Thesis Statement Tips: Helpful Hacks for How to Write a Thesis for Academic Essays

Jerz > Writing > Academic
    [ Argument | Title | Thesis | Blueprint | Pro/Con | Quoting | MLA Format ]

A thesis statement is the single, specific claim that your essay supports. A strong thesis answers the question you want to raise; it does so by presenting a topic, the position you wish to defend, and a reasoning blueprint that sketches out your defense of your chosen position. A good thesis is not merely a factual statement, an observation, a personal opinion or preference, or the question you plan to answer. (See “Academic Argument: Evidence-based Defense of a Non-obvious Position.”)
The biography Black Elk Speaks challenges the Western genre’s stereotype of the “savage Indian” through its attention to cultural detail, its use of Indian words, and its direct quotes from Black Elk.
  • Topic: The representation of Indian lifestyle in the book Black Elk Speaks
  • Precise Opinion: the book challenges a stereotype
    (a good thesis is debatable, so a good paper would also cover ways that this book perpetuates this same stereotype)
  • Reasoning Blueprint: the three ways the book mounts this challenge are through attention to cultural detail, using Indian words, and using direct quotations from Black Elk.
    • A strong blueprint would hint at why these three details add up to support the thesis statement.
    • A less impressive blueprint might simply list the main points the essay will cover.

There is nothing magically “correct” about a thesis on challenging a cultural stereotype. Instead of claiming that a book “challenges a genre’s stereotypes,” you might instead argue that some text “provides a more expensive but more ethical solution than X” or “undermines Jim Smith’s observation that ‘[some quote from Smith here]’”. (Don’t automatically use “challenges a genre’s stereotype” in the hopes of coming up with the “correct” thesis.)

A more complicated thesis statement for a paper that asks you to demonstrate your ability engage with someone else’s ideas (rather than simply summarize or react to someone else’s ideas) might follow a formula like this:

Although Smith says “quote a passage that makes a specific claim you intend to disagree with” (123), in this paper I will use Brown’s concept of X to argue that [your original thesis goes here].”
  • Your instructor might not want you to use “I” in your paper. You might instead say “This paper will use…” or “Applying Brown’s concept of X will show…”
  • Rather than promising to “use Brown to argue” (which is too general), this model recommends that you “use Brown’s concept of X to argue” (or “Brown’s case study X” or “Brown’s thorough analysis of X” or “Brown’s unsuccessful rebuttal to Jones”). The more specific you are about how, specifically you will use Brown, the better.
  • It’s not enough to disagree with someone else; a strong paper will go beyond saying “Smith is wrong” and will instead say “Here’s a better solution that avoids problems P and Q that prevent Smith’s solution from working.”

For a short paper (1-2 pages), the thesis statement is often the first sentence. A complex thesis statement for a long paper may be part of a thesis paragraph. But it’s hard to go wrong if you put your thesis first.

Useful Formulae for Thesis Statements

If you’re not sure whether you have a good thesis statement, see whether you can fit your ideas into one of these basic patterns.

[Something] [does something] because [reason(s)].
or
Because [reason(s)], [something] [does something].
Although [opposing evidence], [reasons] show [something] [does something].

If you are just starting out, and you are still developing an original, evidence-based claim to defend, a simpler formula is probably best. Once you have done the research, and you understand the subject, then a formula like the following won’t look like random words; it will suggest a way to frame a nuanced, complex argument that goes beyond making non-controversial factual statements.

While [a specific, named person] says [a direct quote or paraphrase from the source], [a different, named person] says [something else]. While the two authors disagree over [a minor point], they both share a deep concern over [the topic of your paper]. [Person one’s] refusal to accept [a particular point made by person two]suggests that [person one] is [your thesis — stating the real reason why person one won’t agree with person two].
What really matters is not guessing the magically correct words to fit some secret formula that your mean instructor is refusing to tell you.

