Parts of a Solid Body Paragraph

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Parts of a Solid Body Paragraph

• Adapted from the APEC Formula for Effective
  Essay Writing and The Longman Handbook for
  Writers and Readers, Fourth Edition.

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Getting Started

• For the following exercise, imagine that a
  student is trying to write a 2/4 essay about the
  epic poem Beowulf.
• After looking at the students thesis statement
  and organizing statement, we will be taking a
  close look at how she writes her second body
  paragraph.

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Before We Start The Thesis Statement

• Here is the students thesis statement
• Beowulf shows that Anglo-Saxon society viewed
  women as the sustainers of their male
  counterparts.

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Before We Start The Organizing Statement

• Here is the students corresponding organizing
  statement (the proofs are numbered).
• Wealhtheow1 and the royal daugters2 serve their
  husbands and fathers in a variety of ways.

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Beginning the Body Paragraph The Topic Sentence

• First, the student needs a topic sentence. The
  topic sentence is like the thesis for the
  paragraph. It should tell the reader what the
  paragraph is about, or what is being proven in
  that paragraph.

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The Students Topic Sentence

• Since this is the second body paragraph, it
  should address the second proof. Lets see what
  the student writes
• Royal daughters of the Anglo-Saxon rulers serve
  their kings and fathers by marrying for political
  reasons.

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Okay, Now Show Me The Importance of Evidence

• With her topic sentence out of the way, the
  student can now move on to adding her evidence.
  Evidence is an example that is used to support
  the idea of the topic sentence. In a literature
  essay, evidence often takes the form of a
  quotation.

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The Students Evidence

• Okay, now lets see what evidence the student has
  come up with to support her topic sentence
• At one point in the poem, Hygelac must rely on a
  thane named Eofor. Eofor does not disappoint
  King Hygelac and as a result Hygelac gave Eofor
  his only daughter to bide at home with him, and
  honor and a bond (lines 2997 2998).

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Then, Tell Me Why Provide an Explanation!

• Once she has presented her evidence, the student
  still needs to tell her readers WHY her evidence
  is important. In other words, the student needs
  to provide an explanation.
• It is very easy to accidentally skip this
  important step, probably because a students
  reasoning behind her proof always seems obvious
  to the student.

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AN IMPORTANT REMINDER!

• You should never assume that the reader will make
  the same mental leap you have, and instead
  explain everything!
• This way, there will be no confusion as to why
  you reached the conclusion you did about your
  evidence.

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The Students Explanation

• Now, lets take a look and see if the student
  properly explained herself
• Hygelacs daughter is serving the political needs
  of her father by being a reward to a worthy
  thane. Her marriage also binds the thane to
  continued loyalty to his king since the ruler is
  also now his father-in-law.

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Bringing it Home to the Thesis Making a
Connection

• Of course, the student cannot simply rest on her
  explanation. She also needs to connect her work
  back to her thesis.
• This connection should wrap her paragraph up, and
  demonstrate how the evidence supported the topic
  sentence, and why this paragraph is important to
  her thesis.

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The Students Connection

• Lets see how the student connects her work back
  to her thesis about characters changing in their
  mindsets
• Based on this example, royal Anglo-Saxon women
  sustain their male counterparts by rewarding and
  securing the loyalty of warriors.

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Dont forget! Adding a Transition

• The best body paragraphs incorporate a transition
  into their topic sentence. This combination of a
  topic sentence and transition is called a
  boundary statement.
• A boundary statement begins with a reminder of
  material covered in the preceding paragraph. It
  then presents the topic sentence of the paragraph
  to come.

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Revising the Topic Sentence into a Boundary
Statement.

• The student is going to revise her topic sentence
  into a boundary statement.
• Remember that her first proof was about
  Wealhtheow, and her second proof (the one shes
  working on now) concerns royal women.

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Here are the Students Revisions!

• Here is the students original topic sentence
• Royal daughters of the Anglo-Saxon rulers serve
  their kings and fathers by marrying for political
  reasons.
• Here is her topic sentence revised to become a
  boundary statement
• Unlike the peasant women who sustain the physical
  needs of the men, royal daughters of the
  Anglo-Saxon rulers serve their kings and fathers
  by marrying for political reasons.

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The Finished Product

• Here is the students complete body paragraph
• Unlike the peasant women who sustain the
  physical needs of the men, royal daughters of the
  Anglo-Saxon rulers serve their kings and fathers
  by marrying for political reasons. At one point
  in the poem, Hygelac must rely on a thane named
  Eofor. Eofor does not disappoint King Hygelac
  and as a result Hygelac gave Eofor his only
  daughter to bide at home with him, and honor and
  a bond (lines 2997 2998). Hygelacs daughter
  is serving the political needs of her father by
  being a reward to a worthy thane. Her marriage
  also binds the thane to continued loyalty to his
  king since the ruler is also now his
  father-in-law. Based on this example, royal
  Anglo-Saxon women sustain their male counterparts
  by rewarding and securing the loyalty of
  warriors.
• While further evidence would help this body
  paragraph, the end result is logical, coherent,
  and well argued!

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THE END