how can i find the thesis in an article

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Identifying Thesis Statements, Claims, and Evidence

Thesis statements, claims, and evidence, introduction.

The three important parts of an argumentative essay are:

• A thesis statement is a sentence, usually in the first paragraph of an article, that expresses the article’s main point. It is not a fact; it’s a statement that you could disagree with.  Therefore, the author has to convince you that the statement is correct.
• Claims are statements that support the thesis statement, but like the thesis statement,  are not facts.  Because a claim is not a fact, it requires supporting evidence.
• Evidence is factual information that shows a claim is true.  Usually, writers have to conduct their own research to find evidence that supports their ideas.  The evidence may include statistical (numerical) information, the opinions of experts, studies, personal experience, scholarly articles, or reports.

Each paragraph in the article is numbered at the beginning of the first sentence.

Paragraphs 1-7

Identifying the Thesis Statement. Paragraph 2 ends with this thesis statement:  “People’s prior convictions should not be held against them in their pursuit of higher learning.”  It is a thesis statement for three reasons:

• It is the article’s main argument.
• It is not a fact. Someone could think that peoples’ prior convictions should affect their access to higher education.
• It requires evidence to show that it is true.

Finding Claims.  A claim is statement that supports a thesis statement.  Like a thesis, it is not a fact so it needs to be supported by evidence.

You have already identified the article’s thesis statement: “People’s prior convictions should not be held against them in their pursuit of higher learning.”

Like the thesis, a claim be an idea that the author believes to be true, but others may not agree.  For this reason, a claim needs support.

• Question 1.  Can you find a claim in paragraph 3? Look for a statement that might be true, but needs to be supported by evidence.

Finding Evidence. 

Paragraphs 5-7 offer one type of evidence to support the claim you identified in the last question.  Reread paragraphs 5-7.

• Question 2.  Which word best describes the kind of evidence included in those paragraphs:  A report, a study, personal experience of the author, statistics, or the opinion of an expert?

Paragraphs 8-10

Finding Claims

Paragraph 8 makes two claims:

• “The United States needs to have more of this transformative power of education.”
• “The country [the United States] incarcerates more people and at a higher rate than any other nation in the world.”

Finding Evidence

Paragraphs 8 and 9 include these statistics as evidence:

• “The U.S. accounts for less than 5 percent of the world population but nearly 25 percent of the incarcerated population around the globe.”
• “Roughly 2.2 million people in the United States are essentially locked away in cages. About 1 in 5 of those people are locked up for drug offenses.”

Question 3. Does this evidence support claim 1 from paragraph 8 (about the transformative power of education) or claim 2 (about the U.S.’s high incarceration rate)?

Question 4. Which word best describes this kind of evidence:  A report, a study, personal experience of the author, statistics, or the opinion of an expert?

Paragraphs 11-13

Remember that in paragraph 2, Andrisse writes that:

• “People’s prior convictions should not be held against them in their pursuit of higher learning.” (Thesis statement)
• “More must be done to remove the various barriers that exist between formerly incarcerated individuals such as myself and higher education.” (Claim)

Now, review paragraphs 11-13 (Early life of crime). In these paragraphs, Andrisse shares more of his personal story.

Question 5. Do you think his personal story is evidence for statement 1 above, statement 2, both, or neither one?

Question 6. Is yes, which one(s)?

Question 7. Do you think his personal story is good evidence?  Does it persuade you to agree with him?

Paragraphs 14-16

Listed below are some claims that Andrisse makes in paragraph 14.  Below each claim, please write the supporting evidence from paragraphs 15 and 16.  If you can’t find any evidence,  write “none.”

Claim:  The more education a person has, the higher their income.

Claim: Similarly, the more education a person has, the less likely they are to return to prison.

Paragraphs 17-19

Evaluating Evidence

In these paragraphs, Andrisse returns to his personal story. He explains how his father’s illness inspired him to become a doctor and shares that he was accepted to only one of six biomedical graduate programs.

