Thesis Statements

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Thesis Statements

• Definition of a Thesis Statement
• How to Construct a Strong Three-Pronged Thesis
  Statement

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Four Characteristics of Strong Thesis Statements

• 1. A strong thesis statement _____________________
  _________.
• A thesis must show your conclusions about a
  topic.
• 2. A strong thesis statement _____________________
  ___________.
• Your thesis should indicate the point of the
  discussion.
• (Quoted Source Writing Tutorial Services,
  Indiana University- current and following slide)

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Four Characteristics of Strong Thesis Statements

• 3. A strong thesis statement _____________________
  ____________.
• Readers need to be able to see that your paper
  has one main point. If your thesis statement
  expresses more than one idea, then you might
  confuse your readers about the subject of your
  paper.
• 4. A strong thesis statement _________.
• A thesis statement should show exactly what your
  paper will be about, and will help you keep your
  paper to a manageable topic.

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Constructing a Strong Thesis Statement

• How do you write a good thesis statement?
• Magic Formula
• ________________
• ___________________
• ________________________ Strong Thesis Statement

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A Three Pronged Thesis Example for Literature

• Literary contemporaries William Shakespeare and
  Ben Jonson exhibit similar styles of
  language, character development, and plot
  execution. Strong Thesis!
• Topic active verb 3 prongs / main points /
  the approach that you use to prove your topic
  strong thesis

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A Three Pronged Thesis Example for Science

• Because it emits no greenhouse gasses,
• causes no atmospheric pollution, and
  
• harms no water or aquatic life, Nuclear
  power provides the cleanest source of energy
  to meet the demands of the twenty-first century.
  Strong Thesis Statement
• 3 prongs / main points Topic active verb
  the approach that you use to prove your topic
  strong thesis

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Grammar Connection A Note about Parallel
Structure

• The 3 points in your thesis must be written in
  parallel structure.
• Parallel structure means using the same pattern
  of words to show that two or more ideas have the
  same level of importance.
• This can happen at the word, phrase, or clause
  level. The usual way to join parallel structures
  is with the use of coordinating conjunctions such
  as and or or.

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Examples Parallel Words and Phrases

• With the -ing form (gerund) of words
• Parallel Mary likes hiking, swimming, and
  bicycling.
• With infinitive phrases
• Parallel Mary likes to hike, to swim, and to
  ride a bicycle.ORMary likes to hike, swim, and
  ride a bicycle.

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Keep Your Sentence Structure Parallel- Dont Mix
Word Forms

• Example 1- Not Parallel
• Mary likes hiking, swimming, and to ride a
  bicycle.
• Parallel Fix
• Mary likes hiking, swimming, and riding a
  bicycle.
• Example 2- Not Parallel
• The production manager was asked to write his
  report quickly, accurately, and in a detailed
  manner.
• Parallel Fix
• The production manager was asked to write his
  report quickly, accurately, and thoroughly.

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Work Cited

• Four Characteristics of Strong Thesis Statements
  (Quotations)
• Writing Tutorial Services, Indiana University,
  Bloomington, IN
• Parallel Structure Quotations and Examples
• The Purdue OWL Family of Sites. The Writing Lab
  and OWL at Purdue and Purdue University. 26 Aug.
  2005. Web. 18 Aug. 2009.

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Remember to look out for

• Vague, weak verbs- use action verbs
• Vague, weak, or generalized language
• Missing points (3 aspects the paper will cover)
• Incorrect format- Use of I or This essay is
  about
• Lack of parallel structure / Inconsistent
  ordering within the 3-prong list
• (keep your nouns, adjectives, etc. in similar
  form)
• Facts- remember a thesis needs to be provable,
  not an already proven fact
• (facts go in the body of your essay)
• Disorganized approaches to the topic
• remember to stay focused and organized