- It gives your writing direction and focus.
- It gives the reader a concise summary of your main point.
Everything in the introduction is relevant to the main body of the essay.
- An opening hook to catch the reader’s attention.
- Relevant background information that the reader needs to know.
- A thesis statement that presents your main point or argument.
Particularly in longer essays, it’s helpful to end the introduction by signposting what will be covered in each part. Keep it concise and give your reader a clear sense of the direction your argument will take.
More examples of essay introductions
It’s especially important to make sure your thesis statement accurately represents what you do in the essay. If your argument has gone in a different direction than planned, tweak your thesis statement to match what you actually say.
In many ways, the invention of the printing press marked the end of the Middle Ages. The medieval period in Europe is often remembered as a time of intellectual and political stagnation. Prior to the Renaissance, the average person had very limited access to books and was unlikely to be literate. The invention of the printing press in the 15th century allowed for much less restricted circulation of information in Europe, paving the way for the Reformation.
The length of each part depends on the length and complexity of your essay.
The “hook” is the first sentence of your essay introduction. It should lead the reader into your essay, giving a sense of why it’s interesting.
- It gives your writing direction and focus.
- It gives the reader a concise summary of your main point.
Everything in the introduction is relevant to the main body of the essay.
- An opening hook to catch the reader’s attention.
- Relevant background information that the reader needs to know.
- A thesis statement that presents your main point or argument.
Particularly in longer essays, it’s helpful to end the introduction by signposting what will be covered in each part. Keep it concise and give your reader a clear sense of the direction your argument will take.
More examples of essay introductions
It’s especially important to make sure your thesis statement accurately represents what you do in the essay. If your argument has gone in a different direction than planned, tweak your thesis statement to match what you actually say.
In many ways, the invention of the printing press marked the end of the Middle Ages. The medieval period in Europe is often remembered as a time of intellectual and political stagnation. Prior to the Renaissance, the average person had very limited access to books and was unlikely to be literate. The invention of the printing press in the 15th century allowed for much less restricted circulation of information in Europe, paving the way for the Reformation.
The length of each part depends on the length and complexity of your essay.
The “hook” is the first sentence of your essay introduction. It should lead the reader into your essay, giving a sense of why it’s interesting.
The toughest part of writing an essay is starting it. Won’t you agree? When you get the introduction right, you’re more confident about writing the rest of the essay.
There have been several instances when college students have written to us asking us to help them start their argumentative essay.
Merely introducing the topic is not enough. You need to tell readers why it’s important, the purpose behind choosing and most importantly, why should they bother reading it?
“First impression is the last impression”, they say and rightly so which is why writing an introduction for an argumentative essay is so critical.
How to Start an Argumentative Essay on a Strong Note
Regardless of how confident you are, when you create a plan and establish the structure of the introduction, you’re likely to do a better job.
Planning is key to writing an effective essay. One of the biggest mistakes you can make is to just start writing without creating a rough outline.
You’re staring at a blank document. The cursor is blinking. Your mind’s been blank for the last thirty minutes. You oscillate between writing and erasing. You look at the watch - your argumentative essay is due in the next 24 hours.
Answering these questions in 2-3 sentences each will help you ensure that you provide your readers with complete information about the topic of your essay. However, be sure to keep these sentences concise and straight to the point.
A hook is one of the most effective introduction starters for an essay. A hook has the purpose of catching the reader’s attention (always in a single sentence). In other words, it is an attention grabber.В
In a nutshell, the introduction paragraph of an essay is the first paragraph of the paper. Therefore, it is also the first thing your reader will see in your essay.
- A Common Misconception — a good trick is to begin with is to claim that something that your readers believe in is not true
Analytical Introduction
What should an introduction include? It usually consists of 3 parts: a hook, connections, and a thesis statement. Let’s look at each element in detail.
After you have provided a hook and some background information regarding your essay topic, move on to giving readers a better understanding of what you are going to talk about throughout your paper. In this part of your introduction, you should briefly mention your key ideas in the same order in which you will go on to discuss them, and gradually lead your reader(s) to your thesis statement.
To give you an even better idea of what a good thesis should look like, here is a sample statement for an essay about the importance of an adequate work-life balance:
Although no strict rules apply, experienced writers recommend that your introductory paragraph(s) be between 8% and 9% of your essay's total word count.
Remember, the point of view being presented must be a combination of personal ideas and external information — only then your thoughts properly validated. So research your topic and find multiple sources that defend your thoughts.
Most likely, unless the topic is very in-depth, the body should contain three paragraphs, each with their point of approach. However, the general style of each body paragraph is identical. First of all, present a topic sentence that precisely explains what information you will be introducing. At the same time, this sentence should smoothly transition the writing from the previous point to the next.
Before confidently submitting in your final work, make sure to take a couple of proactive steps to tie the knot around your essay.
Explanatory essays show other people’s views or give reports of a certain event or situation. These are common in majors like history or journalism, where students explore facts and real situations, giving unbiased explanations based on facts and evidence.
How to Start an Explanatory Essay. Pre-Writing Steps
An explanatory essay is a type of writing in which the author presents some point of view on a certain topic, event or situation. This view does not necessarily have to be one that the writer agrees with, but it must have some research and logic to make it feasible.
The introduction will present the subject of discussion to the reader and the explanatory thesis. The body paragraphs will then follow, backing up the thesis statement with facts, logic, statistics, etc. Lastly, the conclusion will summarize the main points of your essay and should present an overall concluding statement. Now, let’s break down each section into more detail.
When writing the conclusion, three main components are crucial to properly finishing an explanatory essay. First of all, restate your thesis statement. This will bring the audience's attention back to the main focal point as well as add strength to your presented point of view.