How do you write a thesis statement?

Answer 1

How to Write a Thesis Statement

What is a thesis statement?

The thesis is a one or two sentence condensation of the argument or analysis that is to follow that clearly and concisely indicates the subject of your paper, the main points you will discuss and the order in which you will discuss them.  The thesis can be the answer to the question your paper explores.

A thesis statement is:
-What you will prove
-The argument
-The scope
-The main idea
-The purpose of the paper

Why should your essay contain a thesis statement?

-To test your ideas by distilling them into a sentence or two
-To better organize and develop your argument
-To provide your reader with a “guide” to your argument

Generate a thesis statement when the topic is assigned

Most assignments can be reduced to a single question.  A first step, then, is to distill the assignment into a specific question.  For example, if your assignment is “write a report to the local school board explaining the potential benefits of using computers in a fourth grade class,” turn the request into a question like “What are the potential benefits of using computers in a fourth grade class?”  After you have chosen the question your essay will answer, compose one or two sentences that answer that question.  The answer to the question is the thesis statement for the essay.

Q. “What are the potential benefits of using computers in a fourth grade class?”

A. “The potential benefits of using computers in a fourth grade class are….”

OR

A.  “Using computers in a fourth grade class promises to improve….”.

Generate a thesis statement when the topic is not assigned

When your assignment does not ask a specific question, your thesis statement still needs to answer a question about the issue you intend to explore.  You need to figure out what question you intend to write about.

A good thesis statement will likely include the following:

Take on a subject upon which reasonable people could disagree
Deal with a subject that can be adequately treated given the nature of the assignment
Express one main idea
Assert your conclusions about a subject




JRoman English I Hon/IB                       How to Write a Thesis Statement

For example, generate a thesis statement for a paper on social policy:
Brainstorm the topic:  If the class is considering the problems of drug addiction, you might focus on the problems of crack babies – babies born to mothers addicted to crack cocaine.

Begin with statement like:  Crack Babies

This is a fragment and not a thesis statement.  This indicates a general SUBJECT and gives the reader no indication of what you intend to say about crack babies (no clear PURPOSE).

Narrow the topic:  Exploring the topic should lead you to conclusions.  For instance, these babies have difficulty surviving premature births and withdrawal symptoms and their lives only get harder as they grow up because they are likely to be raised in an environment of poverty and neglect.  You think that there should be programs to help these children.

Your thesis develops to look like this:  Programs for crack babies

This fragment extends the subject to focus on a MAIN IDEA:  Programs.  This is a subject and idea upon which reasonable people could disagree because, while most people might agree that something needs to be done for these children, not everyone would agree on what should be done or who should do it.  

However this fragment is not a thesis statement because your reader does not know your POSITION or conclusions on the subject.

Take a POSITION on the subject:  Reflect on the subject and decide what you really want to say about the subject.  For example:  In addition to programs for crack babies, the government should develop programs to help crack children cope and compete in society.

Develop a thesis statement to reflect your position:  More attention should be paid to the environment crack babies grow up in.

This statement asserts your position, but the terms and position are still too vague.

Now examine word choice and language and use more SPECIFIC LANGUAGE.  I.e. to explain what you mean about environment, state:  Experts estimate that half of crack babies will grow up in home environments lacking rich cognitive and emotional stimulation.

This statement is specific, but still not a complete thesis statement.  It merely reports a statistic rather than makes an assertion.

Make an ASSERTION based on clearly stated support.  Revise your thesis statement again to reflect your research and your position.  For example:

Because half of all crack babies are likely to grow up in homes lacking good cognitive and emotional stimulation, the federal government should finance programs to supplement parental care for crack babies.

This thesis statement answers the question “Why should anything be done for crack babies and who should do it?”  While you initially may not have a specific question about a subject, further exploration and discussion should lead you to more understanding of the subject and more specific ideas and questions an enable you to formulate a thesis statement that reflects insight into the subject.

