Thesis
What you’ve probably got right now is a big jumble of stuff that kind of tells you really broadly what you are going to write on—usually called a topic. What you want to do now is to start looking at all this information and see if a theme sticks out, if there is a pattern that has been forming in your research, or if a certain something really interests you and pulls you in a certain direction. That’s where you’ll find your thesis.
So what are your concerns?
* I’m having a hard time finding a theme to tie my ideas together.
Finding a Theme
If you’re struggling to link your ideas together, consider this list of some of the most common approaches to building a thesis. o Make a connection. Compare your subject with something else you’ve learned in your class or something else you know about, or write a paper that asks the reader to look at a subject in light of something else (s)he wouldn’t necessarily have connected to it. The film There’s Something about Mary appeals to many American moviegoers in the same way Dante’s Inferno appealed to the masses of his day. o Refute an accepted idea. This can be an interesting approach if you either have new evidence or can interpret existing evidence in a new way. Movies of bad taste are a modus vivendi; they exist to let us appreciate movies of good taste. o Find something new. Look at a subject from a new perspective, or find an aspect of the subject that’s been overlooked. Movies of bad taste saved the American economy in the mid 80′s. o Define. Offer a definition of a key term that will get readers to see a controversial issue in a new way. Movies of “bad taste” are dubbed so because they present social commentary about the upper classes. o Evaluate. Make an assessment about something’s quality or utility. Movies written in bad taste impact the American public more than movies written in good taste impact it. o Argue cause and effect. You can argue that X will happen if we do Y, or X happened because we did Y. If Hollywood stops producing movies in bad taste, the entire economy will crash. Or Hollywood produces movies in bad taste because people like to watch bad movies. o Propose a change. Suggest that something new be done. Hollywood should start producing only movies in bad taste.
* I’ve got an idea for a thesis; how do I make sure it works?
Is My Thesis Good?
Is your thesis any good? Well, let’s hope so, or you’ll have to start this all over again. But let’s see how your thesis holds up under these questions. o So what? Why should the reader care about your thesis? Does it teach the reader something new or challenge an idea (s)he has? Why is it significant? Does the argument cover new ground or move the conversation forward within your discipline? Does it compel the reader to think differently or act? o What are its implications? What will have to change if your thesis is true? Will people have to think differently, take action, and/or change a policy? o Is it original? Nothing is more boring to readers than an argument they’ve already heard before. You may believe passionately in the virtues of capital punishment, but chances are your reader is already familiar with pro capital punishment arguments. Of course, the reality is you won’t always be able to tell your professor who’s a Shakespeare expert anything new about Hamlet. In those cases, at least try to offer something different than the arguments your classmates are making. o Is it focused enough? Are you tackling the history of western civilization in a 3-page paper? Focus on a sufficiently narrow aspect of your subject area so that you can make a complete argument. o Is it practical? If your paper is going to require an interview with Jim Morrison or a working knowledge of everything published in the 20th century, you’re not going to meet your deadline. Consider what research you’ll need to do, and adjust your thesis accordingly. o How do you feel about the complexity of your thesis? Sometimes, your thesis could be too simple. College professors tend to want to read papers with more complex theses.
*I’m unsure if my thesis is adequately complex.
Simple/Complex Theses
When an assignment asks you to come up with your own thesis, you have a choice: prove something simple or prove something more complex. I think I know which you’d rather do, but which would your professor prefer? Yup, the complex argument. First, determine whether your thesis is simple or complex. Is it debatable? o A simple thesis proves an obvious, indubitable idea. o A complex thesis proves a fresh, debatable idea. Does it tackle difficult questions? o A simple thesis rests with easy answers. o A complex thesis explores difficult territory. Does it progress? o A simple thesis repeats the same idea. o A complex thesis progresses through several steps. Does it matter? o A simple thesis doesn’t matter. o A complex thesis matters. So, how is your thesis? o My thesis is too simple! What can I do? o My thesis is complex. Back to Thesis! Making a Thesis Complex Here are some strategies you can use to make a simple thesis complex: o Talk it out with someone. Often someone else’s questions will help you push your ideas further. So get a friend to help, or, better yet, go in for a session with a Writing Center consultant. o Narrow your focus. It’s easy to fall into generalizations or latch onto flat ideas if you’re thinking too broadly. o Focus on one aspect of your subject. o Delve into the gray areas. o Don’t settle for easy answers. o Concentrate on the place where you have the most questions. It’s likely your reader will have the same questions too—and be interested in the answers. o Think hard about significance and implications. Often the thesis has room to become more complex when we push its significance and implications.
* How do I put my thesis in writing?
