what is the meaning of a thesis statement

The Ultimate Guide to Writing a Thesis Statement

A thesis statement is a sentence in a paper or essay (in the opening paragraph) that introduces the main topic to the reader. As one of the first things your reader sees, your thesis statement is one of the most important sentences in your entire paper—but also one of the hardest to write! 

In this article, we explain how to write a thesis statement in the best way possible. We look at what to include and the steps to take for writing your own, along with plenty of thesis statement examples to guide you. 

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Table of contents

What is a thesis statement, how to write a thesis statement: basics, what to include in a thesis statement (with examples), how to write a thesis statement in 3 steps.

The goal of a thesis statement is to let your reader know what your paper or essay is about. It helps your reader understand the greater context and scope of your topic, plus it lets your readers know what to expect from the rest of the work. 

A secondary benefit of a thesis statement is that it makes it easier to search for papers on a particular topic, especially in the realm of academic writing like research papers and thesis papers (which are sometimes known as dissertations when written for doctoral degrees). For example, if you’re writing a paper of your own, you’ll want to look up other papers to use as evidence and sources . You can simply scan the thesis statements of several papers to see which match your topic and could be worthwhile sources to cite. 

Before we get into details, here are the basic steps for how to write a thesis statement: 

• Develop the best topic to cover in your paper
• Phrase your topic as a question-and-answer
• Add some polish

We ’ ll describe each of those steps in more detail below, but we wanted to share a quick guide. Also, we ’ ll provide some thesis statement examples and talk about how to write a thesis statement for different kinds of essays: persuasive, compare-and-contrast, expository, and argumentative essays.

The thesis statement is located at the beginning of a paper, in the opening paragraph, making it an essential way to start an essay . A thesis statement isn’t necessarily the first sentence in an essay; typically you’ll want to hook the reader in an engaging way in the opening sentence before inserting your central idea or argument later in the first paragraph. A thesis statement is often confused with a topic sentence , the first sentence in a paragraph, because they both introduce the central idea of what follows. You can think of thesis statements as the topic sentence of your entire paper.  

Thesis statements are a necessary part of paper and essay writing , but different formats have different rules and best practices. Below, we break down how to write a thesis statement for the most common types of papers. 

How to write a thesis statement for expository and argumentative essays

Expository and argumentative essays are some of the most common types of academic papers. Because they don’t have a formal abstract like research papers, they rely on their thesis statements to provide an overview of what’s discussed. 

Thesis statements for argumentative and expository essays should use strong and decisive language; don’t be wishy-washy or uncertain. You want to take a stand right in the opening so that your readers understand what your paper is trying to show. 

Moreover, thesis statements for these essays should be specific, with some minor details to hint at the rest of the paper. It’s not enough to merely make your point; you also want to provide some basic evidence or background context to paint a full picture. 

If your paper dives into different subtopics or categories, try to fit them into the thesis statement if you can. You don’t have to get into details here, but it’s nice to mention the different sections at the top so that the reader knows what to expect. 

Thesis statement examples

Despite the taboo, insects make an excellent food source and could stem humanity’s looming food shortage, based on both their protein output and the sustainability of farming them. 

The backlash to rock ’n’ roll music in the ’50s by religious groups and traditionalists actually boosted the genre’s popularity instead of diminishing it as intended.

How to write a thesis statement for persuasive essays

Similar to argumentative essays, persuasive essays follow many of the same guidelines for their thesis statements: decisive language, specific details, and mentions of subtopics. 

However, the main difference is that, while the thesis statements for argumentative and expository essays state facts, the thesis statements for persuasive essays state clear opinions . Still, the format is the same, and the opinions are often treated like facts, including conclusive language and citing evidence to support your claims. 

Furthermore, unlike with other essays, it’s appropriate to make emotional connections in a thesis statement in persuasive essays. This can actually be a clever strategy to start your essay off on a more personal, impactful note. 

Advertising should not be allowed in public schools because it’s a distraction from studies and may lead to misguided priorities among the school board, to say nothing of the materialist culture it promotes. 

Exotic pets provide the same love and companionship as conventional pets, so the laws regulating which animals can and cannot be kept as pets should be more relaxed.

How to write a thesis statement for compare-and-contrast essays

Thesis statements for compare-and-contrast essays are tricky because you have at least two topics to touch on instead of just one. The same general guidelines apply (decisive language, details, etc.), but you need to give equal attention to both your topics—otherwise, your essay will seem biased from the start. 

As always, your thesis statement should reflect what’s written in the rest of your essay. If your essay spends more time comparing than contrasting, your thesis statement should focus more on similarities than differences. 

It sometimes helps to give specific examples as well, but keep them simple and brief. Save the finer details for the body of your essay. 

Sean Connery and Daniel Craig are the two most popular actors to portray James Bond, but both have their own distinct and at times contradictory interpretations of the character. 

Now that you know what you’re aiming for, it’s time to sit down and write your own thesis statement. To keep you on track, here are three easy steps to guide you. 

1 Brainstorm the best topic for your essay

You can’t write a thesis statement until you know what your paper is about, so your first step is choosing a topic. 

