Effective Essay Writing

1. Effective Essay Writing Mr. James

2. Thesis Statementsp.113 in Write for College • Conveys to the reader: -Your perspective -Your argument -Your overall feelings about a topic • Used by the writer to: -Organize your essay -Focus your essay

3. Thesis Statements Cont…p. 176 in World History • Question: Identify three events that led to the decline of the Roman Empire. Explain why and how the Roman Empire collapsed in 476 AD. In your conclusion decide who or what was to blame for the fall of the Empire. • Ex: The Roman Empire, once a mighty power, fell in the late 5th Century. This collapse can be traced back to social decay, internal political turmoil, and external military attacks. • Think: Is this concise? Does it answer the question? Focused?

4. Common Thesis Mistakes • Restating the question is not enough • Using “I” in any form • writing, “there are multiple reasons” or “there are hundreds of reasons but we will only discuss three” • Too broad; “Since the Roman Republic there had been signs of an eventual collapse, which occurred in the 5th Century.” • P. 117 of Write for College provides more examples

5. WHAT NEXT? • Use your thesis as a blueprint for the rest of your paper. • Use the three identified facts as your topic sentences. • Supporting arguments! • You can always revise your thesis if you come across new information that alters your argument.

6. The Roman Empire fell in the late 5th Century. This collapse can be traced back to social decay, internal political turmoil, and external military attacks. The social decay of the Roman Empire can be attributed to an upper class that became less interested with leading its citizens. Instead the upper class became self-serving and focused solely on material goods and prestige. Sensing weakness in their leaders, the citizens of the Roman Empire began to care less of service to their country which directly led to a decrease of soldiers in the army. Internally, Rome was experiencing turmoil with its political system. The Roman leaders, who once prided themselves on representation within the political machine, became more authoritarian and corrupt. Roman leaders also repeatedly fought over the throne, with armies that were not loyal to Rome, but rather their respective Commanders. The more internal issues of social decay and the political turmoil provided for external threats from barbarian forces. What met these barbarian forces on the field of battle was not the disciplined army of old, but a weaker, poorly trained force. The Romans often augmented their weaker forces with mercenaries who were not loyal to Rome. Is this essay complete?

7. No!p. 120 Write for College • All essays require a conclusion • A conclusion provides the reader: -a summarization of your topics -a neat, organized way to end • A conclusion provides the writer: -ensures you answer the question -allows you to restate your thesis -final check of your thesis (does it work?)

8. Example: • The collapse of the Roman Empire can be traced to the internal problems of social decay and political turmoil. These internal issues allowed for barbarians to capitalize and complete the collapse by defeating weaker Roman forces through military attacks. These issues culminated with the fall of the Roman Empire in the late 5th Century.

9. Things to avoid: • In summary… • We can conclude… • Not discussing info in your paper • “I” phrases

10. Try it • Question: Identify three reasons why _____ is your favorite restaurant. Explain which attributes provide for the best dining experience at that restaurant. In your conclusion decide who or what impacted your decision.