The Thesis

The thesis is the idea your paper tries to convince your reader of.  You have one main idea--only one.  That idea must be clear to you, and your task is to make it clear to the reader. 

In the papers we do in this class, the thesis will be stated--you'll have a thesis statement. The thesis is the idea and the sentence which identifies that idea is the thesis statement. Many people, including me, often refer to the thesis statement as the thesis.  So when I ask, "Where's your thesis?" I may really be asking "Where's your thesis statement?"  The thesis statement usually appears at the end of the introduction, so its usual spot is just at the end of the first paragraph. 

Learning to write good, clear thesis statements is a crucial skill.   A good thesis statement can not only identify the one idea you're after; it can also suggest the form the paper will take. 

In a paper that compares two items, for example, the thesis suggests the two parts:   "While Smith argues that the war was all a wasted effort, Jones claims that even though we never achieved our ends, the war served to ease our national conscience."  Reading that, I know that the writer will explain Smith's view first, and then she will explain Jones' view.  

It's a good idea to write your thesis out and put it up someplace visible where you're working on the essay.  Check the thesis statement frequently.  If you're writing something that doesn't support your thesis statement, then you need to revise either the thesis statement or the text. 

I'll add to this and revise as we go along.  Check back here as expectations on the thesis develop.