If the topic is already assigned, great ! That’s all for this step. If not, consider the tips below for choosing the topic that’s best for you:

• Pick a topic that you’re passionate about. Even if you don’t know much about it, it’ll be easier to learn about it while writing if you’re genuinely interested. 
• Narrow down your topic to something specific; otherwise, your paper will be too broad and perhaps too long. Just make sure it’s not too specific, or you won’t have enough to write about. Try to find a happy medium. 
• Check beforehand that there are enough strong, credible sources to use for research. You don’t want to run out of referential material halfway through. 

Once you’ve chosen a topic—and the angle or stance you want to take—then it’s time to put the idea for your thesis sentence into words. 

2 Phrase your topic as a question and then answer it

It’s not always easy to fit your entire thesis into just one sentence, let alone one that’s written clearly and eloquently. Here’s a quick technique to help you get started. 

First, phrase your topic as a question. For example, if you want to write about Mahatma Gandhi’s legacy, ask yourself, “What influences did Gandhi have on society after his death?” 

If you already know the answer, write it down—that’s a good start for your thesis statement. If you don’t know the answer, do some preliminary research to find out; you can certainly use what you discover as evidence and sources in your essay’s body paragraphs . 

3 Add some polish

Chances are, your first attempt at a thesis statement won’t be perfect. To get it to its best, try revising , editing , and adding what’s missing. 

Remember the core traits for thesis statements we mentioned above: decisive language, a happy medium of specific but not too specific details, and mention of subtopics. If you’re struggling to contain everything in a single sentence, feel free to move the secondary information to the following sentence. The thesis statement itself should only have what’s most necessary. 

If you’re in doubt, read your thesis statement to a friend and ask them what they think your paper is about. If they answer correctly, your thesis statement does its job. 

Next comes the hard part—writing the rest! While the bulk of the writing lies ahead, at least you’ve nailed down your central idea. To plot out your supporting argument, follow our advice on essay structure and let your ideas flow. 

Developing a Thesis Statement

Many papers you write require developing a thesis statement. In this section you’ll learn what a thesis statement is and how to write one.

Keep in mind that not all papers require thesis statements . If in doubt, please consult your instructor for assistance.

What is a thesis statement?

A thesis statement . . .

• Makes an argumentative assertion about a topic; it states the conclusions that you have reached about your topic.
• Makes a promise to the reader about the scope, purpose, and direction of your paper.
• Is focused and specific enough to be “proven” within the boundaries of your paper.
• Is generally located near the end of the introduction ; sometimes, in a long paper, the thesis will be expressed in several sentences or in an entire paragraph.
• Identifies the relationships between the pieces of evidence that you are using to support your argument.

Not all papers require thesis statements! Ask your instructor if you’re in doubt whether you need one.

Identify a topic

Your topic is the subject about which you will write. Your assignment may suggest several ways of looking at a topic; or it may name a fairly general concept that you will explore or analyze in your paper.

Consider what your assignment asks you to do

Inform yourself about your topic, focus on one aspect of your topic, ask yourself whether your topic is worthy of your efforts, generate a topic from an assignment.

Below are some possible topics based on sample assignments.

Sample assignment 1

Analyze Spain’s neutrality in World War II.

Identified topic

Franco’s role in the diplomatic relationships between the Allies and the Axis

This topic avoids generalities such as “Spain” and “World War II,” addressing instead on Franco’s role (a specific aspect of “Spain”) and the diplomatic relations between the Allies and Axis (a specific aspect of World War II).

Sample assignment 2

Analyze one of Homer’s epic similes in the Iliad.

The relationship between the portrayal of warfare and the epic simile about Simoisius at 4.547-64.

This topic focuses on a single simile and relates it to a single aspect of the Iliad ( warfare being a major theme in that work).

Developing a Thesis Statement–Additional information

Your assignment may suggest several ways of looking at a topic, or it may name a fairly general concept that you will explore or analyze in your paper. You’ll want to read your assignment carefully, looking for key terms that you can use to focus your topic.

Sample assignment: Analyze Spain’s neutrality in World War II Key terms: analyze, Spain’s neutrality, World War II

After you’ve identified the key words in your topic, the next step is to read about them in several sources, or generate as much information as possible through an analysis of your topic. Obviously, the more material or knowledge you have, the more possibilities will be available for a strong argument. For the sample assignment above, you’ll want to look at books and articles on World War II in general, and Spain’s neutrality in particular.

As you consider your options, you must decide to focus on one aspect of your topic. This means that you cannot include everything you’ve learned about your topic, nor should you go off in several directions. If you end up covering too many different aspects of a topic, your paper will sprawl and be unconvincing in its argument, and it most likely will not fulfull the assignment requirements.

For the sample assignment above, both Spain’s neutrality and World War II are topics far too broad to explore in a paper. You may instead decide to focus on Franco’s role in the diplomatic relationships between the Allies and the Axis , which narrows down what aspects of Spain’s neutrality and World War II you want to discuss, as well as establishes a specific link between those two aspects.