What matters is that you have researched your subject, that you have found and engaged meaningfully with peer-reviewed academic sources, and that you are developing an evidence-based claim, rather than summarizing or giving unsupported opinion.
  • Unlike a personal essay, which can rely on personal experience and general observations, a research paper must draw on evidence — usually in the form of direct quotations or statistics from peer-reviewed academic journals.
  • You have no reason to “defend” a position unless some expert has presented credible evidence that challenges a claim you want to make. (Finding, quoting, and engaging with that evidence is part of your task as an academic writer.)
  • An academic argument is not a squabble, a difference of opinions, or an attorney’s courtroom statement. The author of an academic argument is more like the judge, who, after hearing out the best arguments in favor of various possible solutions, supports the best one. An academic argument is part of a discussion that respects multiple viewpoints (as long as those viewpoints are backed by credible evidence).

Parts of a Thesis Statement

The thesis statement has 3 main parts: the limited subject, the precise opinion, and the blueprint of reasons.

1. Limited Subject

Make sure you’ve chosen a subject that meets your instructor’s requirements for the assignment. (It never hurts to ask.)

2. Precise Opinion

The precise opinion gives your answer to a question about the subject. A good precise opinion is vital to the reader’s comprehension of the goal of the essay.

3. Blueprint of Reasons

A blueprint is a plan. It lets the builder know that the foyer will be here, the living room will be to the east, the dining room to the west, and the family room will be north.The blueprint of an essay permits you to see the whole shape of your ideas before you start churning out whole paragraphs.While it’s okay for you to start writing down your ideas before you have a clear sense of your blueprint, your reader should never encounter a list of details without being told exactly what point these details are supposed to support. (For more details on the reasoning blueprint, see Blueprinting.)

The biography Black Elk Speaks challenges the Western genre’s stereotype of the “savage Indian” through its attention to cultural detail, its use of Indian words, and its direct quotes from Black Elk.
In the blueprint, the author signals an intention to support the precise opinion. The author of the example above introduces three different kinds of evidence:
  • cultural details
  • Indian words
  • quotes from Black Elk.

Informed by this blueprint, the reader expects to encounter one section (a paragraph or more) devoted to each subtopic.The blueprint determines the shape of your paper.

If your thesis statement introduces three reasons A, B and C, the reader will expect a section on reason A, a section on reason B, and a section on reason C.

For a single paragraph, you might only spend one sentence on each reason. For a 2-3 page paper, each reason might get its own paragraph. For a 10-page paper, each reason might contain its own local thesis statement, with its own list of reasons, so that each section involves several paragraphs.To emphasize the structure of your essay, repeat keywords or paraphrased ideas from the blueprint as you introduce the sections in which you expand on each point. Crafting good transitions is a skill that takes time and practice. (See Transitions and Reminders of Thesis).

Note: If you repeat your blueprint phrases and your thesis statement robotically (“The third point I want to talk about is how Black Elk Speaks accurately represents the Indian lifestyle through its direct quotes from Black Elk.”), your writing will be rather dry and lifeless. Dull writing is probably better than aimless rambling, although neither is terribly effective. |

Note: A thesis statement amounts to nothing if the paper is not completely focused on that main point. Blueprinting helps create the coherency of the thesis throughout the entire essay, which makes it a necessary part of the thesis statement.

