Essay Writing for Dogs

The introductory paragraph accomplishes three purposes. It captures the reader's interest. It suggests the importance of the essay's topic. It ends with a thesis sentence. Often, the thesis sentence states a claim that consists of two or more related points. For example, a thesis might read, "A college essay has an introductory paragraph, several body paragraphs, and a concluding paragraph." You are telling the reader what you think are the most important points, which need to be addressed in your essay. For this reason, the introduction needs to be directly related to the question or topic. A strong thesis is essential to a good paper, as each paragraph of your paper should be related back to your thesis or else deleted. Thus, the thesis establishes the key foundation for your essay. A strong thesis not only states an idea, but uses solid examples to back it. A weak thesis might be, "Wikipedia is a powerful resource in many ways." Instead, writing, "Wikipedia is a powerful resource because it allows users with knowledge in a specific area to share their knowledge, because it allows users to quickly find information about a vast array of topics, and because studies have confirmed that it is as accurate as any other encyclopedia," would demonstrate a strong thesis. Then, you could separate your body paragraphs into three sections - one explaining the open-source nature of the project, one explaining the variety and depth of information, and a final one using studies to confirm that Wikipedia is indeed as accurate as other encyclopedias.

[edit] Tips

Often, writing an introductory paragraph is the most difficult part of writing an essay. Being faced with a blank page can be daunting. Here are some suggestions for getting started. First, determine the context in which you want to place your topic. In other words, identify an overarching category in which you would place your topic. Then, introduce your topic as a case-in-point.

For example, if you are writing about dogs, you may begin by speaking about friends, dogs being an example of a very good friend. Or, you can begin with a sentence on selective breeding, dogs being an example of extensive selective breeding. Or, you can begin with a sentence on means of protection, dogs being an example of a good way to stay safe. The context is the starting point for your introductory paragraph. The topic, or thesis sentence is the ending point. Once the starting point and ending point are determined, it will be much easier to connect these points with the narrative of the opening paragraph.

a thesis staement should be like so: For example, if you are writing about dogs being an example of a very good friend, you would put: a dog is an example of a very good friend because x, y, and z. And on the x, y, and z you would explain the topic of your body paragraphs. For example x would be the topic of the second paragraph, y would be the topic of the third paragraph and z would be the topic of the third paragraph. and in your conclusion you would summarize your thesis statement.

[edit] Example

There are many different kinds of friends. As we travel

through life we may identify a class mate or work mate

as "friend," but in truth most of these individuals are

mere acquaintances, and will come and go in our lives

as a matter of convenience. True friends will be there

for you always. And while it may be cliche, there is

no truer friend in life than a dog.

Identifying a context can help shape the topic, or thesis. Initially, we decided to write about dogs. Then we selected friends as the context, the dog being a type of friend. By selecting friends as the context, it shaped the topic, and narrowed our focus to dogs as friends. This makes writing the remainder of our essay much easier because it allows us to focus on aspects of dogs that make them good friends.

[edit] Body Paragraphs

Each body paragraph begins with a topic sentence. If the thesis contains multiple points or assertions, each body paragraph should support or justify, in order the assertions made in the multi-point thesis sentence. Generally, if the thesis sentence contains three related points, there should be three body paragraphs, though the number of paragraphs should be based on the number of supports needed. Thus, the topic sentence for the first body paragraph will refer to the first point in the thesis sentence and the topic sentence for the second body paragraph will refer to the second point in the thesis sentence.

For example, if the thesis sentence is "A college essay has an introductory paragraph, several body paragraphs, and a concluding paragraph," the topic sentence for body paragraph one might read, "The first paragraph of an essay is the introductory paragraph"; the topic sentence for body paragraph two might read, "The introductory paragraph is followed by several body paragraphs"; and the topic sentence for body paragraph three might read, "The college essay's final paragraph is its concluding paragraph." Each body paragraph uses specific details, such as anecdotes, comparisons and contrasts, definitions, examples, expert opinions, explanations, facts, and statistics to support and develop the claim that its topic sentence makes.

[edit] Tips

When writing an essay for a class assignment, make sure to follow your teacher or professor's suggestions. Most teachers will reward creativity and thoughtful organization over dogmatic adherence to a prescribed structure. Many will not. If you are not sure how your teacher will respond to your specific structure, ask.

Organizing your essay around the thesis sentence should begin with arranging the supporting elements to justify the assertion put forth in the thesis sentence. Not all thesis sentences will, or should, lay out each of the points to be covered in the essay. In our essay on dogs, our thesis sentence reads, "And while it may be cliche, there is no truer friend in life than a dog." It is the task of the body paragraphs to justify or prove the truth of this assertion. What characteristics do dogs have that make them a true friend? Each characeristic may be a body paragraph. Loyalty, companionship, protector, helper, are all terms that could be applied to dogs as friends. Note that if we put dogs in a different context, e.g., working dogs, our thesis might be different,