Essay Structure Basic Format of the Essay & The Introduction Jennifer A. Bennett Sanderson High School Raleigh, North Carolina Wake County Public School System

Essay Structure Basics Three Parts: Introduction Tell audience where you’re going to take them. Body Take them on the journey. Conclusion Remind them where they’ve been and why this journey was meaningful. Body Introduction Conclusion

A Little More Detail... Introduction Purposes: To introduce topic and purpose of essay To capture the audience’s attention and draw them in To set the tone of the essay

A Little More Detail... Introduction Logical progression: general  specific Thesis: clearly states topic and purpose of the entire essay Comment: anything added to the thesis that presents the main points you will cover to prove the thesis Specific Thesis + Comment General Opening

Sample Thesis & Comment Thesis Comment: a road map— highlighting the main points along the way

Opening the Intro. Paragraph Begin with... An interesting, relevant quotation A challenging (rhetorical) question A general statement relating to your topic A specific fact or statistic An anecdote that illustrates your topic

Opening the Intro. Paragraph Begin with... a quotation—something profound and generally related to your topic (Topic: MLK’s use of language in speech) Ex. “Free at last, free at last, thank God almighty, I’m free at last!” The most powerful tool that King used to free his people was language. a rhetorical question Ex. How can language be as powerful a weapon as a gun?

Opening the Intro. Paragraph Begin with... A general statement Ex. The evils of segregation were the catalyst that ignited the powerful flames of Martin Luther King’s rhetoric. A fact or statistic Ex. One hundred years after the Emancipation Proclamation, the evils of segregation still infected American society. Ex. On August 28, more than 2,000 buses, 21 special trains, 10 chartered airliners, and uncounted cars converged on Washington.

Opening of the Intro. Begin with... An anecdote: a brief, relevant story that— captures the readers’ interest, drawing them into your essay (everybody loves a story!) illustrates the spirit/idea of the thesis, leading readers to down to it sets the tone and mood for the rest of the paper

Example of an Anecdote “Anyway, we was coming on the bus, and it was pitch dark, maybe 4:00 in the morning. We were coming down from the north and we cross over this big bridge, I think it might have been the bridge over the Susquehanna.... There had been all this stuff in the newspaper... [some] were in total panic mode — Call out the National Guard! Alert the 101st Airborne! Close the liquor stores! Hide the white women! Evacuate the children to the countryside! It was like they thought the Mongol hordes of Gengiz [sic] Khan were descending on the nation's capitol to rape, ravage, and pillage.” (How do I connect this story to my thesis??) Instead of fearing violent attacks, the newspapers should have been more concerned about the words

What Next? After your general opening statement, you need to lead the reader to your specific thesis and comment (the part of the thesis that lists your main pts.). Logically transition the reader down to thesis, gradually becoming more specific.

Transitioning: Sample Intro. Paragraph How can language be as powerful a weapon as a gun? Most people would consider the analogy ludicrous. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., however, abhorred violence and did not consider it an option in the war against segregation in mid-twentieth century America. King’s most powerful weapons were his words. In his “I Have a Dream” speech, he artfully crafts his rhetoric, using the power of metaphor, imagery, and repetition to expose the evils of racism and segregation and to inspire his audience to immediate and enduring action against them.

How can language be as powerful a weapon as a gun? Most people would consider the analogy ludicrous. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., however, abhorred violence and did not consider it an option in the war against segregation in mid-twentieth century America. His most powerful weapons were his words. In his “I Have a Dream” speech, King artfully crafts his rhetoric, using the power of metaphor, imagery, and repetition to expose the evils of racism and segregation and to inspire his audience to immediate and enduring action against them. Opening rhetorical questionComment on the analogy in the opening question Transition from “people” in general to a specific person Words “violence” and “war” tie sentence back to “weapon” and “gun” in the opening. Specific setting General reference to “powerful weapons” from opening now specific- ally named: “words” Specific thesis and comment

Moves in the opposite logical direction of the introduction: specific  general Begin by restating the thesis (NOT using the same wording). End by moving outward to a general conclusion. The Concluding Paragraph