Do you think that this part of Andrisse’s story serves as evidence (support) for any claims that you’ve identified so far?   Or does it support his general thesis that “people’s prior convictions should not be held against them in pursuit of higher learning?” Please explain your answer.

Paragraphs 20-23

Andrisse uses his personal experience to repeat a claim he makes in paragraph 3, that “more must be done to remove the various barriers that exist between formerly incarcerated individuals such as myself and higher education.”

To support this statement, he has to show that barriers exist.  One barrier he identifies is the cost of college. He then explains the advantages of offering Pell grants to incarcerated people.

What evidence in paragraphs 21-23 support his claim about the success of Pell grants?

Paragraphs  24-28 (Remove questions about drug crimes from federal aid forms)

In this section, Andrisse argues that federal aid forms should not ask students about prior drug convictions.  To support that claim, he includes a statistic about students who had to answer a similar question on their college application.

What statistic does he include?

In paragraph 25, he assumes that if a question about drug convictions discourages students from applying to college, it will probably also discourage them from applying for federal aid.

What do you think about this assumption?   Do you think it’s reasonable or do you think Andrisse needs stronger evidence to show that federal aid forms should not ask students about prior drug convictions?

Supporting English Language Learners in First-Year College Composition Copyright © by Breana Bayraktar is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

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Writing a Paper: Thesis Statements

Basics of thesis statements.

The thesis statement is the brief articulation of your paper's central argument and purpose. You might hear it referred to as simply a "thesis." Every scholarly paper should have a thesis statement, and strong thesis statements are concise, specific, and arguable. Concise means the thesis is short: perhaps one or two sentences for a shorter paper. Specific means the thesis deals with a narrow and focused topic, appropriate to the paper's length. Arguable means that a scholar in your field could disagree (or perhaps already has!).

Strong thesis statements address specific intellectual questions, have clear positions, and use a structure that reflects the overall structure of the paper. Read on to learn more about constructing a strong thesis statement.

Being Specific

This thesis statement has no specific argument:

Needs Improvement: In this essay, I will examine two scholarly articles to find similarities and differences.

This statement is concise, but it is neither specific nor arguable—a reader might wonder, "Which scholarly articles? What is the topic of this paper? What field is the author writing in?" Additionally, the purpose of the paper—to "examine…to find similarities and differences" is not of a scholarly level. Identifying similarities and differences is a good first step, but strong academic argument goes further, analyzing what those similarities and differences might mean or imply.

Better: In this essay, I will argue that Bowler's (2003) autocratic management style, when coupled with Smith's (2007) theory of social cognition, can reduce the expenses associated with employee turnover.

The new revision here is still concise, as well as specific and arguable.  We can see that it is specific because the writer is mentioning (a) concrete ideas and (b) exact authors.  We can also gather the field (business) and the topic (management and employee turnover). The statement is arguable because the student goes beyond merely comparing; he or she draws conclusions from that comparison ("can reduce the expenses associated with employee turnover").

Making a Unique Argument

This thesis draft repeats the language of the writing prompt without making a unique argument:

Needs Improvement: The purpose of this essay is to monitor, assess, and evaluate an educational program for its strengths and weaknesses. Then, I will provide suggestions for improvement.

You can see here that the student has simply stated the paper's assignment, without articulating specifically how he or she will address it. The student can correct this error simply by phrasing the thesis statement as a specific answer to the assignment prompt.

Better: Through a series of student interviews, I found that Kennedy High School's antibullying program was ineffective. In order to address issues of conflict between students, I argue that Kennedy High School should embrace policies outlined by the California Department of Education (2010).

Words like "ineffective" and "argue" show here that the student has clearly thought through the assignment and analyzed the material; he or she is putting forth a specific and debatable position. The concrete information ("student interviews," "antibullying") further prepares the reader for the body of the paper and demonstrates how the student has addressed the assignment prompt without just restating that language.

Creating a Debate

This thesis statement includes only obvious fact or plot summary instead of argument:

Needs Improvement: Leadership is an important quality in nurse educators.

