How To Write Introductions For Essays: Guidelines And Examples
An introduction is the first thing the readers will see when they will look at your essay. It must catch their attention and be interesting enough for them to continue reading. If you have problems with structuring decent introductions, then you are welcome to follow the recommendations given below:
Create a Hook
A hook is the first sentence that makes a reader wanting to read your essay. It must fascinate, intrigue or, if necessary, confuse him or her. There are different variants of hooks:
- Interesting fact.
- Anecdote.
- Question.
Surprise a reader with an interesting statistic or fact. However, make sure you won’t repeat it in the body of your paper. The hook should look something like this:
“An average blue whale reaches a length of three school buses”.
If your essay isn’t very formal, you can start your introduction with a humorous story that relates to the topic. It will put a reader in a good mood. For example:
The Dean asks the physics department, “Why do you need so much money for your experiments, laboratories, and equipment? Why aren’t you like the math department? They need only pencils, paper, and baskets for waste-paper. And the philosophy department is even better. They need only paper and pencils”.
A relevant and maybe thought-provoking question can draw a reader’s attention. It works the best with persuasive essays. For example:
“What would you do if you had superpowers? Would you help others or use the powers only for your own profit?”
Transition to the Thesis
- Explain the hook.
- Outline your argument.
A hook rarely demonstrates what your essay is about. So, make sure that you explain how it relates to the thesis.
The next step is to connect the beginning of your paper with its thesis. The best way to do this is to outline your argument. It could be an expert opinion concerning the subject, for example.
Create the Thesis
- Understand your thesis.
- Make your thesis a statement.
- Write down your thesis.
The thesis is a summary of what you are discussing in the paper. The thesis sentence must explain what your work is about.
The thesis always must be a statement. So, don’t structure it in the form of a question, list or anything else.
It must be one or two sentences that clearly reflect the argument of the essay. For example:
“Scientists have begun discussing if it was an asteroid or a comet that caused dinosaurs to become extinct”.
