Thesis

Thesis and
and Outline
Outline
Paper = Argument
 What is a thesis?
• A thesis statement:
• tells the reader how you will interpret
the significance of the subject matter
under discussion.
• is a road map for the paper; in other
words, it tells the reader what to
expect from the rest of the paper.
 Thesis continued . . .
• A thesis is an interpretation of a
question or subject, not the subject
itself. The subject, or topic, of an
essay might be World War II or
Moby Dick; a thesis must then offer
a way to understand the war or the
novel.
• makes a claim that others might
dispute.
 How do I get a thesis?
• A thesis is the result of a lengthy thinking
process. Formulating a thesis is not the first
thing you do after reading an essay assignment.
• Before you develop an argument on any topic,
you have to collect and organize evidence, look
for possible relationships between known facts
(such as surprising contrasts or similarities),
and think about the significance of these
relationships.
 Working Thesis

• Once you do this thinking, you will

probably have a "working thesis," a
basic or main idea, an argument that
you think you can support with evidence
but that may need adjustment along
the way.
 Examples
• Weak: The North and South fought the
Civil War for many reasons, some of
which were the same and some
different.
• Revised thesis: While both sides fought
the Civil War over the issue of slavery,
the North fought for moral reasons
while the South fought to preserve its
own institutions.
 Source
• The University of North Carolina at
Chapel Hill.

• Web site:
http://www.unc.edu/depts/wcweb/hand
outs/thesis.html
 Thesis: Makes a Claim
• A good thesis sentence will make a
claim.
• This doesn't mean that you have to
reduce an idea to an "either/or"
proposition and then take a stand.
Rather, you need to develop an
interesting perspective that you can
support and defend.
 Observation
• "America is violent" is an observation.
"Americans are violent because they
are fearful" (the position that Michael
Moore takes in Bowling for Columbine)
is an argument.
• Why? Because it posits a perspective.
It makes a claim.
 Violence
• One might argue that America is violent
because of its violent entertainment industry.
Or because of the proliferation of guns

• Or because of the disintegration of the

family. In short, if your thesis is positing
something that no one can (or would wish to)
argue with, then it's not a very good thesis.
 Thesis = Control
• A good thesis sentence will control
the entire argument.
• Your thesis sentence determines what
you are required to say in a paper.

• The thesis is like a contract between

you and your reader.
 Thesis = Structure
• A good thesis will 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.
 Source

• Dartmouth Writing Program

• Web site:
http://www.dartmouth.edu/~writing/
materials/student/ac_paper/develop.
shtml