A good strategy to determine if your thesis statement is too broad (and therefore, not arguable) is to ask yourself, "Would a scholar in my field disagree with this point?" Here, we can see easily that no scholar is likely to argue that leadership is an unimportant quality in nurse educators.  The student needs to come up with a more arguable claim, and probably a narrower one; remember that a short paper needs a more focused topic than a dissertation.

Better: Roderick's (2009) theory of participatory leadership  is particularly appropriate to nurse educators working within the emergency medicine field, where students benefit most from collegial and kinesthetic learning.

Here, the student has identified a particular type of leadership ("participatory leadership"), narrowing the topic, and has made an arguable claim (this type of leadership is "appropriate" to a specific type of nurse educator). Conceivably, a scholar in the nursing field might disagree with this approach. The student's paper can now proceed, providing specific pieces of evidence to support the arguable central claim.

Choosing the Right Words

This thesis statement uses large or scholarly-sounding words that have no real substance:

Needs Improvement: Scholars should work to seize metacognitive outcomes by harnessing discipline-based networks to empower collaborative infrastructures.

There are many words in this sentence that may be buzzwords in the student's field or key terms taken from other texts, but together they do not communicate a clear, specific meaning. Sometimes students think scholarly writing means constructing complex sentences using special language, but actually it's usually a stronger choice to write clear, simple sentences. When in doubt, remember that your ideas should be complex, not your sentence structure.

Better: Ecologists should work to educate the U.S. public on conservation methods by making use of local and national green organizations to create a widespread communication plan.

Notice in the revision that the field is now clear (ecology), and the language has been made much more field-specific ("conservation methods," "green organizations"), so the reader is able to see concretely the ideas the student is communicating.

Leaving Room for Discussion

This thesis statement is not capable of development or advancement in the paper:

Needs Improvement: There are always alternatives to illegal drug use.

This sample thesis statement makes a claim, but it is not a claim that will sustain extended discussion. This claim is the type of claim that might be appropriate for the conclusion of a paper, but in the beginning of the paper, the student is left with nowhere to go. What further points can be made? If there are "always alternatives" to the problem the student is identifying, then why bother developing a paper around that claim? Ideally, a thesis statement should be complex enough to explore over the length of the entire paper.

Better: The most effective treatment plan for methamphetamine addiction may be a combination of pharmacological and cognitive therapy, as argued by Baker (2008), Smith (2009), and Xavier (2011).

In the revised thesis, you can see the student make a specific, debatable claim that has the potential to generate several pages' worth of discussion. When drafting a thesis statement, think about the questions your thesis statement will generate: What follow-up inquiries might a reader have? In the first example, there are almost no additional questions implied, but the revised example allows for a good deal more exploration.

Thesis Mad Libs

If you are having trouble getting started, try using the models below to generate a rough model of a thesis statement! These models are intended for drafting purposes only and should not appear in your final work.

• In this essay, I argue ____, using ______ to assert _____.
• While scholars have often argued ______, I argue______, because_______.
• Through an analysis of ______, I argue ______, which is important because_______.

Words to Avoid and to Embrace

When drafting your thesis statement, avoid words like explore, investigate, learn, compile, summarize , and explain to describe the main purpose of your paper. These words imply a paper that summarizes or "reports," rather than synthesizing and analyzing.

Instead of the terms above, try words like argue, critique, question , and interrogate . These more analytical words may help you begin strongly, by articulating a specific, critical, scholarly position.

Read Kayla's blog post for tips on taking a stand in a well-crafted thesis statement.

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Didn't find what you need? Email us at [email protected] .

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Thesis Statements

What this handout is about.

This handout describes what a thesis statement is, how thesis statements work in your writing, and how you can craft or refine one for your draft.

