Forming a Thesis Statement

Whether you are a student learning the initial stages of the writing process or a more experienced writer in the scholarly world, the thesis statement is what holds the writing together. Here is a quote from University of Maryland University College:

After you have begun the research and decided on your subject, the next step in the planning process is to determine your working thesis. A thesis statement states the purpose and topic of your writing, and the controlling idea indicates the direction and, often, the writing strategy you will adopt. Your thesis statement will often be based on your synthesis of the information you have gathered from class, from your experience, and from research. This early in your writing, your thesis statement is really a working thesis that you use to begin thinking about your topic. You may revise this thesis many times before you are finished thinking and ready to write your final draft.

What is a thesis statement?

A thesis statement is "a statement or theory put forward to be maintained or proved" (OED, 2009) A good thesis statement is a sentence or two within the text that 1. contains the focus of the text 2. previews the main ideas 3. informs the reader what the text is all about 4. asserts an individual conclusion Strong thesis statements

• contain focus
• contain previews of the main idea/s
• inform the reader
• assert an individual conclusion

Weak thesis statements are

• lacking focus
• vague
• too general
• stating an observation

A thesis statement is something that does not occur straight away. It is built on ideas and knowledge from previous research, and therefore it is usually developed from extensive reading. Since the approach to the argument/thesis statement is based on the accumulated information, a starting point is through reading. The university library is a good place to start. There is a link below to a listing of all the libraries at Lund University. When you are looking for articles, please make use of the on-line resource ELIN. It is free for all students and staff at Lund University. If you are looking for books that may or may not be available at Lund University, please make use of LIBRIS. Other electronic search engines such as Google or Google Scholar, using the informative words from the task question, may also help. Despite being good sources of information, independent search engines on the Internet, such as Google, are not enough for most academic writing. Contact the University Library for information about their databases and resources. After considerable reading, opinions and ideas start to form and a thesis statement arises. Writing a thesis statement is a part of the process and requires time and thought in creating ideas. The effort put into the work at this stage will add focus, direction and in the end result in a cohesive assignment.

• The libraries at Lund University
• The on-line article data base ELIN
• LIBRIS
• See: Understanding the Question
• See: Planning and Brainstorming, if having trouble getting started