Traditionally, the thesis is the most important sentence or series of sentences in your essay. By now, you\u2019ve probably heard the thesis called all sorts of names. Your \u201cpoint,\u201d \u201cargument,\u201d \u201cposition,\u201d \u201cso what,\u201d \u201cpurpose,\u201d or \u201ccontrolling idea.\u201d This is by no means an exhaustive list. Me, I like to use the terms \u201cargument \u201d and \u201ccontrolling idea.\u201d You\u2019ve probably been told that the thesis should go in the first paragraph of your essay; that it should be clear and concise, a well-written, expertly articulated point that you will prove throughout the course of your essay. I imagine, at some point in your academic life, you were told that the thesis should be one or two sentences long and confidently state what your essay is all about.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Here\u2019s the thing . . . the thesis doesn\u2019t have to begin as an affirmation\u2014I will do this. Instead, let\u2019s think about our theses as questions. It\u2019s a whole lot easier to ask a question of a text than to assert a claim that you can prove over the course of two or six or twenty pages. I like to think of our theses as the products of an inquiry process that begins simply and gradually evolves into a hypothesis we seek to explore in our writing. Very often, the research we do as we seek to answer the question posed by our thesis reshapes the thesis. This is great! Indeed, the best thesis statements undergo a series of changes as we delve deeper into our scholarship.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
They are varied and often discipline-dependent. That said, here at the WCLC, we believe the best way to craft a thesis is to begin by asking good questions. Indeed, your research question will power your thesis. With that in mind, please turn to our entry on Finding a Research Question<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Writing Center at UNC-Chapel Hill<\/a> has a wonderful post discussing the ins and outs of thesis building. Click Here<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\nFurther Resources:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n