Introduction

Writing in college often takes the form of persuasion—convincing others that you have an interesting, logical point of view on the subject you are studying. Persuasion is a skill you practice regularly in your daily life. You persuade your roommate to clean up, your parents to let you borrow the car, your friend to vote for your favorite candidate or policy. In college, course assignments often ask you to make a persuasive case in writing. You are asked to convince your reader of your point of view. This form of persuasion, often called academic argument, follows a predictable pattern in writing. After a brief introduction of your topic, you state your point of view on the topic directly and often in one sentence. This sentence is the thesis statement, and it serves as a summary of the argument you’ll make in the rest of your paper.

What is a thesis statement?

A thesis statement:

• tells the reader how you will interpret the significance of the subject matter under discussion.
• is a road map for the paper; in other words, it tells the reader what to expect from the rest of the paper.
• directly answers the question asked of you. A thesis is an interpretation of a question or subject, not the subject itself. The subject, or topic, of an essay might be World War II or Moby Dick; a thesis must then offer a way to understand the war or the novel.
• makes a claim that others might dispute.
• is usually a single sentence near the beginning of your paper (most often, at the end of the first paragraph) that presents your argument to the reader. The rest of the paper, the body of the essay, gathers and organizes evidence that will persuade the reader of the logic of your interpretation.

If your assignment asks you to take a position or develop a claim about a subject, you may need to convey that position or claim in a thesis statement near the beginning of your draft. The assignment may not explicitly state that you need a thesis statement because your instructor may assume you will include one. When in doubt, ask your instructor if the assignment requires a thesis statement. When an assignment asks you to analyze, to interpret, to compare and contrast, to demonstrate cause and effect, or to take a stand on an issue, it is likely that you are being asked to develop a thesis and to support it persuasively. (Check out our handout on understanding assignments for more information.)

How do I create a thesis?

A thesis is the result of a lengthy thinking process. Formulating a thesis is not the first thing you do after reading an essay assignment. Before you develop an argument on any topic, you have to collect and organize evidence, look for possible relationships between known facts (such as surprising contrasts or similarities), and think about the significance of these relationships. Once you do this thinking, you will probably have a “working thesis” that presents a basic or main idea and an argument that you think you can support with evidence. Both the argument and your thesis are likely to need adjustment along the way.

Writers use all kinds of techniques to stimulate their thinking and to help them clarify relationships or comprehend the broader significance of a topic and arrive at a thesis statement. For more ideas on how to get started, see our handout on brainstorming .

How do I know if my thesis is strong?

If there’s time, run it by your instructor or make an appointment at the Writing Center to get some feedback. Even if you do not have time to get advice elsewhere, you can do some thesis evaluation of your own. When reviewing your first draft and its working thesis, ask yourself the following :

• Do I answer the question? Re-reading the question prompt after constructing a working thesis can help you fix an argument that misses the focus of the question. If the prompt isn’t phrased as a question, try to rephrase it. For example, “Discuss the effect of X on Y” can be rephrased as “What is the effect of X on Y?”
• Have I taken a position that others might challenge or oppose? If your thesis simply states facts that no one would, or even could, disagree with, it’s possible that you are simply providing a summary, rather than making an argument.
• Is my thesis statement specific enough? Thesis statements that are too vague often do not have a strong argument. If your thesis contains words like “good” or “successful,” see if you could be more specific: why is something “good”; what specifically makes something “successful”?
• Does my thesis pass the “So what?” test? If a reader’s first response is likely to  be “So what?” then you need to clarify, to forge a relationship, or to connect to a larger issue.
• Does my essay support my thesis specifically and without wandering? If your thesis and the body of your essay do not seem to go together, one of them has to change. It’s okay to change your working thesis to reflect things you have figured out in the course of writing your paper. Remember, always reassess and revise your writing as necessary.
• Does my thesis pass the “how and why?” test? If a reader’s first response is “how?” or “why?” your thesis may be too open-ended and lack guidance for the reader. See what you can add to give the reader a better take on your position right from the beginning.

Suppose you are taking a course on contemporary communication, and the instructor hands out the following essay assignment: “Discuss the impact of social media on public awareness.” Looking back at your notes, you might start with this working thesis:

Social media impacts public awareness in both positive and negative ways.