Before you go too far, however, ask yourself whether your topic is worthy of your efforts. Try to avoid topics that already have too much written about them (i.e., “eating disorders and body image among adolescent women”) or that simply are not important (i.e. “why I like ice cream”). These topics may lead to a thesis that is either dry fact or a weird claim that cannot be supported. A good thesis falls somewhere between the two extremes. To arrive at this point, ask yourself what is new, interesting, contestable, or controversial about your topic.

As you work on your thesis, remember to keep the rest of your paper in mind at all times . Sometimes your thesis needs to evolve as you develop new insights, find new evidence, or take a different approach to your topic.

Derive a main point from topic

Once you have a topic, you will have to decide what the main point of your paper will be. This point, the “controlling idea,” becomes the core of your argument (thesis statement) and it is the unifying idea to which you will relate all your sub-theses. You can then turn this “controlling idea” into a purpose statement about what you intend to do in your paper.

Look for patterns in your evidence

Compose a purpose statement.

Consult the examples below for suggestions on how to look for patterns in your evidence and construct a purpose statement.

• Franco first tried to negotiate with the Axis
• Franco turned to the Allies when he couldn’t get some concessions that he wanted from the Axis

Possible conclusion:

Spain’s neutrality in WWII occurred for an entirely personal reason: Franco’s desire to preserve his own (and Spain’s) power.

Purpose statement

This paper will analyze Franco’s diplomacy during World War II to see how it contributed to Spain’s neutrality.

• The simile compares Simoisius to a tree, which is a peaceful, natural image.
• The tree in the simile is chopped down to make wheels for a chariot, which is an object used in warfare.

At first, the simile seems to take the reader away from the world of warfare, but we end up back in that world by the end.

This paper will analyze the way the simile about Simoisius at 4.547-64 moves in and out of the world of warfare.

Derive purpose statement from topic

To find out what your “controlling idea” is, you have to examine and evaluate your evidence . As you consider your evidence, you may notice patterns emerging, data repeated in more than one source, or facts that favor one view more than another. These patterns or data may then lead you to some conclusions about your topic and suggest that you can successfully argue for one idea better than another.

For instance, you might find out that Franco first tried to negotiate with the Axis, but when he couldn’t get some concessions that he wanted from them, he turned to the Allies. As you read more about Franco’s decisions, you may conclude that Spain’s neutrality in WWII occurred for an entirely personal reason: his desire to preserve his own (and Spain’s) power. Based on this conclusion, you can then write a trial thesis statement to help you decide what material belongs in your paper.

Sometimes you won’t be able to find a focus or identify your “spin” or specific argument immediately. Like some writers, you might begin with a purpose statement just to get yourself going. A purpose statement is one or more sentences that announce your topic and indicate the structure of the paper but do not state the conclusions you have drawn . Thus, you might begin with something like this:

• This paper will look at modern language to see if it reflects male dominance or female oppression.
• I plan to analyze anger and derision in offensive language to see if they represent a challenge of society’s authority.

At some point, you can turn a purpose statement into a thesis statement. As you think and write about your topic, you can restrict, clarify, and refine your argument, crafting your thesis statement to reflect your thinking.

As you work on your thesis, remember to keep the rest of your paper in mind at all times. Sometimes your thesis needs to evolve as you develop new insights, find new evidence, or take a different approach to your topic.

Compose a draft thesis statement

If you are writing a paper that will have an argumentative thesis and are having trouble getting started, the techniques in the table below may help you develop a temporary or “working” thesis statement.

Begin with a purpose statement that you will later turn into a thesis statement.

Assignment: Discuss the history of the Reform Party and explain its influence on the 1990 presidential and Congressional election.

Purpose Statement: This paper briefly sketches the history of the grassroots, conservative, Perot-led Reform Party and analyzes how it influenced the economic and social ideologies of the two mainstream parties.

Question-to-Assertion

If your assignment asks a specific question(s), turn the question(s) into an assertion and give reasons why it is true or reasons for your opinion.

Assignment : What do Aylmer and Rappaccini have to be proud of? Why aren’t they satisfied with these things? How does pride, as demonstrated in “The Birthmark” and “Rappaccini’s Daughter,” lead to unexpected problems?

Beginning thesis statement: Alymer and Rappaccinni are proud of their great knowledge; however, they are also very greedy and are driven to use their knowledge to alter some aspect of nature as a test of their ability. Evil results when they try to “play God.”

Write a sentence that summarizes the main idea of the essay you plan to write.

Main idea: The reason some toys succeed in the market is that they appeal to the consumers’ sense of the ridiculous and their basic desire to laugh at themselves.

Make a list of the ideas that you want to include; consider the ideas and try to group them.

• nature = peaceful
• war matériel = violent (competes with 1?)
• need for time and space to mourn the dead
• war is inescapable (competes with 3?)

Use a formula to arrive at a working thesis statement (you will revise this later).

• although most readers of _______ have argued that _______, closer examination shows that _______.
• _______ uses _______ and _____ to prove that ________.
• phenomenon x is a result of the combination of __________, __________, and _________.

