
The following strategies may help you move beyond merely summarizing the key points of your essay: How do I write an interesting, effective conclusion? As with introductions, the length of the conclusion should reflect the length of the essay. In some cases, a two-or-three paragraph conclusion may be appropriate. For most essays, one well-developed paragraph is sufficient for a conclusion.A good last sentence leaves your reader with something to think about, a concept in some way illuminated by what you’ve written in the paper. Broaden your focus a bit at the end of the essay.Try to convey some closing thoughts about the larger implications of your argument. Reflect upon the significance of what you’ve written. The conclusion, like much of the rest of the paper, involves critical thinking.Remind the reader of how the evidence you’ve presented has contributed to your thesis. If you wish to summarize-and often you must-do so in fresh language. A conclusion is not merely a summary of your points or a re-statement of your thesis.You can usually postpone background material to the body of the essay. Don’t give details and in-depth explanations that really belong in your body paragraphs.Don’t repeat the assignment specifications using the professor’s wording.Don’t provide dictionary definitions, especially of words your audience already knows.In fleshing out your introduction, you will want to avoid some common pitfalls: In a more technical paper, define a term that is possibly unfamiliar to your audience but is central to understanding the essay.

Lead up to your own contribution or intervention. In a science paper, explain key scientific concepts and refer to relevant literature.In an assignment that encourages personal reflection, you may draw on your own experiences in a research essay, the narrative may illustrate a common real-world scenario. Use a brief narrative or anecdote that exemplifies your reason for choosing the topic.Give some background information necessary for understanding the essay.Mention a common misperception that your thesis will argue against.Quote an expert (but be sure to introduce him or her first).Find a startling statistic that illustrates the seriousness of the problem you will address.How do I write an interesting, effective introduction?Ĭonsider these strategies for capturing your readers’ attention and for fleshing out your introduction: The longer the paper, the more useful a road map becomes. You may, for example, follow your thesis with a brief road map to your essay that sketches the basic structure of your argument. If your essay has a thesis, your thesis statement will typically appear at the end of your introduction, even though that is not a hard-and-fast rule.A common error is to begin too broadly or too far off topic. Generally, you want to raise your topic in your very first sentences. A twenty page paper may call for a two-page introduction, but a five-page paper will not. The size of your introduction should bear some relationship to the length and complexity of your paper. Your introduction may be longer than that, and it may take more than one paragraph, but be sure you know why. The introductions for most papers can be effectively written in one paragraph occupying half to three-quarters of the first page.Others write the introduction first but rewrite it significantly in light of what they end up saying in the body of their paper.

Some people write their introduction only after they have completed the rest of the essay.