You can use the questions above to help you revise this general statement into a stronger thesis.

• Do I answer the question? You can analyze this if you rephrase “discuss the impact” as “what is the impact?” This way, you can see that you’ve answered the question only very generally with the vague “positive and negative ways.”
• Have I taken a position that others might challenge or oppose? Not likely. Only people who maintain that social media has a solely positive or solely negative impact could disagree.
• Is my thesis statement specific enough? No. What are the positive effects? What are the negative effects?
• Does my thesis pass the “how and why?” test? No. Why are they positive? How are they positive? What are their causes? Why are they negative? How are they negative? What are their causes?
• Does my thesis pass the “So what?” test? No. Why should anyone care about the positive and/or negative impact of social media?

After thinking about your answers to these questions, you decide to focus on the one impact you feel strongly about and have strong evidence for:

Because not every voice on social media is reliable, people have become much more critical consumers of information, and thus, more informed voters.

This version is a much stronger thesis! It answers the question, takes a specific position that others can challenge, and it gives a sense of why it matters.

Let’s try another. Suppose your literature professor hands out the following assignment in a class on the American novel: Write an analysis of some aspect of Mark Twain’s novel Huckleberry Finn. “This will be easy,” you think. “I loved Huckleberry Finn!” You grab a pad of paper and write:

Mark Twain’s Huckleberry Finn is a great American novel.

You begin to analyze your thesis:

• Do I answer the question? No. The prompt asks you to analyze some aspect of the novel. Your working thesis is a statement of general appreciation for the entire novel.

Think about aspects of the novel that are important to its structure or meaning—for example, the role of storytelling, the contrasting scenes between the shore and the river, or the relationships between adults and children. Now you write:

In Huckleberry Finn, Mark Twain develops a contrast between life on the river and life on the shore.

• Do I answer the question? Yes!
• Have I taken a position that others might challenge or oppose? Not really. This contrast is well-known and accepted.
• Is my thesis statement specific enough? It’s getting there–you have highlighted an important aspect of the novel for investigation. However, it’s still not clear what your analysis will reveal.
• Does my thesis pass the “how and why?” test? Not yet. Compare scenes from the book and see what you discover. Free write, make lists, jot down Huck’s actions and reactions and anything else that seems interesting.
• Does my thesis pass the “So what?” test? What’s the point of this contrast? What does it signify?”

After examining the evidence and considering your own insights, you write:

Through its contrasting river and shore scenes, Twain’s Huckleberry Finn suggests that to find the true expression of American democratic ideals, one must leave “civilized” society and go back to nature.

This final thesis statement presents an interpretation of a literary work based on an analysis of its content. Of course, for the essay itself to be successful, you must now present evidence from the novel that will convince the reader of your interpretation.

Works consulted

We consulted these works while writing this handout. This is not a comprehensive list of resources on the handout’s topic, and we encourage you to do your own research to find additional publications. Please do not use this list as a model for the format of your own reference list, as it may not match the citation style you are using. For guidance on formatting citations, please see the UNC Libraries citation tutorial . We revise these tips periodically and welcome feedback.

Anson, Chris M., and Robert A. Schwegler. 2010. The Longman Handbook for Writers and Readers , 6th ed. New York: Longman.

Lunsford, Andrea A. 2015. The St. Martin’s Handbook , 8th ed. Boston: Bedford/St Martin’s.

Ramage, John D., John C. Bean, and June Johnson. 2018. The Allyn & Bacon Guide to Writing , 8th ed. New York: Pearson.

Ruszkiewicz, John J., Christy Friend, Daniel Seward, and Maxine Hairston. 2010. The Scott, Foresman Handbook for Writers , 9th ed. Boston: Pearson Education.

You may reproduce it for non-commercial use if you use the entire handout and attribute the source: The Writing Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

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Developing a Thesis Statement

Many papers you write require developing a thesis statement. In this section you’ll learn what a thesis statement is and how to write one.

