Thesis Statement
Your thesis statement directs all of the ideas, quote
selection, and commentary in your essay. Therefore, a muddled or imprecise
thesis statement will lead to an unclear or meaningless essay.
A thesis statement is NOT:
1. An abstract concept. For example, “Greed” is not a thesis
statement.
2. A general “universal” truth. For example, the following
sentence is not a thesis statement: “For thousands of years, man has been
greedy.”
A thesis statement IS a statement that provides direction
for the analysis of a theme or idea presented by a particular text. Therefore,
in order to construct an effective thesis statement, you must first determine
what a text is suggesting about an abstract concept (like greed, for example).
Your thesis statement will address an abstract concept PLUS
the evaluation of that concept through a particular text.
A thesis statement for “The Pardoner’s Tale” might address
the abstract concept of greed as it is handled in the story. The first two
examples are NOT thesis
statements. The third one is a complete thesis statement:
a. Greed is something that man has struggled with for
centuries, as demonstrated in “The Pardoner’s Tale” by Chaucer. (Abstract Concept
Only)
b. “The Pardoner’s Tale,” written by Chaucer, is a story
about how three men kill one another while looking for Death. (Plot Summary)
c. “The Pardoner’s Tale,” written by Chaucer, suggests that
the “deadly” sin of greed is stronger than any oath of friendship, and will
ultimately lead those who give into its allure to their own destruction.
So - if you wanted to write an essay about the character Beowulf you might link him with the ideal role of a warrior, or discuss his failure as a king due to the tragic flaw of pride, or discuss how he reinforces the values of the Anglo-Saxon culture - but whatever you discuss it needs to be a STATEMENT that can be argued.
Each essays is worth 50 points. Your dialectical journal is worth 50 points.
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