Thesis Statements

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Margaret Atwood's “Happy Endings” uses archetypes and humour to make the story interesting. Ideally, your thesis statement will imply the major points you will  ...
Thesis Statements Literally, a thesis is a proposition maintained by argument. For an essay, the thesis statement is a clear and concise statement of what your essay does and its purpose. This may take the form or a proposition or a hypothesis, but it is typically asserted in positive terms. The thesis statement should do two things: assert the purpose of the essay and suggest the concepts that form basis of essay. If the thesis statement does not bring to mind or evoke at least three or four paragraphs, it is likely either too vague or too narrow. Be careful that you do not merely summarize the plot—your task is to make an argument about the work. You will only summarize insofar as it is necessary to provide evidence for your hypothesis. Are the following theses too broad or too specific? 1. This story is about people who dream. 2. In “She Unnames them,” Eve leaves Eden. 3. “The Secret Sharer” sets up a complex relationship between two men at sea, and a variety of compatible readings are available: Leggatt and the captain can be two individuals in a semi-mythic story as well as two sides of the same person in a symbolic story. The reader’s uncertainty and Conrad’s vagueness allow both reading to function at the same time. 4. In “The Secret Sharer,” Leggatt may be interpreted as both a heroic and pathetic figure, echoing the double meaning in the title. 5. Margaret Atwood’s “Happy Endings” uses archetypes and humour to make the story interesting. Ideally, your thesis statement will imply the major points you will make in your essay, like #3 above. If you cannot see how the statement can develop into related ideas in this manner, it is likely overly broad (#1) or overly specific (#2). Sample Opening Paragraph and Thesis Statement: The myth of Orpheus and his descent into the underworld is paralleled in Joseph Conrad’s “The Secret Sharer,” and this reveals a common theme: the narrator’s selffulfillment through his symbolic and inward quest. This parallel, which I call archetypal, increases the reader’s identification with Conrad’s narrator and lends an otherworldly tone to the story. Likewise, these echoes of Orpheus lead the reader through three stages. These are (1) a modern and secular rendition of the descent into the unknown, followed by (2) a symbolic rebirth or rejoining of the opposite parts of the total self, and finally (3) parting with the previous ‘self’ that ostensibly existed in the initial state.

How would you structure an essay out of this paragraph? What distinct sections would you need to have, and what topics or questions would each section address? Try creating a list or diagrammatic outline. Try doing the same with the essay on the other side of this sheet. Based on its opening paragraph, what point is it making? Does it ultimately make a point?