This article discusses thesis statement advice, which is provided on other sites like Indiana University Bloomington and Penn Arts and Sciences.
So, how do you write a good thesis statement:
In order to write a good thesis statement, you'll have to revise it for the following:
Position - express a claim or opinion
Interest/Controversialness - make your opinion interesting, worthy of debate or discussion
Scope --> make your opinion specific and arguable in a short space, as essays typically cannot prove broad claims
Structure --> express your structure (arguments) in your thesis statement so that you reader knows what the essay's pattern will be
Your thesis statement is the main point of your essay. The central focus which all quotes in your essay will attempt to prove. Here is an unrefined claim that can be used as a thesis statement example:
Original thesis statement: Shakespeare has written plays
The first revision needs to be with regard to POSITION. The thesis statement should take a position; it should be your opinion/claim about the subject matter. See how to write a claim with a position below:
Revised Thesis Statements: Shakespeare has written bad plays (claim of value) OR Students shouldn't be made to read Shakespeare's plays in Ontario (claim of policy) OR Shakespeare's plays were written in England (claim of fact).
The second revision needs to be with regard to INTEREST/CONTROVERSIALITY. Consider the first claim, "Shakespeare has written bad plays." This is a bad thesis statement because some people would agree, some wouldn't. It's not controversial or interesting, so it doesn't pass the bar here. The second statement "students shouldn't be made to read Shakespeare's plays in Ontario" passes this test because it invites the reader to ask why and doesn't bore them immediately. The third statement "Shakespeare's plays were written in England" is likewise boring and obvious, and doesn't work. Note that your thesis statement can be a claim of value, policy, or fact.
Second Set of Revised Thesis Statements: Shakespeare's play, Hamlet, is poorly written because of its unrealistic characters (claim of value) OR Students shouldn't be made to read Shakespeare's plays in Ontario (claim of policy, hasn't changed) OR Shakespeare was not a real historical character, but rather a collection of writers, and the actual William Shakespeare is a myth (claim of fact).
The next revision has to do with SCOPE. You need to make your thesis statement as specific as possible in order to be able to effectively argue it in your paper. Remember your essay has to prove a point.
Third Set of Revised Thesis Statements:
Claim of Value --> Shakespeare's Hamlet is poorly written due to its depictions of unrealistic characters (unchanged)
Claim of Policy --> High school students in grade 12 shouldn't be asked, as part of the Ontario curriculum to read and complete assignments on the Shakespeare play Hamlet
Claim of Fact --> Shakespeare was not a real historical character, but rather a collection of writers, and the actual William Shakespeare is a myth (unchanged).
Finally, the thesis statement should hint at the structure of the paper. This is why teachers ask students typically to write their arguments in the introduction. These give a sense of what the paper will be about. Consider the below revision showing how to write say structure into a thesis statement:
Final set of Revised Thesis Statements:
Claim of Value --> Shakespeare's Hamlet is poorly written due how the writer describes the motivations of characters like Hamlet, Horatio, and Claudius (simultaneous revision for arguments and specificity).
Claim of Policy --> High school students in grade 12 shouldn't be asked, as part of the Ontario curriculum to read and complete assignments on the Shakespeare play Hamlet because it is confusing, poorly written, and because the language isn't modern English.
Claim of Fact --> Shakespeare was not a real historical character, but rather a collection of writers, and the actual William Shakespeare is a myth; this can be seen in historical records of England at the time like the works of Chapineau, Jalapeno, and Shmalapeno (all fake stuff, but you get the point).
When it comes to the question of how long should a thesis statement be, you're usually confined to a single sentence. You can cheat a bit by using a semi colon (as I did with the claim of fact above).
Interested in learning more about effective essay writing? Check out my post about assignment Rubric Comprehension