Put It Into Writing
If you’ve tested out your thesis and made sure it will hold up, it’s time to put it in writing! Here are a few things to help you out: o Get to the point. Answer the question, “What does the paper argue, and why is it important?” Shazam! There’s your thesis. o Be sure of yourself. Why should the reader believe your thesis if you don’t sound like you believe it yourself? Avoid hedging phrases like “I think,” “I believe,” “might,” “maybe,” and “possibly.” o Don’t believe the one-sentence myth. Somewhere the pernicious myth started that a thesis should only be one sentence long. It’s not true. You want to keep your thesis statement as concise as possible, but sometimes you need more than one sentence to do that. o Map out your argument. The major sections of your paper will correspond to the steps in your argument, so explain those steps to the reader in the order he or she will find them in the paper. Readers like it when you set up expectations and then meet them. o Don’t be afraid of change. If, while writing your paper, you realize you have started arguing something different than what your thesis says, and you think it is better than what you had originally planned on doing, stick with it and revise the thesis! Get rid of what doesn’t work, and find a way of expressing what you really want to talk about.
*How do I put my thesis into words?
Putting Theses Into Words
All theses (yep, that’s the plural of “thesis”) have a general structure that can come in handy: TOPIC + COMMENT = THESIS First comes your topic, or the thing that you decided to talk about. Example of a topic: The Beatles “Abbey Road” album Then add on what you want to say about that topic. Example of a topic + a comment: The Beatles “Abbey Road” album contains a wide variety of different styles of music. Ta-da! That’s the basic structure of a thesis. There are certain special types of theses that have even more specific formulas that you can look at. See if any of these types fit your thesis and look at it for extra help. Check out the points to consider page for just some helpful hints. o Analytical. This paper breaks down an issue into parts, then analyzes and evaluates these parts. This is a good place to look if you’re writing a more scientific paper, or you are going really in depth about something. o Expository. This paper explains your topic to your audience. This type of thesis is helpful for broader explaining. o Argumentative. This paper makes a claim about your topic and justifies the claim with reasons and evidence. This is really good to use if you are proposing something, or if you want to convince your audience of pretty much anything.
The Analytical Thesis Statement
In an analytical paper, you are breaking down an issue or an idea into its component parts, evaluating the issue or idea, and presenting this breakdown and evaluation to your audience. An analytical thesis statement will explain: o What you are analyzing o The parts of your analysis o The order in which you will be presenting your analysis Example: An analysis of mid 80’s pop musicians reveals two kinds of pop stars: those imitating Boy George and those imitating Bon Jovi. The reader would expect you to explain how you analyized the musicians and then would want to know about these two groups. Ask yourself these questions while you write your thesis: o What did I analyze? o What did I discover in my analysis? o How can I categorize my discoveries? o In what order should I present my discoveries?
The Expository Thesis Statement
In an expository paper, you are explaining something to your audience. An expository thesis statement will tell your audience: o What you are going to explain to them o The categories you are using to organize your explanation o The order in which you will be presenting your categories Example: The lifestyle of a mid 80’s rockstar included playing concerts, ingesting illicit drugs, and teasing his hair. A reader who encountered that thesis would expect the paper to explore how these rockstars played concerts, ingested drugs and teased their hair. Ask yourself these questions as you write your thesis: o What am I trying to explain? o How can I categorize my explanation into different parts? o In what order should I present the different parts of my explanation?
The Argumentative Thesis Statement
In an argumentative paper, you are making a claim about a topic and justifying this claim with reasons and evidence. This claim could be an opinion, a policy proposal, an evaluation, a cause-and-effect statement, or an interpretation. However, this claim must be a statement that people could possibly disagree with because the goal of your paper is to convince your audience that your claim is true based on your presentation of your reasons and evidence. An argumentative thesis statement will tell your audience: o Your claim or assertion o The reasons/evidence that support this claim o The order in which you will be presenting your reasons and evidence Example: All mid 80’s pop stars should be required to continue wearing their hair like they did in 1985. A reader who encountered this thesis would expect to be presented with an argument and evidence that convinces him or her that 80’s rockstars should be subjected to this treatment. Ask yourself these questions while you work on your thesis: o What is my claim or assertion? o What are the reasons I have to support my claim or assertion? o In what order should I present my reasons?
Troubleshooting Your Thesis
So you have a thesis. Congratulations! Now you need to make sure it will hold up. Look over these links and see what will help you improve your thesis. o Is my thesis any good? o But I’m just learning about this subject! How can I invent a thesis that would be new to my instructor, who’s an expert? o But I don’t care about my topic! o I’m worried my thesis is too basic.
I’m Not An Expert
Take a deep breath. Think about your instructor’s expectations. He or she probably doesn’t expect your thesis to be on par with one of his or her colleague’s. However, he or she will want to be engaged and perhaps surprised and challenged. Above all, he or she will want to see that you are thinking complex thoughts about the field. If it’s impossible to teach him or her anything new, at least try to set your argument apart from the ones your classmates commonly make. Look into making your thesis more complex, and see if that might help out.
I Don’t Care About My Topic
It’s hard to write a good paper on a subject that doesn’t interest you. You have two choices: find a way to care, or change your topic. If possible, invent a thesis that makes a connection to something you’re passionate about. You may not care about Andrew Hazlett’s definition of art, but if you can apply his definition to comic books, maybe you’ll get excited. Or propose an alternate topic to your instructor. You may be surprised at his or her willingness to let you alter the assignment.