What to keep in mind as you draft an initial thesis statement

Beginning statements obtained through the methods illustrated above can serve as a framework for planning or drafting your paper, but remember they’re not yet the specific, argumentative thesis you want for the final version of your paper. In fact, in its first stages, a thesis statement usually is ill-formed or rough and serves only as a planning tool.

As you write, you may discover evidence that does not fit your temporary or “working” thesis. Or you may reach deeper insights about your topic as you do more research, and you will find that your thesis statement has to be more complicated to match the evidence that you want to use.

You must be willing to reject or omit some evidence in order to keep your paper cohesive and your reader focused. Or you may have to revise your thesis to match the evidence and insights that you want to discuss. Read your draft carefully, noting the conclusions you have drawn and the major ideas which support or prove those conclusions. These will be the elements of your final thesis statement.

Sometimes you will not be able to identify these elements in your early drafts, but as you consider how your argument is developing and how your evidence supports your main idea, ask yourself, “ What is the main point that I want to prove/discuss? ” and “ How will I convince the reader that this is true? ” When you can answer these questions, then you can begin to refine the thesis statement.

Refine and polish the thesis statement

To get to your final thesis, you’ll need to refine your draft thesis so that it’s specific and arguable.

• Ask if your draft thesis addresses the assignment
• Question each part of your draft thesis
• Clarify vague phrases and assertions
• Investigate alternatives to your draft thesis

Consult the example below for suggestions on how to refine your draft thesis statement.

Sample Assignment

Choose an activity and define it as a symbol of American culture. Your essay should cause the reader to think critically about the society which produces and enjoys that activity.

• Ask The phenomenon of drive-in facilities is an interesting symbol of american culture, and these facilities demonstrate significant characteristics of our society.This statement does not fulfill the assignment because it does not require the reader to think critically about society.

Drive-ins are an interesting symbol of American culture because they represent Americans’ significant creativity and business ingenuity.

Among the types of drive-in facilities familiar during the twentieth century, drive-in movie theaters best represent American creativity, not merely because they were the forerunner of later drive-ins and drive-throughs, but because of their impact on our culture: they changed our relationship to the automobile, changed the way people experienced movies, and changed movie-going into a family activity.

While drive-in facilities such as those at fast-food establishments, banks, pharmacies, and dry cleaners symbolize America’s economic ingenuity, they also have affected our personal standards.

While drive-in facilities such as those at fast- food restaurants, banks, pharmacies, and dry cleaners symbolize (1) Americans’ business ingenuity, they also have contributed (2) to an increasing homogenization of our culture, (3) a willingness to depersonalize relationships with others, and (4) a tendency to sacrifice quality for convenience.

This statement is now specific and fulfills all parts of the assignment. This version, like any good thesis, is not self-evident; its points, 1-4, will have to be proven with evidence in the body of the paper. The numbers in this statement indicate the order in which the points will be presented. Depending on the length of the paper, there could be one paragraph for each numbered item or there could be blocks of paragraph for even pages for each one.

Complete the final thesis statement

The bottom line.

As you move through the process of crafting a thesis, you’ll need to remember four things:

• Context matters! Think about your course materials and lectures. Try to relate your thesis to the ideas your instructor is discussing.
• As you go through the process described in this section, always keep your assignment in mind . You will be more successful when your thesis (and paper) responds to the assignment than if it argues a semi-related idea.
• Your thesis statement should be precise, focused, and contestable ; it should predict the sub-theses or blocks of information that you will use to prove your argument.
• Make sure that you keep the rest of your paper in mind at all times. Change your thesis as your paper evolves, because you do not want your thesis to promise more than your paper actually delivers.

In the beginning, the thesis statement was a tool to help you sharpen your focus, limit material and establish the paper’s purpose. When your paper is finished, however, the thesis statement becomes a tool for your reader. It tells the reader what you have learned about your topic and what evidence led you to your conclusion. It keeps the reader on track–well able to understand and appreciate your argument.

Writing Process and Structure

This is an accordion element with a series of buttons that open and close related content panels.

Getting Started with Your Paper

Interpreting Writing Assignments from Your Courses

Generating Ideas for

Creating an Argument

Thesis vs. Purpose Statements

Architecture of Arguments

Working with Sources

Quoting and Paraphrasing Sources

Using Literary Quotations

Citing Sources in Your Paper

Drafting Your Paper

Generating Ideas for Your Paper

Introductions

Paragraphing

Developing Strategic Transitions

Conclusions

Revising Your Paper

Peer Reviews

Reverse Outlines

Revising an Argumentative Paper

Revision Strategies for Longer Projects

Finishing Your Paper

Twelve Common Errors: An Editing Checklist

How to Proofread your Paper

Seeking Feedback from Others

Writing Collaboratively

Collaborative and Group Writing

Reference management. Clean and simple.

What is a thesis statement? [with example]

What is a thesis statement?

Purpose of a thesis statement, how to write the best thesis statement, thesis statement example, frequently asked questions about thesis statements, related articles.

A thesis statement is a concise description of the goal of your work. This element is one of the most essential components of academic writing , as it tells your readers what they can expect in your paper.

