. Introduction

1.Identify and state your

objects of analysis

.The topic or question will often ask you to discusscentral texts, key ideas or concepts, issues, or acombination of these.2.Provide some

background

to the thesis and reveal the

motive

for arguing it.An effective description of the context, situationor problem can demonstrate why the thesis isinteresting and worth arguing. Here is yourchance to convince your readers (including themarker) that your essay is worth reading—something not to be taken for granted!3.Formulate and state your

thesis

.A thesis is a clearly articulated general idea thatexpresses the main point you want to argue inyour essay. It should be:

•

sufficiently focused and narrow so that itcan be fully discussed in your essay;

•

a position that is debatable, and dependenton the strength of evidence and logicaldevelopment; not a simple statement of fact, a declaration of belief that cannot bereasonably substantiated, a tautological orcircular expression, an obvious point, andso on;

•

interesting.4.Define the

key terms

,state the

assumptions

,and describe the

methodology

Key terms:

You will often find terms in thequestion, topic or your thesis itself whosemeanings are essentially contested orindeterminate or ambiguous because of colloquialmisuse. These terms may be crucial in yourlarger analysis and, if for no other reason thanthis, must be defined (even tentatively) beforeyou can hinge your arguments on them.

Assumptions:

The set of fundamental ‘givens’ that make your arguments consistent, coherent,and meaningful can be stated at the start. This issometimes done in the interest of intellectualhonesty and to indicate to the reader where youmight be coming from ideologically.

Research methodology:

You may want todescribe your main analytical approach (e.g.inter-disciplinary), the sources that you use inyour analysis (e.g. archival material, literaturereviews, internet forums) and how you obtainedthem (e.g. interviews, opinion surveys,regression analysis).5.Sketch a

roadmap

. If your thesis tells the readers where you want totake them in the journey that is your essay, aroadmap will tell them how they will get there—which main roads, turning points, and detoursthey can expect to take.

B. Body

1.Construct your

arguments

. To develop your thesis, you will need to constructa series of smaller supporting arguments that arerelevant to the thesis. While every argumentshould be directed to the thesis, the individualarguments should not simply be linked togetheras a random chain of implicitly related butdistinct reasons. Instead, they should follow acoherent and logical sequence that builds up,often dramatically, to a convincing and satisfyingrestatement of the thesis in the conclusion.Using clear topic sentences that state the mainpoint of each paragraph can help you to besensitive to the shape of your arguments. Youshould also think about how the arguments cancome together to produce a dramatic build-up,going through various twists and turns, andallowing for conflicts, negotiations, andresolutions to play out. Other relatedconsiderations include a sense of timing (e.g.when to reveal certain arguments or facts, fordramatic effect) and proportion (e.g. how muchspace should be given to each argument).2.Support your argumentswith

evidence

.Broadly speaking, you can support yourarguments with empirical evidence in the form of facts, data, statistics, examples, controlledobservations, and so on. You should not simplymention them; you should instead elaborate on

them by giving details to be connecteddeliberately with the arguments being made.Also, you should try to give an indication of thereliability of your evidence. You can also supportyour arguments with academic and professionalexpertise that you cite or quote directly. To avoidplagiarism, you must cite your sources.3.Deal with

counter-arguments

.You will also need to imagine and anticipatereasonable objections to your thesis and thearguments developed around it. You will need todescribe these objections fairly (i.e. don’t createstraw men to be knocked down effortlessly). Andyou will then need to deal with them decisively,demonstrating the superiority of your argument(or some adjusted form of your argument). Thisnot only strengthens your arguments, but alsomakes your essay more complicated andtherefore more interesting.4.Provide your reader withthe necessary

orientation

.It is always important to write with a clear senseof audience (i.e. ‘Who are you writing this for?’).Knowing who your readers are will give you agood idea of what kind and extent of backgroundinformation you will need to provide before yourideas, arguments, and evidence can make fullsense to the readers.At the start of the journey, you provided readerswith a roadmap. During the journey itself, youshould provide clear signposts along the way togive readers a good sense of where they are inthis journey. You might, for example, pause atcritical junctures in the essay to inform readersabout what you have done so far, where you arein the overall argument, and what you are goingto do next.

C. Conclusion

Retrace

your steps.Once you have arrived at the conclusion, it isoften a good idea to remind readers, in summary,where they have been. This is where your topicsentences can come in handy.2.Restate your

thesis