Black Elk Speaks accurately represents Indian lifestyle through its attention to cultural detail, its use of Indian words, and its direct quotes from Black Elk.
  • Topic: The representation of Indian lifestyle in the book Black Elk Speaks
  • Precise Opinion: the book is accurate
  • Reasoning Blueprint: the book pays attention to cultural detail, it uses Indian words, and it uses direct quotations from Black Elk. (The rest of the paper will establish the truth of teach of these supporting points, and then explain why they add up to support the truth of the thesis statement.)
Is Black Elk Speaks a tragedy?
This is a question, not a statement. It’s fine to sit down at the keyboard with the intention of writing a paper to answer this question, but before you start churning out the sentences, you should have a clear idea of what answer you’re trying to support.
This paper will look at the book’s attention to cultural detail, its use of Indian words, and its direct quotations from Black Elk, in order to determine whether Black Elk Speaks accurately represents Indian lifestyle.
The above sample is slightly better because it offers more detail, but it still doesn’t say what position the author is taking on the topic of whether the book is accurate.
Because the events in the story emphasize Black Elk’s role as a Sioux Warrior, and do not describe his eventual conversion to Catholicism and membership in the Society of St. Joseph, Black Elk Speaks presents a skewed and simplified view of the complex history of Native Americans.
Note that the above sample contains a topic (the accuracy of Black Elk Speaks), opinion (it is skewed and simplified), and reasoning (because the book only tells part of the story).

You don’t need to present those three parts in that exact order every time; furthermore, your instructor may have a good reason to ask you for a different organization. But most of the time, including these three parts will help your reader to follow your ideas much more closely.
Biographies of all types can teach us many things about the past. What was the culture like? What was the language like? And what did the people say? One such book is Black Elk Speaks, which tells the story of a Sioux warrior in the late 1800s. How accurate is this book? This paper will investigate the cultural details, the language, and what Black Elk actually said, in order to determine the answer.
The above sample starts off with a wordy, general statement about biographies. But the main topic isn’t about biographies of all types, it’s specifically about one book, Black Elk Speaks.

17 Oct 2000 — originally posted by Nicci Jordan, UWEC Junior
08 Dec 2000 — first posted here. Maintained by Prof. Jerz.
13 Dec 2003 — links updated
22 Sep 2006 — moderate revisions by Jerz
29 Oct 2011 — updated by Jerz
14 June 2015 — minor adjustments

Blueprinting: Planning Your Essay
A blueprint is a rough but specific plan, or outline, which defines the structure of your whole essay. The blueprint, usually located within the thesis statement, is a brief list of the points you plan to make, compressed into just a few words each, in the same order in which they appear in the body of your paper.

Hochstein, Jordan, and Jerz
Thesis Reminders
A thesis reminder is a direct echo of the thesis statement. In a short paper, the topic sentence of each paragraph should repeat words or phrases from the thesis statement.

Dennis G. Jerz
Timed Essays: Planning and Organizing in a Crunch

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  • im writing a thesis on Law and security, i dont know where to start from. please help

    • Lola, I am sure your instructor has given you an assignment description, with the learning goal, how your work will be evaluated, and what reading to do before you try writing your thesis statement. So your instructor is really the best resource for you right now.

  • I have to write a history paper that outlines from where we as the back of where we went, where are or where we are going. The paper must address the "where we went" portion by addressing Crossing the Line of Departure ends as Corps/Division task organization fell into uEx and UEy on the cusp of OEF/OIF beginning. I must address emerging technologies and their application to Signal support to Mission Command in future operation basically what is the future of 'Battle Command on the Move as a secondary means to Crossing the Line of Departure'.

  • i have to revise the title of my research "English Proficiency: It's Effectiveness Towards Adequate Communication among graduating students of College of arts and Sciences". Any revisions please... i really need it your advice. thank!

    • Someone who has read your paper is best prepared to give you feedback on your title, but it could use some proofreading. Proficiency and adequacy mean different things... someone who is proficient in English means they are much better than adequate, so its possible to have adequacy without proficiency, but the title seems to suggest you are studying whether proficient English leads to adequate communication. "It's" means "it is." I'm not sure what "effectiveness towards" means -- there should probably be a word ending in -ing there... But as I don't understand the content of the title, I can't help you there. Standardize the capitalization, and check subject-verb agreement and articles. (Do you mean "a college" or "colleges"?)