A thesis statement is the main argument of your paper or thesis.

If you find yourself in the process of writing a a paper, but you don't know how to create a thesis statement , you've come to the right place. In the next paragraphs, you will learn about the most important elements of a thesis statement and how to come up with one.

A thesis statement highlights the main topic, shows how it will evolve, and conveys clearly the aim of your work. It does not only share the topic but it conveys the conclusion you came up with.

A good thesis statement provides directions for the development of the topic throughout the paper. In sum, this element of academic writing is crucial to sound research .

You can create a great thesis statement by following the format we outlined in our guide How to write a thesis statement .

In general, you should adhere to the following tips to write the best thesis statement:

• Focus the main idea of your thesis into one or two sentences.
• Write the answer to the main question of your topic.
• Clearly state your position in relation to the topic.
• Do not state the obvious. Give a disputable stance that requires evidence.

Tip: To check if your thesis is clear, explain it to a peer or colleague. If they are confused, then you likely need to re-write it.

Here's an example of a thesis statement:

In what follows, I will explore Fiorina’s position in more depth, focusing especially on her claim that technology is "a great tool for democratization." Ultimately, I argue that the primary problem with Fiorina’s stance lies in her laissez-faire understanding of technology. By granting technology a kind of independent existence apart from human motivation and intent—by positing that "technology permits anybody to play," as if it possesses an autonomy all its own—Fiorina unwittingly opens the way for the very kind of discriminatory and undemocratic mechanisms that her position seemingly rejects.

Tip: Once you finish your paper, return to your thesis statement to make sure that it reflects what you actually wrote.

A thesis statement is part of the introduction of your paper. It is usually found in the first or second paragraph to let the reader know your research purpose from the beginning.

In general, a thesis statement should have one or two sentences. It really depends on your academic and expertise level. Take a look at our guide about the length of thesis statements, for more insight on this topic.

Here is a list of Thesis Statement Examples that will help you understand better how to write them.

Yes. Every good essay should include a thesis statement as part of its introduction. Of course, if you are a high school student you are not expected to have an extremely elaborate statement. A couple of clear sentences indicating the aim of your essay will be more than enough.

Here is a great YouTube tutorial showing How To Write An Essay: Thesis Statements .

How to Write a Thesis Statement

MSt, Women's, Gender & Sexuality Studies (University of Oxford)

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What is a thesis statement?

Your thesis statement says exactly what you’re trying to argue in your essay. It captures all the major elements of your argument — the evidence you’re examining, the specific point you’re making, and why it matters. Your thesis is the engine of the essay, driving your argument forward. All your evidence, and the points you conclude from it, direct back to your thesis statement.

How do you capture an entire argument in one statement? While it can take some editing to hone in on your core argument, and articulate it clearly as a thesis, a great thesis statement sets your essay up for success by laying out exactly what you need to prove.

This guide — which borrows some examples and techniques from Andrea Scott’s Formulating a Thesis , Erik Simpson’s Five Ways of Looking at a Thesis , and Keith Shaw’s Thesis Test — will equip you with the tools to write a strong thesis statement — whether you’re writing your first essay or your dissertation.

The question (before the thesis)

A good essay starts not with a statement, but with a question. Asking a good question can be more important than the argument itself: it defines the scope of the essay, its place within the scholarship/field of study, and hints at its significance. Write your question explicitly, to define for your readers and yourself the problem/puzzle/contradiction that motivates your essay.

Your thesis statement is the answer to the question you pose. Before writing your thesis, you need to figure out the question you want to answer. 

• Is there a tension or contradiction that needs explaining?
• Are there conflicting views on your topic? How would you reconcile them?
• Do the standard views of this topic need to be reconsidered?
• Is there something that seems insignificant or tangential that is actually important?
• Is there an approach to this topic that hasn’t yet been explored?
• Is there a gap in the scholarship that needs to be filled?

Coming up with an interesting, arguable question ensures that you will have an interesting, arguable thesis. 

Key qualities of a thesis statement (The Thesis Test)

How can you tell that the thesis you’ve written is a strong one? Check your thesis against these qualities of a good thesis statement:

A good thesis is:

• INTERESTING

Let’s break down what we mean by each of these qualities.

1. The thesis is ARGUABLE

The thesis statement is, above all, an argument. Does your thesis make a claim that a reasonable person could argue against?

Take these examples: 

• Romeo and Juliet is a powerful story of failed love.
• By telling a powerful story of failed love, Romeo and Juliet demonstrates the destructive effects of family pride.
• By comparing versions of the “balcony scene” in three film adaptations of Romeo and Juliet , we can see how the choice of setting for the adaptations affects how “true love” is presented in these movies.

The first example is not an arguable statement; it’s self-evident from reading the play, and a personable person can’t argue against it.

The second example is slightly better because it starts to get more specific, but it still essentially summarizes the main point of the play. Its argument is essentially the moral of the story.

The third example is finally an arguable thesis: it could be argued against, and it requires careful analysis of evidence in order to prove its point.

