1. Crafting a Solid Thesis
For my money, a thesis contains an argument about a text. But because an argument consists of both opinion (that can be argued against) and evidence to support that position, theses can be a little tricky. I have a broad metaphor for writing a paper: being taken on a trip to some islands. But since few people like to be taken without knowing where they are going, you have to give them an itinerary: the thesis.
Primary Concern
Perhaps the worst thing you can do with a thesis is make an observation that you will demonstrate throughout the text, because doing so generally lacks an argument. This paper is an attempt to convince your reader of something—that can only happen if you have something that the reader might not normally agree with or might be on the fence about.

2. Thesis Questionnaire
Is it an argument? Can you make a ‘counter-argument’ for it?
Avoid making factual claims about a text.
Ask yourself: can you say, “No that’s wrong—the text actually…”?
Is there evidence for the argument?
Do we get a ‘so what’ moment?

3. Example One “Shakespeare’s Titus Andronicus deals with
questions of power and authority.”
Where is the argument here?
Can you make a counter-argument?
“Shakespeare’s Titus Andronicus does not deal with questions of power and authority.” Doesn’t make much sense.
Observation, not argument.
No evidence.
No ‘so what’ moment.

4. Example Two “Shakespeare’s Titus Andronicus demonstrates
that power and authority lead to violence.”
Can we invert it?
“Shakespeare’s TA demonstrates that jealousy and lust lead to violence.” Pretty good—strong opposition here.
“Shakespeare’s TA demonstrates that power and authority lead to peace.” Odd, but possible, I suppose.
Still no evidence.
Still no ‘so what’ moment.

5. Example Three
“Shakespeare’s Titus Andronicus demonstrates that power and authority lead to violence, using the conflict between Saturninus and Bassianus, the need to exalt Tamora for her revenge to work, and the fight between Titus and his sons as primary examples.”
Functional, inelegant. Needs refinement, but solid.
Giving a list of reasons isn’t always the best—it shows that you have an argument, but doesn’t show care in trying to convince someone.
Also, no ‘so what’ moment.

6. Example Four
“Beginning with the fight between Saturninus and Bassianus over the crown, Shakespeare’s Titus Andronicus argues that power and authority lead to violence, a theme that continues through Tamora’s rise to power as well as in-fighting within Titus’ own family.”
Solid construction—evidence spread out a little.
Still no ‘so what’ moment. Why should we care?

7. Example Five
“Partially a demonstration of the pitfalls of power and partly readable as an attack on hierarchical institutions, Shakespeare’s Titus Andronicus takes a struggle for power between brothers as its opening scene, setting up an examination of power’s corrupting touch through a revenge scheme as well as a intra-family feud.”
This has pretty much everything:
Good argument (TA argues that power leads to violence)
Solid evidence (brothers’ fight, revenge scheme, familial conflicts)
Interesting construction (complex and intriguing)
Why we should care that Shakespeare does it (demonstrating problems of power as well as attacking hierarchies)

8. Concluding Thoughts
Your own theses need not be quite so complex, but they should contain the basic elements described here.
Remember that making a thesis involves several steps—don’t try to do it all in one go.
For Friday, you need to do two things:
Bring a complete thesis to class—you don’t have to end up using it for your paper, but it’s important to have something to workshop with the group.
Have your thesis in two forms:
One with the full thesis written out.
One where each part is taken separately and listed individually: argument, evidence, and ‘so what’ moment.