RESEARCH PAPER HOW-TO’S SOUND SMART!

THESIS STATEMENTS What is a Thesis Statement? Almost all of us—even if we don’t do it consciously—look early in an essay for a one- or two-sentence condensation of the argument or analysis that is to follow. We refer to that condensation as a thesis statement. Why Should Your Essay Contain a Thesis Statement? to test your ideas by consolidating them into a sentence or two to better organize and develop your argument to provide your reader with a “guide” to your argument In general, your thesis statement will accomplish these goals if you think of the thesis as the answer to the question your paper explores.

HOW TO GENERATE A THESIS STATEMENT IF THE TOPIC IS ASSIGNED Almost all assignments, no matter how complicated, can be reduced to a single question. Your first step, then, is to change the assignment into a specific question. For example, if your assignment is, “the possibility of Turkey becoming part of the European Union” turn this into a question like, “Should Turkey be a member of the European Union, why or why not?” After you’ve chosen the question your essay will answer, compose one or two complete sentences answering that question. Q: “Should Turkey be a member of the European Union, why or why not?” A: “Turkey should/should not become a member of the European because…” OR A: “Turkey’s candidate country status should be/ should not be approved because…”

“THESIS KILLER WORDS”  Stay away from using these words in your thesis statement Very Many Things Lots / a lot Stuff Ways Really Be specific!!!

BIG NO-NO’S WHEN WRITING A PAPER  No rhetorical questions and answers:  “Would you want to go around hunting for your food?”  “Well, neither did the neolithics!”  DO NOT TALK TO PEOPLE.  No contractions  Do not use: “don’t, can’t, won’t, isn’t, shouldn’t, couldn’t, wouldn’t  WRITE THEM OUT (do not, cannot, will not, is not…)  Use correct punctuation and SPELL CHECK!:  Punctuation goes inside the quotation marks  Correctly transition quotes  “According to the Wall Street Journal, “Turkey has in recent weeks cracked down on Islamic State interests, covertly choking off its flow of financing and fighters. U.S. and European officials acknowledge the positive impact of the moves.”

DO NOT INSERT YOURSELF PERSONALLY  Do not write these phrases in your essay:  “In my opinion…”  “I believe that…”  “I think that…”  WE KNOW THIS IS YOUR OPINION, YOU ARE WRITING THE ESSAY!  You are the expert on this topic after researching it, make your claim as if it is FACT  Doesn’t this mean the same thing?  “In my opinion, Turkey should not be a part of the European Union because…”  “Turkey should not be a part of the European Union because…”

PARAGRAPHS: WHAT’S IN ‘EM?  Paragraph 1:  Explain what the EU is and the requirements for membership  Explain some background information about Turkey (why are they not already an EU nation?)  Paragraph 2:  Reason 1 for or against EU membership  “The first major reason (for/against) Turkey’s EU membership is that…”  Use quotes from your sources (make sure you cite them in the paper!)  Paragraph 3:  Reason 2 for or against EU membership  “Another important reason to consider in Turkey’s EU membership is that…”  Use quotes from your sources (make sure you cite them in the paper!)  Paragraph 4:  Conclusion and summary of MAIN points