The Introductory Paragraph Expository Essays

BASIC STRUCTURE There are 4 components to an introductory paragraph The opening statement Filler Thesis statement Line of Approach

1. Opening statement Grabs the attention of the readers. Gives a brief background on the topic. The first few lines of the essay familiarize the readers with the writer’s thoughts. The opening serves as a guide to the subject matter of the essay. Introduce your topic in general terms

Filler Here is where you expand on your topic Provide more specific information about your topic Summarize the text as it pertains to your topic You should make mention of the title of the text and relevant characters Anywhere from 3-5 sentences in length

Thesis Statement A simple way of thinking of the thesis statement (also called a stance) is this: what is your answer to the question? The main idea of the paper-the main purpose of the paper-the main point that is going to be proved (What is this paper trying to accomplish? What is the main point or purpose of this paper?) Always 1 sentence in length-short, clear, concise—do not get fancy here—simple and straightforward is always better

Line of Approach How are you going to prove your thesis statement? What arguments or points are you going to use to prove your thesis statement is true and valid?

THE BODY PARAGRAPH There are 5 components to a standard body paragraph: Topic sentence Intro to fact Fact Elaboration Concluding sentence

The Topic Sentence The topic sentence is an argument or reason that supports the thesis statement. It is always the first sentence of any body paragraph. Example thesis statement: Macbeth is a selfish character. Possible topic sentence: Macbeth’s selfishness is apparent during his Out brief candle speech in Act V, where he is more concerned about the timing of Lady Macbeth’s death rather than the actual death itself.

Intro to fact/fact Every topic sentence requires proof. The proof always comes from the actual text itself in the form of a quotation. The quotation you choose should validate your topic sentence; it should provide proof that your argument is correct and valid. Every example or fact is preceded by the introduction to the fact. This is merely a sentence that establishes the context for the fact; it tells the reader something about the fact. Here is an example of how to introduce a fact: In Act V, scene V, Macbeth is contemplating the upcoming battle with the invading force from England when he is given the news of his wife’s death, After the comma, place the quotation you are using in quotation marks. It should be taken from the text verbatim. It should look something like this: In Act V, scene V, Macbeth is contemplating the upcoming battle with the invading force from England when he is given the news of his wife’s death, She should have died hereafter; There would have been a time for such a word.

Let’s put it together Here is what the first part of your body paragraph should look like (topic sentence, intro to fact, fact): Macbeth’s selfishness is apparent during his Out brief candle speech in Act V, where he is more concerned about the timing of Lady Macbeth’s death rather than the actual death itself. In Act V, scene V, Macbeth is contemplating the upcoming battle with the invading force from England when he is given the news of his wife’s death, She should have died hereafter; There would have been a time for such a word (19-31). This example uses italics. If you prefer quotation marks, then simply enclose your example in quotation marks and do not italicize. The numbers in brackets after the quotation are the line numbers.

Elaboration Now let’s add some elaboration to what we have so far: Macbeth’s selfishness is apparent during his Out brief candle speech in Act V, where he is more concerned about the timing of Lady Macbeth’s death rather than the actual death itself. In Act V, scene V, Macbeth is contemplating the upcoming battle with the invading force from England when he is given the news of his wife’s death, She should have died hereafter; There would have been a time for such a word (19-20). With these words, Macbeth demonstrates a lack of real concern for his wife’s mysterious death. He is saying he would prefer that his wife die at a later date if she had to die at all. With the invading army led by Duncan’s son Malcolm and Macduff approaching the castle, one would think that Lady Macbeth’s death would be the final event that breaks an increasingly troubled Macbeth. Instead, Macbeth practically ignores the event and prepares instead to fight. He pauses only long enough to give the audience some thoughts about life: Out, out, brief candle! Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player That struts and frets his hour upon the stage And then is heard no more: it is a tale Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, Signifying nothing (25-31). Here Macbeth admits defeat. Life for him has become meaningless, full of sound and fury but lacking in any true meaning. If Macbeth is not a selfish character, at this point he could have ended the peacefully by surrendering, saving countless lives. He could mourn his wife with whatever time is left. Instead, he seems intent on causing as much damage and destruction as possible, killing as many men as he can before his demise. He is a poor player, a candle about to be extinguished, yet he chooses to play his losing hand out to the end.

