The purpose of a thesis statement is to clearly and concisely state your argument. As a result, the first step in writing a thesis statement is deciding what you want to say. When writing a thesis statement, having a clear idea in mind makes the process much easier, and the statement itself will be much stronger. It’s critical to keep in mind that the thesis statement should be clear, concise, and easily supported by evidence.
The reader should have a good idea of what the essay will be about by the end of the first paragraph of an essay or research paper. Because the thesis statement is so important in guiding the reader through the essay, developing a strong thesis statement is perhaps the most important step in writing any essay. To begin, consider brainstorming, or writing down a list of ideas that might be relevant to the topic at hand. If the topic of an essay is governmental systems and which ones work better than others, for example, one might begin by making a list of governments and their benefits and drawbacks. This will lead the writer to form an opinion on the subject, which will lead to research and, eventually, the development of a thesis statement.
It’s time to do research after the writer has decided where he or she stands on an issue. This will assist the writer in bolstering his or her arguments and forming a concise statement that will inform the reader of what the essay will cover. Furthermore, conducting research will assist the writer in compiling a list of supporting points that will be discussed later in the essay. Knowing what supporting arguments a writer will make before writing the thesis can sometimes be helpful; knowing what he or she will write later allows the writer to clearly state what he or she intends to tell the reader.
The thesis statement should be no more than one sentence long. When writing a thesis statement, the writer should try to include specifics while staying as concise as possible. It helps to write a because” statement when developing a thesis statement to aid this process. This forces the writer to make a case while still providing details. A strong thesis statement, for example, might look like this:
“A democratic republic governmental system has proven to be one of the world’s strongest systems because it allows the people of a representative government to interact with the lawmaking process without overwhelming the system.”
This statement is succinct and to-the-point, and it includes key details that the writer can expand on later in the essay.