English 110C.01

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English 110C.01

• Day 7

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Thesis Statements
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Thesis Statements (cont.)

• Q. What is a thesis?
• A. A thesis is the primary claim in a piece of
  writing that attempts to give meaning to evidence
  taken from a subject
• You can think of a thesis as the writers main
  argument (i.e. the main point he or she is
  making).
• Example Steven D. Starks main argument is that
  Oprah Winfrey is the leader in the talk show
  genre and reached that position by distinguishing
  herself from Phil Donahue and his journalistic
  approach to television talk shows by using a
  therapeutic method that privileged the personal
  over the political.

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Thesis Statements (cont.)

• What a Good Thesis Does
• It promotes thinking about the writers subject
  matter.
• It reduces scope (i.e. the subject matter of the
  writers essay).
• It contains tension, or conflict (i.e. a good
  thesis is complex) that the writer attempts to
  make sense of or resolve throughout the essay.

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Thesis Statements (cont.)

• What a Bad Thesis Does
• It shuts down thinking about the writers subject
  matter (e.g., presenting an argument that the
  writer has settled beforehand in his or her
  mind).
• It presents an idea that is too large and
  distracts the writer from thinking about its
  complexity.
• It makes the same general point over and over
  again.
• It includes too much information.
• Remember A good thesis includes only information
  that is important and relevant to the writers
  subject matter.

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Thesis Statements (cont.)

• How to Develop a Good Thesis
• Focus on an area of the subject in which it is
  possible to have multiple interpretations.
• Approach the thesis as a problem that you will
  try to solve in the body of your essay or as a
  hypothesis that you will test in the body of your
  paper.
• Repeatedly ask this question So What? Why is
  this problem important? Why does it matter?

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Recognizing and Fixing Weak Thesis Statements
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Recognizing and Fixing Weak Thesis Statements
(cont.)

• Remember a strong thesis makes a claim that
  requires analysis and is not something that would
  be obvious to ones readers.

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Recognizing and Fixing Weak Thesis Statements
(cont.)

• Weak Thesis Statement 1 Makes No Claim
• Example Steven D. Starks essay The Oprah
  Winfrey Show and the Talk-Show Furor delineates
  the evolution of the modern daytime talk show.
• The Problem the thesis does not make a point or
  take a position.
• Solution Raise specific issues that the essay
  will explore
• Example Steven D. Starks essay The Oprah
  Winfrey Show and the Talk-Show Furor delineates
  the evolution of the modern daytime talk show in
  an effort to show how Oprah Winfrey
  revolutionized the talk show genre in the 1980s
  by treating her talk show as a ministry, one
  that offered healing.

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Recognizing and Fixing Weak Thesis Statements
(cont.)

• Weak Thesis Statement 2 Obviously True or a
  Statement of Fact
• Example Oprah Winfrey is a daytime talk show
  host.
• The Problem the thesis is a true statement that
  does not require proof, and it is non-specific
  (i.e. vague).
• Solution Make an assertion about the subject
  matter in which it would be possible for ones
  reader to disagree or raise an issue about the
  subject matter
• Example Oprah Winfrey is the undisputed queen
  of the daytime television talk show genre, and
  her appeal is due in large part to her
  interactions with her guests in which she hugs
  them and cries with them.

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Recognizing and Fixing Weak Thesis Statements
(cont.)

• Weak Thesis Statement 3 Offers Personal
  Conviction as the Basis for the Claim
• Example Oprah Winfrey is not the leader of the
  talk show genre. The leading talk show host is
  Maury Povich because his shows are more
  interesting.
• The Problem the thesis is a judgment rather than
  a claim and offers only a personal conviction.

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Recognizing and Fixing Weak Thesis Statements
(cont.)

• The Solution Treat your thesis statement as an
  idea or claim about the meaning and importance of
  your subject matter that can be supported with
  evidence.
• Example While Oprah Winfreys success as a
  daytime talk show host has bred imitators such as
  Ricki Lake, Winfrey continues to dominate the
  talk show genre due to the reassurance she offers
  her viewers.

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Recognizing and Fixing Weak Thesis Statements
(cont.)

• Weak Thesis Statement 4 Makes an Overly Broad
  Claim
• Example Oprah Winfrey is a successful daytime
  talk show host.
• The Problem the thesis oversimplifies the
  matter, is too broad, and fails to address the
  complexity of Starks essay.
• The Solution Make your claims specific and
  discuss the complexity of your subject matter.
• Example According to Steven D. Stark, Oprah
  Winfrey is a successful daytime talk show host,
  but her success is due to many interrelated
  factors including her likeable personality, the
  intimacy she creates with her audience, and the
  therapeutic aura of her talk show. All of these
  factors work in tandem to set Winfrey apart from
  her contemporaries such as Maury Povich and Jenny
  Jones and therefore contribute to her success.