CREATING A WINNING THESIS STATEMENT

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CREATING A WINNING THESIS STATEMENT

• Or the Road to a 5 Thesis Statement

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A NOTE ABOUT THESIS STATEMENTS

• Any time that you create a thesis statement, you
  are building an argument that must be proven!
• What you prove MUST NOT be completely obvious.
  (Ex. In Things Fall Apart, Okonkwo is the
  central character.)
• What you prove MUST NOT be exclusively literal.
  You MUST reveal a deeper understanding and make
  abstractions.

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PARTS OF THE THESIS STATEMENT

• TOPIC
• CLAIM (VERB)
• DIRECTION
• QUALIFIER
• UNIVERSAL IDEA

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TOPIC

• The TOPIC reveals the context of the thesisthe
  text(s) analyzed.
• Examples
• John Smiths autobiographical account . . .
• Considering Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.s I Have
  a Dream speech . . .

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CLAIM (VERB)

• The CLAIM tells what the text is doing to arrive
  at the universal idea.
• Review the list of verbs for academic discourse.
• For practice, uses is a good place to start.
• Examples
• John Smiths autobiographical account uses . . .
• Considering Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.s I Have
  a Dream speech, King uses . . .

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DIRECTION

• The DIRECTION tells how the text arrives at the
  universal idea.
• DIRECTION rhetorical devices
• Examples
• John Smiths autobiographical account uses
  imagery, diction, and point of view . . .
• Considering Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.s I Have
  a Dream speech, King uses analogy, repetition,
  and emotional appeal . . .

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QUALIFIER

• The QUALIFIER links the direction to the
  universal idea.
• to prove that (there are more constructions
  possible)
• Examples
• John Smiths autobiographical account uses
  metaphor, diction, and point of view to prove
  that . . .
• Considering Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.s I Have
  a Dream speech, King uses analogy, repetition,
  and emotional appeal to prove that . . .

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UNIVERSAL IDEA

• The UNIVERSAL IDEA is the larger idea or purpose
  at work in the text.
• The UNIVERSAL IDEA part should reveal meaning
  about the abstract noun.
• Examples
• John Smiths autobiographical account uses
  metaphor, diction, and point of view to prove
  that success is measured by ones ability to
  conquer.
• Considering Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.s I Have
  a Dream speech, King uses analogy, repetition,
  and emotional appeal to prove that equality is
  the foundation of a truly democratic society.

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Adding The Funk

• Or Adding Variety and Complexity to a Thesis
  Statement

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STEP 1 MODIFIED DIRECTIONS

• For each direction, add an adjective that best
  describes the texts use of that direction.
• Ex. John Smiths autobiographical account uses
  adventurous imagery, calculated diction, and an
  self-important point of view . . .

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STEP 2 ADD THE SHIFT/CONTRAST

• Reveal the shift/contrast that occurs within the
  text (especially the shift/contrast in the
  universal idea.
• Ex. John Smiths autobiographical account uses
  adventurous imagery, calculated diction, and an
  self-important point of view to prove that
  success is measured by ones ability to conquer,
  not in ones ability to make peace.

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STEP 3 ADDING TEXT PHRASES FOR INTEREST

• Choose a few words or phrases from the text that
  allude to the universal idea.
• Add these words/phrases to the thesis statement
  for effect.
• Ex. John Smiths autobiographical account, a
  testimony of his own example, good words, and
  fair promises, uses adventurous imagery,
  calculated diction, and an self-important point
  of view to prove that success is measured by
  ones ability to conquer, not in ones ability to
  make peace.

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STEP 4 RE-ARRANGE THE PIECES!

• Take all the thesis statement parts, and
  re-arrange them to create sentence variety.
• Ex. To prove that success is measured by ones
  ability to conquer, not in ones ability to make
  peace, adventurous imagery, calculated diction,
  and a self-important point of view are used in
  John Smiths autobiographical accounta testimony
  of his own example, good words, and fair
  promises.

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Creating Topic Sentences
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The Elements of the Topic Sentence

• Topic
• Direction
• Claim
• Universal Idea
• These elements should seem similar to the
  thesis components (but now with a twist)!

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Step 1 Begin with a solid thesis.

• To prove that success is measured by ones
  ability to conquer, not in ones ability to make
  peace, adventurous imagery, calculated diction,
  and a self-important point of view are used in
  John Smiths autobiographical accounta testimony
  of his own example, good words, and fair
  promises.

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Step 2 Borrow the Topics from Thesiss
Directions

• Thesis
• To prove that success is measured by ones
  ability to conquer, not in ones ability to make
  peace, adventurous imagery, calculated diction,
  and a self-important point of view are used in
  John Smiths autobiographical accounta testimony
  of his own example, good words, and fair
  promises.
• Topic Sentence
• Topic adventurous imagery (This is the first
  direction.)

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Step 3 Add the Direction(s)

• The directions of the topic sentence are the
  examples you are using as evidence.
• Adventurous imagery, such as Smiths narrow
  escape from death . . .
• Note If you have more than one direction
  (example), ALL should be mentioned in the topic
  sentence.

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Step 4 Add the Claim

• Choose an appropriate verb that links what the
  directions do in relation to the universal idea.
• Adventurous imagery, such as Smiths narrow
  escape from death, establishes . . .

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Step 5 Add the Universal Idea (Again)

• Add the universal idea to the topic sentence.
• CAUTION To keep the universal idea from
  becoming redundant throughout the essay, develop
  synonyms.
• Adventurous imagery, such as Smiths narrow
  escape from death, establishes Smiths success in
  conquering Powhatans animosity.