JRoman English I Hon/IB                       How to Write a Thesis Statement

How to tell a strong thesis statement from a weak one:

1.  A strong thesis takes some sort of stand or position.  A good thesis shows conclusions about a subject.  For example, if you are writing a paper for a class on fitness, you might be asked to choose a popular weight loss product to evaluate.  Here are two thesis statements:

There are some negative and positive aspects to the Banana Herb Tea Supplement.

This is a weak thesis.  It fails to take a stand.  Also the phrase “negative and positive aspects” is too vague.

Because Banana Herb Tea Supplement promotes rapid weight loss that results in the loss of muscle and lean body mass, it poses a potential danger to customers.

This is a strong thesis statement because it clearly takes a stand and is extended with clear, specific and concrete detail.

2.  A strong thesis statement justifies discussion

Your thesis should indicate the point of the discussion  If your assignment is to write a paper on kinship systems, using your own family as an example, You might come up with either of these two thesis statements:

My family is an extended family.

This is a weak thesis because it states an observation, lacks purpose or conclusion and takes no position.  The reader cannot tell the point of the statement.

While most American families would view consanguineal marriage as a threat to the nuclear family structure, many Iranian families, like my own, believe that these marriages help reinforce kinship ties in an extended family.

This is a strong thesis statement because it shows how your experience contradicts a widely accepted view.  It reflects purpose, and conclusion about the topic and uses clear, specific language.

This thesis statement also shows how personal connection and experience can condradict a widely held view with authenticity.  A good strategy for creating a strong thesis statement is to show that a topic is controversial and your position will demonstrate support contradictory to the widely accepted position on the topic.

3.  A strong topic expresses one main idea.

Readers need to be able to see that your paper has one main point.  If your thesis expresses more than one idea, you may confuse your readers about the subject of your paper and distract from and weaken your main purpose and point.  For example:

Companies need to exploit the marketing potential of the Internet, and web pages can provide both advertising and customer support.

This is a weak thesis statement because the reader cannot determine if the paper is about marketing on the Internet or about marketing through web pages.  A possible revision:

JRoman English I Hon/IB                       How to Write a Thesis Statement

Because the Internet is filled with tremendous marketing potential, companies should exploit this potential by using web pages that offer both advertising and customer support

This is now a strong thesis statement because it shows that the two ideas are related; an idea that extends and elaborates the position that using web pages is an extension and elaboration of the position that the Internet is filled with marketing potential

A strong thesis statement shows a clear relationship between ideas using definite words like because, since, so, although, unless, however.  A strong thesis statement is specific.

A thesis statement should show exactly what your paper will be about, and will help you keep your paper focused on a manageable topic.  For example, if you write a paper on hunger, you might say:

World hunger has many causes and effects.

This is a weak thesis statement for two important reasons.  The subject World hunger is too broad and cannot be discussed thoroughly in a few pagers.  “many causes and effects” is also too vague and broad.  The topic should identify specific causes and effects.  A revised thesis:

Hunger persists in Appalachia because jobs are scarce and farming in the infertile soils is rarely profitable.

This is a strong thesis statement because it narrows the subject to a more specific and manageable topic and it also identifies the specific causes for the existence of hunger.

A Good Thesis Statement in a Research Paper

States an idea, opinion, argument, or issue that you intend to develop fully, prove or explore with evidence
Has an argumentative or informational edge
Does not state the obvious, “Unemployment is harmful to the economy.” but advances an aspect of the topic, answering the question, “What about it?”
Is clear
Can be defended by reason rather than emotion
Anticipates your conclusion and sets in motion your examination of the facts so that reach in the conclusion, the special idea, focus or argument of your paper
Appears in the final 1 or 2 sentences of the introduction
The main points in a thesis statement must be grammatically parallel

How to Narrow Your Topic

Ask questions about it, use a 5 WH:  what, where, when, who why, how
Brainstorm, write words or ideas as they come to you
Talk with others
Use a computer search – if there are 5o or 60 or more articles, your topic is too broad.  If there is only one book or 2 or 3 articles, your topic may be too narrow.
Check on line public catalogue in the library for al list of subject headings.
Use a book’s index or table of contents to give you ideas of topics.
Use a mind map to narrow the topic

Acknowledgements:  Writing Tutorial Services, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN