TDC 2 – Writing: An introduction

to writing essays

Set the context – provide general information about the main idea, explaining the situation so the reader can make sense of the topic and the claims you make and support

State why the main idea is important – tell the reader why s/he should care and keep reading. Your goal is to create a compelling, clear, and convincing essay people will want to read and act upon

State your thesis/claim – compose a sentence or two stating the position you will support

An effective introduction should:

Look at the introduction in the text Against E-Voting and identify the features above.

Now look at your introduction and identify the features above.

The Thesis Statement The essay is controlled by one central idea, the

thesis statement. It expresses the attitude, opinion, or idea about the topic and it is broader than a topic sentence because it expresses the controlling idea for the entire essay.

A thesis statement:√ Should be expressed in a complete sentence;√ Expresses an opinion, attitude or idea; it does not simply

announce the topic the essay will develop;√ Expresses an opinion; it should not express a fact;√ Should express only one idea toward the topic.

Are these thesis statements?• The advantages of being bilingual.

• I would like to discuss the advantages of being bilingual.

• The two greater advantages of being bilingual iin today’s society are that it is easier for people to get jobs and that they can communicate with people from all over the world.

• What advantages may be taken from the fact of being bilingual, considering the characteristics of today’s society?

• Speaking more than one language is a plus in anyone’s curriculum nowadays.

• Some advantages of being bilingual are: to facilitate the communication with people from a different culture; to access more opportunities of work; and to develop knowledge in other fields.

Now go back to your essay and underline the thesis statement.

Does it fulfill all the requirements discussed? If so, good!

If not, rewrite your thesis statement and show it to your partner.

Main problems found

• Introductions with only one sentence.• Vague, incomplete, or ineffective thesis

statements.• Thesis statements as the first sentence of the

introductory paragraph, rather than the last.• Introductions with multiple paragraphs and

thesis statement only in the last paragraph.

Developmental paragraphs

• They explain, illustrate, discuss, or prove the thesis statement. Each paragraph discusses one aspect of the main

topic. The controlling idea in the developmental paragraph

should echo the central idea in the thesis statement. The developmental paragraph should have

coherence and unity. The train of thought at the end of one paragraph should be picked up at the beginning of the next.

Example

Some advantages of being bilingual are: to facilitate the communication with people from a different culture; to access more opportunities of work; and to develop knowledge in other fields.

Developmental paragraph 1:Topic sentence: Knowing a foreign language helps you communicate with people from different cultures, which can bring many advantages.

Developmental paragraph 2: Topic sentence: Another major advantage of knowing a foreign language is that you will certainly have many more work opportunities than a monolingual colleague.

Developmental paragraph 3:Topic sentence: Finally, a person who has good command of a foreign language, especially English, has access to knowledge from a number of fields, since English is the lingua franca of the social, natural and exact sciences.

DDid you notice the syntactic variety of the topic

sentences?

UnityThe entire paragraph should concern itself with a single focus. If it begins with a one focus or major point of discussion, it should not end with another or wander within different ideas.CoherenceCoherence is the trait that makes the paragraph easily understandable to a reader. You can help create coherence in your paragraphs by creating logical bridges and verbal bridges.

Logical bridgesThe same idea of a topic is carried over from sentence to sentenceSuccessive sentences can be constructed in parallel formVerbal bridgesKey words can be repeated in several sentencesSynonymous words can be repeated in several sentencesPronouns can refer to nouns in previous sentencesTransition words can be used to link ideas from different sentences

Main problems found

• Only one developmental paragraph; thus, only one argument to support the thesis statement.

• Developmental pagragraphs that provide information that is not directly related to the thesis statement.

• Different paragraphs discussing basically the same idea.

• Developmental paragraphs with a single sentence.• Insufficient supporting information.

Conclusion

• The conclusion wraps up the discussion, bringing the development to a logical end.

√ A conclusion can briefly restate the main points discussed.√ A conclusion can restate the thesis in different words.√ A conclusion can address opposing viewpoints and explain

why readers should align with your position.√ A conclusion can call for action or overview future

research possibilities.√ A conclusion should not bring up a new topic.

Main problems found

•No conclusion!

Writing an essay is very simple:

Tell what you're going to tell them (introduction).

Tell them (body).

Tell them what you told them (conclusion).