Mansfield Library Subject Guides
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Successful Researching and Writing:
Writing a Thesis Statement
- Provide enough information that your thesis explains simply
your main idea. A thesis is not a title; it should be the one (maybe
two) sentence answer to the question your paper is trying to address.
No: AIDS is prevalent in Africa.
Better: Actions have been taken to reduce the prevalence of AIDS in Uganda.
Yes: Increased AIDS awareness and education campaigns have helped to combat the growing number of AIDS cases in Uganda.
- Take a stand and make a claim with your thesis. A thesis
does not just state a fact or observation; it makes an informed assertion.
A thesis will include your attitude, analysis or angle on the topic.
No: Non-profit organizations have conducted both effective and ineffective campaigns to help prevent AIDS growth in Uganda.
Yes: While some campaigns launched by non-profit organizations have failed to have any significant effect on the fight against AIDS, AIDS awareness and education programs have proven to be successful in helping to reduce new cases of AIDS in Uganda.
- Keep it clear and don’t stray from your focus. A thesis
should be precise and stay on one main idea, which should encompass
all of your paper’s main points. Save the very specifics for
the body of your paper.
No: AIDS awareness and education campaigns have had effective results in fighting AIDS growth in Uganda and similar campaigns might be used to help reduce hunger in Africa.
Yes: AIDS awareness and education campaigns have had effective results in fighting AIDS growth in Uganda.
- Stay relevant to your paper. A thesis should be representational of your whole paper. Papers can evolve while they are being written. Often it isn’t until a paper has been started, or even finished, that you discover what you really wanted to say. Revising your thesis statement to reflect the true contents of your finished paper helps keep your introduction strong and suitable.
Further help:
Writing
a Thesis Statement from Purdue’s Online Writing Lab
How to Write
a Thesis Statement from Indiana University
Constructing
Thesis Statements from University of North Carolina
Back to Successful Researching and Writing
8 July 2004