Sometimes, statements might seem arguable because they require careful attention to the text. For example, you might write:

By examining the cultural influences on the twins in Pleasantville, we can see that David’s nostalgia for the 1950s is motivated by effective media strategies and his loneliness; on the other hand, his sister, Jennifer, does not feel nostalgic for the 1950s because of her strong friendships and feminist values.

This statement looks like it might be a good thesis. It says something that might not be immediately clear on a first watch of the movie and shows that you’ve paid close attention to the text to find evidence for these points. However, this thesis statement ultimately falls short: this essay would only provide a deeper look at what is motivating each of the characters. It wouldn’t actually make a larger point based on these observations or an original argument. 

Let’s compare this example to an arguable thesis statement: 

By looking closely at the issues of race and gender in Pleasantville, we can see that although the film attempts to expose and critique the inequities of the 1950s, its lack of diversity, troubling resolution, incomplete support of feminism, and idolization of the white man play directly into “whitewashing” and patriarchal tendencies.

This essay would include a close reading of the film in service of a larger point. The writer is doing more than providing a plot summary or pointing out details; they are analyzing the text in order to make an original argument.

2. The thesis is MANAGEABLE

Not all thesis statements are created equal. Does your thesis make a claim that can be reasonably proven with the evidence at hand and within the scope of your paper? Part of making your thesis arguable requires making it manageable with the evidence you have.

A book-length dissertation can make a larger, riskier claim than a short essay on Wuthering Heights . There is only so much you can argue when you only have five pages or when you’re drawing all your conclusions from one study. Don’t sell yourself short, but keep in mind your limitations and tailor your thesis to them.

Here are a few examples of theses that go beyond a manageable scope, and how they can be altered to argue within the scope of the evidence:

UNMANAGEABLE: By looking at Henry David Thoreau’s poem “I Am a Parcel of Vain Strivings Tied,” we can see that Transcendentalism is not actually about self-reliance, as the speaker of the poem is saved through outside aid. 

• You can’t make an argument about the core tenets of a philosophical and literary movement only through a close reading of one poem by one of its contributors. 

MANAGEABLE: While Transcendentalism is known for its emphasis on self-reliance, the speaker of Henry David Thoreau’s poem “I Am a Parcel of Vain Strivings Tied” expresses dependence on a “kind hand.” An examination of chance and intention in this poem reveals that the speaker is transformed by a recognition of outside aid. This reading offers a new perspective on what “self-reliance” can look like.

• This reworded thesis emphasizes how this poem does something unexpected without claiming that it totally changes Transcendentalism. Instead, this thesis focuses on what can be proven within the poem and understands the scope of the new perspective it provides.

UNMANAGEABLE: The results of my study — that more members of my neighborhood rated environmental issues as a higher priority than labor issues — shows that middle class voters care more about social issues than economic issues.

• This thesis makes a lot of assumptions without much evidence to back it up. Is your neighborhood representative of middle class voters throughout the country? Did you just ask about environmental versus labor issues? Are both of those actually representative of these broader categories “social” and “economic” issues?

MANAGEABLE: Despite expressing more concern about environmental issues than labor issues, research revealed that more of my neighbors participate in union activities than a recycling program. This study shows a disconnect between values and action in my neighborhood.

• This thesis statement now makes a claim about this neighborhood specifically rather than making sweeping generalizations. 

UNMANAGEABLE: If the Union Army had lost at the Battle of Gettysburg, then the Confederate Army would have taken Pennsylvania and DC and won the Civil War.

• This thesis isn’t arguable or manageable; it makes an argument about a hypothetical situation that can’t really be proven with evidence — certainly not without a lot of it.

MANAGEABLE: In newspaper coverage and speeches made about the Battle of Gettysburg (including Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address), Union media and politicians created the sense that the Battle of Gettysburg had turned the tide of the war long before victory was assured on the battlefield.

• This thesis is still about the importance of the Battle of Gettysburg, but it roots it in specific evidence rather than speculation.

3. The thesis is INTERESTING

Does your thesis address a clear question/puzzle/contradiction? Does it go beyond the obvious? Does it say something original ?

Consider these two different theses:

• Romeo and Juliet is a tale of “star-crossed” lovers. Throughout the play, we see how the cards are stacked against Romeo and Juliet and they are fated to meet a tragic end.

Although we are told from the beginning that it is a tale of "star-crossed lovers," Romeo and Juliet produces its tragedy by calling attention to a series of near-misses, places where the protagonists' downfall could be avoided.

The first example is barely arguable and it is not very interesting. It seems like it’s saying something obvious and self-evident about the play.

The second example, however, says something more strange. It reads against the grain : we think the play is about one thing, but actually (this writer asserts), it’s about the opposite. This makes for a much more interesting thesis, one that offers an unexpected perspective on the play.

Reading against the grain is one technique for articulating an interesting thesis. Here are some other moves:

• There is an inconsistency/contradiction/tension that needs explaining.
• This case study can tell us something about a larger topic/issue.
• Scholars disagree about this, and my argument will show a new perspective or reconcile their thoughts.
• This method/approach has never been applied to this topic.
• It seems like one thing is the case (or we thought it was always this way), but that perspective needs challenging.

