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Thesis Statement – Start of a Research

15 March 2009 22,560 views 170 Comments

The thesis statement of any writing assignment is the statement that lets the reader know what the topic of the paper is and how the writer intends to interpret it. It prepares the reader for how the writer will interpret the significance of the topic that they are discussing, while letting the body of the paper support their argument and their position regarding it. The thesis statement is at the beginning of the paper and is usually about one or two sentences long, and it briefly mentions the topic of the paper and the position of the writer. It sets up the argument and can give the reader a claim that they might want to dispute, based on the information that they are given.

The thesis statement is the start of the research paper, and can be considered the backbone of the entire paper. Without this statement, it is often unclear what the paper is about or what stance the writer is taking on the specific topic. The thesis statement also sets the mood and the foundation for the rest of the paper. It lets the reader become aware of what to expect throughout the rest of the paper, and it allows the writer to stay on the topic. Both the reader and the writer can refer back to the thesis statement if another portion of the paper does not make sense, or if they simply want to do more research of the topic on their own time. It also allows the reader, prior to reading the rest of the paper, to prepare their own opinion and counterargument before reading the opinion that the writer has.

The thesis statement only interprets the question or the subject of the paper, but not the actual subject itself. The thesis statement shows the reader how the writer views the question or the subject and how they plan on helping others to understand it. The writer can also use the thesis statement to convince the reader of their position, or to teach the reader enough to take their own stance.

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