Concluding sentence All we are missing now is a concluding sentence. It should be one final thought to end the paragraph. Let’s try this: Macbeth’s selfishness is apparent during his Out brief candle speech in Act V, where he is more concerned about the timing of Lady Macbeth’s death rather than the actual death itself. In Act V, scene V, Macbeth is contemplating the upcoming battle with the invading force from England when he is given the news of his wife’s death, She should have died hereafter; There would have been a time for such a word (19-20). With these words, Macbeth demonstrates a lack of real concern for his wife’s mysterious death. He is saying he would prefer that his wife die at a later date if she had to die at all. With the invading army led by Duncan’s son Malcolm and Macduff approaching the castle, one would think that Lady Macbeth’s death would be the final event that breaks an increasingly troubled Macbeth. Instead, Macbeth practically ignores the event and prepares instead to fight. He pauses only long enough to give the audience some thoughts about life: Out, out, brief candle! Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player That struts and frets his hour upon the stage And then is heard no more: it is a tale Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, Signifying nothing (25-31). Here Macbeth admits defeat. Life for him has become meaningless, full of sound and fury but lacking in any true meaning. If Macbeth is not a selfish character, at this point he could have ended the peacefully by surrendering, saving countless lives. He could mourn his wife with whatever time is left. Instead, he seems intent on causing as much damage and destruction as possible, killing as many men as he can before his demise. He is a poor player, a candle about to be extinguished, yet he chooses to play his losing hand out to the end. Macbeth is a selfish character who cannot put aside his own concerns, even in the face of unavoidable defeat; a non-selfish character would bring an end to this madness and try to restore some sort of peace with what little time he has left.

Let’s review Here are the elements of our body paragraph: Topic sentence Intro to fact Fact Elaboration Intro to fact #2 Fact #2 Concluding sentence

The Conclusion All we have left to do now is our conclusion. Here are the components: Re-state the thesis Summarize your main arguments and ideas Concluding statement Do not introduce any new ideas or arguments in your conclusion. Simply summarize your work and provide a final, concluding thought. The conclusion should be the shortest paragraph of your essay.

Some things to remember: General Guidelines Type your paper on a computer and print it out on standard, white 8.5 x 11-inch paper, Double-space the text of your paper, and use a legible font like Times Roman. The font size should be 12 pt. Leave only one space after periods or other punctuation marks (unless otherwise instructed by your instructor). Set the margins of your document to 1 inch on all sides. Indent the first line of a paragraph one half-inch (five spaces or press tab once) from the left margin. Create a header that numbers all pages consecutively in the upper right-hand corner, one-half inch from the top and flush with the right margin. (Note: Your instructor may ask that you omit the number on your first page. Always follow your instructor's guidelines.) Use either italics or underlining throughout your essay for the titles of longer works and, only when absolutely necessary, providing emphasis. If you have any endnotes, include them on a separate page before your Works Cited page.

Do’s and Don’ts DON’T Change verb tenses-stick to one verb tense and use it throughout the essay Start your essay with any of the following phrases: Since the beginning of time, Throughout human history, Start your essay with a dictionary definition Use long sentences and flowery language-you don’t need to impress me with your vocabulary DO Write simply and clearly Be detailed and thorough

A word about plagiarism (cheating!!!) What is plagiarism? It is the unauthorized and undocumented use of someone else’s words, ideas, thoughts, etc. You don’t have to copy something from a book or the internet word for word to commit plagiarism. If you read an idea somewhere, let’s say from a Macbeth website, and decide to use that idea without crediting your source (you know, pretend it’s your idea and just explain it in your own words, maybe even throw in a few mistakes just so the teacher thinks it’s really your stuff), well that’s PLAGIARISM.

THE SOLUTION Fortunately, it’s an easy one. All you need to do is to credit your source. If you take an idea from a website or a book to help you formulate your essay, then acknowledge it. It’s that easy! It might be an idea that helped you develop a topic sentence. It might be an idea that helped you extend your elaboration. Just credit your source and everything is fine. The alternative is a mark of 0, and me being very angry with you. It takes only a quick minute to bookmark the website, or to copy the info from the book. PLEASE DO NOT CHEAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! BELIEVE IN YOUR OWN IDEAS AND THOUGHTS, THEY ARE JUST A VALID AND GOOD AS ANYTHING YOU WILL FIND ON A WEBSITE OR IN A BOOK.

GOOD LUCK, AND WORK HARD!