4. The thesis is IMPORTANT

Does your thesis have some significance in the context of existing scholarship/the field? Interesting theses are also more likely to be important because they’re saying something original that hasn’t been stated before.

An important thesis usually fills a gap in the existing literature on the topic. What hasn’t been said before? Is there a new approach you’re providing? A new perspective? It can also change the way we think about the topic. How does your particular reading change the way we think about this book or movie or political movement? 

A good thesis has stakes ; it answers the question “so what?” clearly. Let’s look again at our example:

This thesis statement currently has some implied stakes — it changes the way we think about the play. But in order for it to be a strong thesis, it would need another sentence making those stakes explicit.

Your thesis should be manageable, and so should its stakes. A five-page paper on metaphors related to hunger in a certain novel won’t solve food scarcity. But you can still say something worth reading. Have you articulated something in your essay, however small, that hasn’t quite been said before?

5. The thesis is SPECIFIC

Your thesis should say something about your topic specifically — and about something specific within your topic.

A thesis statement says something about the topic you discuss exclusively . If it could apply to various topics, it’s not specific enough. Take these examples:

• Bad: Romeo and Juliet is a powerful story of failed love.
• Not great: By telling a powerful story of failed love, Romeo and Juliet demonstrates the destructive effects of family pride.
• Nearly there: Mercutio might seem like a minor character in Romeo and Juliet , but his language actually tells us something important about how the play works.
• Spot on: Although we are told from the beginning that it is a tale of “star-crossed lovers,” Romeo and Juliet produces its tragedy by calling attention to a series of near-misses, places where the protagonists' downfall could be avoided.

The first example is the worst offender: if you take out “ Romeo and Juliet ” you could slot in so many other texts. The second example is not much better: it gets slightly more specific by discussing family pride, but even so, you could probably think of several other stories that could replace Romeo and Juliet here. 

The third example might seem like it’s specific — it names a specific character and gestures toward the specific evidence it analyzes (his language) — but it ends vaguely. What exactly about the play does Mercutio’s language tell us?

The final example fully passes the test; it says something specific to Romeo and Juliet , includes a specific quote, and requires specific incidents as evidence.

In addition, your thesis should make a lot of information irrelevant . Your thesis should narrow in on a small part of the topic or a motif you’re analyzing. This should ultimately apply to the topic as a whole and have broader implications, but your thesis focuses on specific pieces of evidence that you’ll be examining. Looking at the examples above, the first and second examples ask for evidence from the whole play and invite plot summary. On the other hand, the third example will specifically examine “near-misses” and the fourth will analyze Mercutio’s speeches. 

Magic Thesis Statement (MTS)

The Magic Thesis Statement helps you translate your argument into a well-worded thesis. It serves as a checklist to make sure you have all the necessary elements of a good essay: evidence, original argument, stakes. Most thesis statements that can fit in the MTS also exhibit the characteristics discussed above. 

Try writing your thesis following the MTS:

By looking at [EVIDENCE] through [LENS/SCHOLARLY APPROACH] , we can see [ARGUMENT] [ which most people don’t see ]. This is important because [STAKES] .

Let’s break this down:

By looking at [EVIDENCE] ,

The first blank in the MTS helps identify the precise evidence you’ll be analyzing in your essay. Your thesis should be specific and make a lot of material irrelevant. Focus on what specifically you’ll be analyzing.

• Too broad: “By looking at Shakespeare’s Hamlet ….”
• Getting closer: “By looking at death in Shakespeare’s Hamlet… .”
• That’s better: “By looking at various images of corpses in Shakespeare’s Hamlet….”

through [LENS/SCHOLARLY APPROACH]

This is an optional part of the MTS; not all essays require it. But if you’re examining your evidence through a particularly scholarly approach or lens, it can be particularly helpful. You can also introduce a particular key word that serves as a guiding method here too. Consider these examples: 

• By looking at doubling and doppelgangers in the film Last Night in Soho through Freud’s theory of the uncanny….
• By reading the moors in Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights as a liminal space….

we can see [ARGUMENT] .

This next blank in the MTS invites you to state your specific argument (based on the evidence you’ve examined). 

The phrase “which most people don’t see” should not actually appear in your thesis, but it reminds you that your argument should be original and interesting. Here are some examples of the MTS through this point.

By examining how Jane Eyre and Our Mutual Friend stage trials and transformations, we can see how a trial is needed to change a character’s societal and spiritual status, thus equalizing the novel’s heroes and heroines and sanctioning their final marriages.

By examining Tolstoy’s use of “language of age” at turning points in Prince Andrei’s life, we can see that youth, paradoxically, signals moments when Andrei achieves a more mature understanding of the world.

Lots of developing writers make the mistake of ending here. You’ve stated your evidence and your argument, but you’re not quite finished! At this point in your thesis, ask yourself “so what?”

Why does it matter that a trial is required before marriage? How does the use of “language of youth” at moments when Andrei matures change our reading of War and Peace or of Tolstoy’s understanding of youth?

This is important because [STAKES/“SO WHAT?”] .

