirms the power of true love. B: Although the main plot of The Princess Bride rests on the natural power of true love, an examination of the way that fighting sticks (baseball bats, tree branches, and swords) link the frame story to the romance plot suggests that the grandson is being trained in true love, that it is not natural but socialized. Try substituting other works: A: By telling the story of Darcy and Elizabeth's triumph over evil, Pride and Prejudice affirms the power of true love. Sure. Bad sign. B: Although the main plot of Pride and Prejudice rests on the natural power of true love, an examination of the way that fighting sticks (baseball bats, tree branches, and swords) link the frame story to the romance plot suggests that the grandson is being trained in true love, that it is not natural but socialized. Um, nope. Good sign.

A thesis makes a lot of information irrelevant. One more time (so sue me, I like this example): A: By telling the story of Westley and Buttercup's triumph over evil, The Princess Bride affirms the power of true love. A plot summary of The Princess Bride would support this thesis. Bad sign. A strong thesis excludes most of the text in order to make a specific claim. B: Although the main plot of The Princess Bride rests on the natural power of true love, an examination of the way that fighting sticks (baseball bats, tree branches, and swords) link the frame story to the romance plot suggests that the grandson is being trained in true love, that it is not natural but socialized. This excludes most of the text. Good sign. Your reader knows precisely which parts of it you'll be talking about and why.

Civil Disobedience Write a thesis statement that connects the theme of civil disobedience from “Civil Disobedience,” Antigone, and The Hunger Games. Make an assertion regarding how these three texts are united thematically. By looking at _____, we can see _____, which most readers don't see; this is important because _____.

Writing the argument essay

The Classical Argument

Since rhetors began teaching Greek farmers strategies for

appealing their cases to Greek courts in the fifth century B.C.,

the classical argument has stood as a model for writers who

believe their case can be argued plausibly and logically to an

open-minded audience. This format is still in use in much

academic writing today. In its simplest form, the classical

argument has five main parts:

Part 11. The introduction, which warms up the audience, establishes goodwill and rapport with the readers, and announces the general theme or thesis of the argument.

Part 22. The narration, which summarizes relevant background material, provides any information the audience needs to know about the environment and circumstances that produce the argument, and set up the stakes-what’s at risk in this question. In academic writing, this often takes the form of a literature review.

Part 33. The confirmation, which lays out in a logical order (usually strongest to weakest or most obvious to most subtle) the claims that support the thesis, providing evidence for each claim.

Part 44. The refutation and concession, which looks at opposing viewpoints to the writer’s claims, anticipating objections from the audience, and allowing as much of the opposing viewpoints as possible without weakening the thesis.

Part 55. The summation, which provides a strong conclusion, amplifying the force of the argument, and showing the readers that this solution is the best at meeting the circumstances.

Each of these paragraphs represents a “chunk” or section of the paper, which might be one or more paragraphs; for instance, the introduction and narration sections might be combined into one chunk while the confirmation and concession sections will probably be several paragraphs each.

The IntroductionThe introduction has three jobs: to capture your audience’s interest, establish their

perception of you as a writer, and set out your point of view for the argument. These

multiple roles require careful planning on your part. You might capture interest by

using a focusing anecdote or quotation, a shocking statistic, or by restating a problem

or controversy in a new way. You could also begin with an analogy or parallel case, a

personal statement, or (if you genuinely believe your audience will agree with you) a

bold statement of your thesis. The language choices you use will convey a great deal

about your image to your audience; for instance, if you're writing about abortion,

audiences will react differently to language about “pro-lifers” than they will to

language about “people who oppose abortion” or “profamily supporters.” This

introduction usually funnels down into a solid, clear thesis statement; if you can’t find

a sentence in this section that explicitly says what point you are supporting, you need

tokeep refining the introduction.

The NarrationIn the narration, you want to establish a context for your argument. This means

that you need to explain the situation to which your argument is responding, as

well as any relevant background information, history, statistics, and so on that

affect it. (For instance, the abortion argument might well mention Roe vs. Wade,

more recent cases, legal precedents, and even public opinion polls.) Once again,

the language with which you describe this background will give the audience a

picture of you, so choose it carefully. By the end of this section, the readers

should understand what’s at stake in this argument—the issues and alternatives

the community faces—so that they can evaluate your claims fairly.

The Confirmation

This section allows you to explain why you believe in

your thesis. It takes up several supporting claims

individually, so that you can develop each one by

bringing in facts, examples, testimony, definitions, and

so on. It's important that you explain why the evidence

for each claim supports it and the larger thesis; this

builds a chain of reasoning in support of your argument.

The Refutation and Concession

This is sometimes a hard section for writers to develop; who wants to think of the reasons

why an argument won’t work? But this can often be the strongest part of an argument, for

when you show your audience that you have anticipated their potential objections, and have

an answer for them, you defuse the audience’s ability to oppose you and persuade them to

accept your point of view. If there are places where you agree with the opposition, conceding

their points creates goodwill and respect without weakening your thesis. For instance, if you

are supporting parental notification for abortions, you might concede that there are times

when girls shouldn’t be expected to get their parents’ permission, such as in abuse or incest

cases. But then you might suggest that a court-appointed counselor give permission instead

so that the young girl gets an adult’s support in making this decision.

The Conclusion It is tempting in the conclusion just to restate the claims and thesis, but

this does not give a sense of momentum or closure to your argument.

Instead, try to hearken back to the narration and the issues. Remind your

readers what’s at stake and try to show why your thesis provides the best

solution to the issue being faced. This gives an impression of the rightness

and importance of your argument, and suggests its larger significance or

long-range impact. More importantly, it gives the readers a psychological

sense of closure; the argument winds up instead of breaking off.