Writing a body paragraph

The body of the essay is where you fully develop your argument. Each body
paragraph should contain one key idea or claim, which is supported by relevant
examples and evidence from the body of scholarly work on your topic (i.e. academic
books and journal articles).

Together, the body paragraphs form the building blocks of your argument.

How do I structure paragraphs?

The TEECL structure provides an effective way of organising a paragraph. TEECL

stands for Topic sentence, Explanation, Evidence, Comment, and Link. You may find
it helpful to add C for Comment before Link. A paragraph structured this way would
contain the following:

 Topic sentence – the first sentence in a body paragraph that tells the reader
what the main idea or claim of the paragraph will be.
 Explanation – Explain what you mean in greater detail.
 Evidence – Provide evidence to support your idea or claim. To do this, refer to
your research. This may include: case studies, statistics, documentary
evidence, academic books or journal articles. Remember that all evidence will
require appropriate citation.
 Comment – Consider the strengths and limitations of the evidence and
examples that you have presented. Explain how your evidence supports your
claim (i.e. how does it ‘prove’ your topic sentence?).
 Link – Summarise the main idea of the paragraph, and make clear how this
paragraph supports your overall argument.

Sample paragraph
[1] One of the main obstacles to reaching international consensus on climate change
action is the ongoing debate over which countries should shoulder the
burden. [2] Because the developed world has historically been responsible for the
majority of greenhouse gas emissions, it has been argued that they should reduce
emissions and allow developed nations to prioritise development over environmental
concerns (Vinuales, 2011). [3] The notion of ‘common but differentiated responsibility’
(CBDR) was formalised in the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change in Rio
de Janeiro in 1992 (UNFCCC, 1992). Article 3.1 explicitly states 'Accordingly, the
developed country Parties should take the lead in combating climate change and the
adverse effects thereof' (p. 4). [4] However, because CBDR outlines a principle and
not an actionable plan it has remained problematic. For example, it does not stipulate
the extent to which, under the principle of CBDR, developing nations should be
exempt from specific emissions targets. This has continued to be a point of
contention in global negotiations on climate change, with developed countries such
as the USA arguing that developed nations should do more to reduce emissions
(Klein et. al., 2017). [5] Fairness and equity need to be pursued in reaching a global
agreement on climate change, but transforming this into an actionable strategy is
problematic.
Legend: [1] Topic sentence [2] Explanation [3] Evidence /
Example [4] Comment [5] Link