The last blank in the MTS asks for the stakes of your argument. What new perspective does your essay offer? Why does your argument matter? What’s the big deal?

Push your argument one step further, explicitly stating what it offers to the conversation or why it’s important. Take this completed version of the example above.

By examining Tolstoy’s use of “language of age” at turning points in Prince Andrei’s life, we can see that youth, paradoxically, signals moments when Andrei achieves a more mature understanding of the world. This reading reveals that, for Andrei and for the novel, youth is not only associated with happiness: it allows for emotional complexity and an ability to discern deeper truths that is lost as the characters age.

The last sentence does so much for the thesis. It shows a deep engagement with the text; rather than simply noticing a pattern, the right is truly making an argument about one of the themes of the novel. 

You are allowed to get creative about how exactly the elements of the MTS appear in your thesis. Take this example:

Although the main plot of The Princess Bride rests on the natural power of true love, an examination of the way that fighting sticks (baseball bats, tree branches, and swords) link the frame story to the romance plot suggests that the grandson is being trained in true love. Rather than presenting true love as natural, the film instead suggests that it is socialized.

This thesis doesn’t exactly read as the MTS, but all the elements are there, and it could be rewritten to fit the MTS:

By looking at the use of fighting sticks (baseball bats, tree branches, and swords) in The Princess Bride, we can see how they link the frame story to the romance plot and suggest that the grandson is being trained in true love. This is important because it reconsiders true love — not as natural, despite the importance of its natural power in the romance, but as socialized.

Location of the thesis statement

The thesis statement appears at the end of the introduction . Use your introduction to hook the reader and orient them to the information they need to understand your argument (what text you’re examining, what key terms you’re using, what scholars you’re in conversation with). Then, lay out your thesis before transitioning into your body paragraphs.

Sometimes, a long thesis statement stands as a paragraph of its own. That’s okay, especially if your thesis has multiple sentences and steps.

Your thesis statement should again appear in your conclusion when you remind the reader of your full claim. It doesn’t need to be copy/pasted and exactly the same as it appeared in the introduction, but all of its elements should be reiterated for the reader.

Examples of strong thesis statements

Read the following examples of strong thesis statements, from essays and book chapters, and see if you can identify the different elements of a strong thesis and of the MTS within them.

Example 1: from “University Gothic, c. 1880–1910” by Minna Vuohelainen in Gothic Britain: Dark Places in the Provinces and Margins of the British Isles :

In this essay, I argue that the universities and university towns of fin-de-siècle Gothic manifest all these seemingly incompatible tendencies: while they are places of opportunity, learning and aspiration, their exclusivity nonetheless renders them inaccessible to outsiders while their privileged residents exist aloof from the real world, indulging in dangerous daydreams and experiments. If the Gothic mode typically undermines modern ideals of rationality and progress, ‘University Gothic’ reveals places of supposed learning not to be places of Enlightenment – encapsulating ‘both reason and visibility’ – at all but instead places of darkness where human beings are ruined.

Example 2: from Chapter 2 of Joshua Bennett’s Being Property Once Myself :

Following Afaa Weaver’s suggestion that “black men are the summary of weight,” I would like to track the way that black masculinity as heaviness, as excess, as adornment, as vanity, as exorbitance moves through Song of Solomon in the bodies of birds, how these animals, rather paradoxically, come to signal a certain boundedness to earth, an unwieldy abundance that limits all possibility of escape or futurity. Alongside Nahum Chandler and others, however, I would like to think imaginatively about what such exorbitance avails to us as a frame for imagining alternative black masculinities and to begin with the premise of abundance rather than absence. Using some of Morrison’s most well-known characters—Milkman Dead; his best friend, Guitar; and his father, Macon Dead II—as central examples, I will close read moments of interspecies interaction with birds in the text in an effort to elucidate the generous approach to thinking black masculinity, and black personhood in a broader sense, that Morrison’s work provides.

Example 3: from “‘White Christmas’: Technologies of the Self in the Digital Age” by Diana Stypinska and Andrea Rossi in Philosophical Reflections on Black Mirror :

By examining the central themes of the three stories of “White Christmas,” we will ask who we become as we enter into a relation with intelligent machines that, to different degrees, substitute, replace, or supplement parts of our “selves.” To be more precise, we will inquire into how, in the name of individual self-enhancement, digital technologies (and especially those based on the externalization and automatization of intellectual, relational, and emotional faculties) may alter the conditions under which we encounter both others and the world. By doing so, we will demonstrate that these interventions tend to produce what we will concernedly call a “subjective stasis” (see Section “Digital Technologies of the Self”). In conclusion, we shall show how the loss of the care of self, others, and the world that this entails exposes us to ubiquitous programs of governmental control.

What are the key elements of a good thesis statement?

A good thesis statement is:

Paige Elizabeth Allen has a Master’s degree in Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies from the University of Oxford and a Bachelor’s degree in English from Princeton University. Her research interests include monstrosity, the Gothic tradition, illness in literature and culture, and musical theatre. Her dissertation examined sentient haunted houses through the lenses of posthumanism and queer theory.