how to write your introduction and concluding paragraphs
TRANSCRIPT
A good essay should: Begin broadly Set a focus (THESIS) at the end of the first
paragraph Examine each point closely (BODY)
Remember 1E:2A! Summarize conclusions Explain why the finding is important
Broad opening statementMay be a quote or question
Name the book and author Give a short summary (1-2 sentences) Narrow your focus to transition to thesis Thesis statement outlines your body
paragraphs
Example Reason
Women have often get the short shrift in popular American culture. John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men is an interesting example of this truth. Though the book’s main focus is on a friendship between canny George and dull Lennie, a major theme emerges in how loneliness effects people, often leading to…
Broad opening statement
Name the book and author
Give a short summary (1-2 sentences)
Example Reason
how loneliness effects people, often leading to madness or destruction. Many characters struggle with the adverse effects of loneliness, but none so much as Curley’s wife. Steinbeck does not present her as a sympathetic character, but she echoes the novel’s theme in her…
Narrow your focus to transition to thesis
Thesis statement outlines your body paragraphs
Steinbeck presents her as an unsympathetic character, but she echoes the novel’s theme in her interactions with (----), the way (----) is revealed about her, and in the gruesome end that results from her search for companionship.
Your thesis
statement w
ill
vary based on your c
hosen
examples
Reverse the introduction! Start with a specific summary of what
you demonstrated in your body paragraphs
Summarize it’s importance to the overall novel
End with a broader statement about the world.In the case of my example,
something like “The treatment of women has advanced far since the writing of Of Mice and Men, but loneliness is still a struggle for us all.