  • The introduction of a new religion in umuofia changes the traditional ibo culture and saves the umuofia generation.

    i am writing a thesis for things fall apart. topic religious conclict

    • That depends on your assignment. If you are being asked to demonstrate that you understand the plot, then it's probably fine.

      If you are asked to interpret an ambiguous passage, to identify a debatable claim that a reasonable person could find evidence for and against, and explain why the evidence in favor of your interpretation outweighs the evidence against it, then your thesis (which seems too obviously "correct" to demonstrate your ability to interpret a complex and multi-sided issue) may be a little thin.

  • Thesis statement:
    Disasters and Traumatic events effect a child's psychological, cognitive, physical and social development because of their developmental stage, parental reactions,and resiliency during the event.

    I have to write a 10-15 page paper on any topic in child development so i chose disasters and traumatic events, i found it effects a childs psych., cognitive, physical, and social developments. I also wanted to include that the way a parent is effected also matters on the childs development, and the childs resiliency, and the childs developmental stage at the time of the incidents.

    • That's a very clear start, showing that you understand the concept.

      disasters and traumatic events the same thing, or different? If they are the same, do you need to use both terms? If they are different, do you need to explain the difference?

      If your assignment is to persuade, or explore a controversial topic and cite vidence to explain why you choose one side over another, then I'm not sure that this thesis makes a claim that is worth arguing about. Are you supposed to explain why one particular author is better than a different author at helping readers understand this difference? Are you explaining how the profession's understanding of this concept has changed in the last few decades? Are you arguing for against some specific controversial therapy? But that depends on what your instructor wants you to write.

      You might want to look up the definition of "effect."

      • You are right i think they are the same so i could just use one instead of both. Were supposed to support our topic with 10 empirical journal articles. So i guess i'm trying to support that disasters effect a child's development using 10 different researchers evidence. so, children's development is effected by disasters because these 10 researchers have found that it does.

        • Are there any sources that say disasters DON'T have any impact on kids? If not, then what will the last 9 sources prove that the first one didn't prove? What is an opposing view that a rational person could defend with evidence, but that your research tells you is incorrect? At this point I'd say you should start looking for and reading those 10 sources. (And don't forget to look up the proper use of "effect".)

  • I have to write a 7-10 page paper comparing and contrasting Egyptian culture with american culture. I have no idea how to even make a thesis statement for this paper. Please help!

    • Hi Amanda
      I assume that you already know American culture. If you don't know anything about Egyptian culture, you should do little research but If you do know both American and Egyptian cultures, you should outline the similarities and differences in two cultures then compare two similar or different viewpoints. You should start writing the body first before writing the introduction and the conclusion.

    • Your instructor is the best resource you can use, but if you read this page and post a few ideas, I don't mind giving you a quick opinion.

      • how can i be a good research if i have no yet orientation.this is my first time to teach research.

        • Can you find mentors among the people who have taught in your organization before you?

  • Author Khaled Hosseini uses both euphemism and conflict to represent the redemption Amir seeks for the wrong doings thought his childhood.

    So this is a thesis statement that I'm using for my Analytic essay writing about a theme and two literary devices he used to get his point across. Is it good?

    • Very clear and focused. Does the assignment expect you to make a debatable claim, exploring opposing/alternative views? Could a rational person find credible evidence against your claim, or is the claim so obviously "correct" that nobody would doubt it? Is your claim too obvious? I haven't read the work you mention, so you'll have to answer that yourself.

  • topic;Should citizens under the age of 21 be required to pass a driving education course before receiving a license?

    Thesis:Citizens under the age of 21 should be required to pass a driving education course before receiving a license to drive because they would learn the proper way to drive,there would be fewer accidents, and the new rule would create jobs.

    • Looks very clear. Are there opposing arguments? Is this debatable? Good start.

      • Cons:where would the funding come from,there would be more accidents,and im stuck on the third reason

  • thank u vry much goooooooooooooooooooooooooood but i dont ungerstang the kind of introduction in essay .. final .............................

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