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Can you explain why readers will want to read an essay with this thesis? Can you
respond when a reader asked “so what?”
SAMPLE: ANALYSIS THESIS IN AN INTRODUCTORY PARAGRAPH
In her essay “Big Box Stores Are Bad for Main Street,” Betsy Taylor focuses not on the economic
effects of large chain stores but on the effects these stores have on the “soul” of America. She argues
that stores like Home Depot, Target, and Wal-Mart are bad for America because they draw people out
of downtown shopping districts and cause them to focus on consumption… But Taylor’s argument is
unconvincing because it focuses on sentimentality — on idealized images of a quaint Main Street —-
rather than on the roles that businesses play in consumers’ lives and communities. By ignoring the
complex economic relationship between large chain stores and their communities, Taylor incorrectly
assumes that simply getting rid of big-box stores would have a positive effect on America’s
communities.
“Rethinking Big Box Stores.” Sanchez. From A Writer’s Reference, 7th Edition, ed. by Diana
Hacker & Nancy Sommers, p. 75.
SAMPLE: THESIS IN FEATURE WRITING
In feature writing, the thesis states the main point or trend that will be reported on. It is not
always in the first paragraph and may be preceded by an anecdote that helps set the scene.
Mr. Muhammad and his followers had been killed by the C.I.A… In a secret deal, the C.I.A.
had agreed to kill him in exchange for access to airspace it had long sought so it could use
drones to hunt down its own enemies. That back-room bargain, described in detail for the first
time in interviews with more than a dozen officials in Pakistan and the United States, is critical
to understanding the origins of a covert drone war that began under the Bush administration
and expanded by President Obama, and is now the subject of fierce debate. The deal, a
month after a blistering internal report about abuses in the C.I.A.’s network of secret prisons,
paved the way for the C.I.A. to change its focus from capturing terrorists to killing them…
“Rise of the Predators: A Secret Deal on Drones, Sealed in Blood” by Mark Mazzetti. From the
New York Times, April 6, 2013.
SAMPLE: THESIS IN A PROFILE
In a profile, the thesis is often referred to as a nutgraf. The nutgraf is a summary point of what
the reporter learned from the individual being interviewed. It is often found a few paragraphs
into the piece, after the reporter has created a scene for where the interview is taking place
and provided a brief background of the individual being interviewed.
When television audiences hear the word “showrunner,” they often assume that that
person is responsible for the majority of the creative decisions on a show. But there is a
carousel of professionals involved in any production — there are the writers, the directors, the
executive producer, and the stars. [Pamela] Adlon spins all these plates at once. She has
evangelized to other show runners the importance of of directing. Issa Rae, the creator and
star of “Insecure,” wrote me in an e-mail, “She’s always exhausted and claims it’s worth it, but I
don’t want that life. She’s great at it and loves to challenge herself more and more each
season.” Rae added, “No thanks.”