write thesis
Use your own words in thesis statements; avoid quoting. Crafting an original, insightful, and memorable thesis makes a distinct impression on a reader. You will lose credibility as a writer if you become only a mouthpiece or a copyist; you will gain credibility by grabbing the reader with your own ideas and words.
Your thesis statement should be as clear and specific as possible. Normally you will continue to refine your thesis as you revise your argument(s), so your thesis will evolve and gain definition as you obtain a better sense of where your argument is taking you.
This statement is on its way to being a thesis. However, it is too easy to imagine possible counterarguments. For example, a political observer might believe that Dukakis lost because he suffered from a “soft-on-crime” image. If you complicate your thesis by anticipating the counterargument, you’ll strengthen your argument, as shown in the sentence below.
A thesis should be as clear and specific as possible. Avoid overused, general terms and abstractions. For example, “Communism collapsed in Eastern Europe because of the ruling elite’s inability to address the economic concerns of the people” is more powerful than “Communism collapsed due to societal discontent.”
Come up with a research question that you want to answer, or extract the question from your assignment prompt. In the examples given above, that question would be:
If your paper only aims to explain and discuss the facts of a topic, your thesis statement should summarize the main points that you will cover.
A: “Using computers in a fourth-grade class promises to improve . . .”
This fragment isn’t a thesis statement. Instead, it simply indicates a general subject. Furthermore, your reader doesn’t know what you want to say about sugar consumption.
Bad: High levels of alcohol consumption are bad for you.
– This is too broad. What are the specific detriments of alcohol consumption that you would like to discuss?
Good: High levels of alcohol consumption have detrimental effects on your personal health, such as weight gain, heart disease, and liver complications.
– Notice we got very specific in our reasons why. In your thesis statement, you don’t need to state every single detriment you’re going to lay out (in fact, you shouldn’t as it will risk becoming a run-on sentence) but you can point to the main areas you will explore.
A thesis statement is one sentence that expresses the main idea of a research paper or essay, such as an expository essay or argumentative essay. It makes a claim, directly answering a question.
References:
http://writingcenter.fas.harvard.edu/pages/developing-thesis
http://www.scribbr.com/academic-essay/thesis-statement/
http://wts.indiana.edu/writing-guides/how-to-write-a-thesis-statement.html
http://examples.yourdictionary.com/thesis-statement-examples.html
http://www2.southeastern.edu/Academics/Faculty/elejeune/critique.htm