Keep in mind that not all papers require thesis statements . If in doubt, please consult your instructor for assistance.

What is a thesis statement?

A thesis statement . . .

• Makes an argumentative assertion about a topic; it states the conclusions that you have reached about your topic.
• Makes a promise to the reader about the scope, purpose, and direction of your paper.
• Is focused and specific enough to be “proven” within the boundaries of your paper.
• Is generally located near the end of the introduction ; sometimes, in a long paper, the thesis will be expressed in several sentences or in an entire paragraph.
• Identifies the relationships between the pieces of evidence that you are using to support your argument.

Not all papers require thesis statements! Ask your instructor if you’re in doubt whether you need one.

Identify a topic

Your topic is the subject about which you will write. Your assignment may suggest several ways of looking at a topic; or it may name a fairly general concept that you will explore or analyze in your paper.

Consider what your assignment asks you to do

Inform yourself about your topic, focus on one aspect of your topic, ask yourself whether your topic is worthy of your efforts, generate a topic from an assignment.

Below are some possible topics based on sample assignments.

Sample assignment 1

Analyze Spain’s neutrality in World War II.

Identified topic

Franco’s role in the diplomatic relationships between the Allies and the Axis

This topic avoids generalities such as “Spain” and “World War II,” addressing instead on Franco’s role (a specific aspect of “Spain”) and the diplomatic relations between the Allies and Axis (a specific aspect of World War II).

Sample assignment 2

Analyze one of Homer’s epic similes in the Iliad.

The relationship between the portrayal of warfare and the epic simile about Simoisius at 4.547-64.

This topic focuses on a single simile and relates it to a single aspect of the Iliad ( warfare being a major theme in that work).

Developing a Thesis Statement–Additional information

Your assignment may suggest several ways of looking at a topic, or it may name a fairly general concept that you will explore or analyze in your paper. You’ll want to read your assignment carefully, looking for key terms that you can use to focus your topic.

Sample assignment: Analyze Spain’s neutrality in World War II Key terms: analyze, Spain’s neutrality, World War II

After you’ve identified the key words in your topic, the next step is to read about them in several sources, or generate as much information as possible through an analysis of your topic. Obviously, the more material or knowledge you have, the more possibilities will be available for a strong argument. For the sample assignment above, you’ll want to look at books and articles on World War II in general, and Spain’s neutrality in particular.

As you consider your options, you must decide to focus on one aspect of your topic. This means that you cannot include everything you’ve learned about your topic, nor should you go off in several directions. If you end up covering too many different aspects of a topic, your paper will sprawl and be unconvincing in its argument, and it most likely will not fulfull the assignment requirements.

For the sample assignment above, both Spain’s neutrality and World War II are topics far too broad to explore in a paper. You may instead decide to focus on Franco’s role in the diplomatic relationships between the Allies and the Axis , which narrows down what aspects of Spain’s neutrality and World War II you want to discuss, as well as establishes a specific link between those two aspects.

Before you go too far, however, ask yourself whether your topic is worthy of your efforts. Try to avoid topics that already have too much written about them (i.e., “eating disorders and body image among adolescent women”) or that simply are not important (i.e. “why I like ice cream”). These topics may lead to a thesis that is either dry fact or a weird claim that cannot be supported. A good thesis falls somewhere between the two extremes. To arrive at this point, ask yourself what is new, interesting, contestable, or controversial about your topic.

As you work on your thesis, remember to keep the rest of your paper in mind at all times . Sometimes your thesis needs to evolve as you develop new insights, find new evidence, or take a different approach to your topic.

Derive a main point from topic

Once you have a topic, you will have to decide what the main point of your paper will be. This point, the “controlling idea,” becomes the core of your argument (thesis statement) and it is the unifying idea to which you will relate all your sub-theses. You can then turn this “controlling idea” into a purpose statement about what you intend to do in your paper.

Look for patterns in your evidence

Compose a purpose statement.

Consult the examples below for suggestions on how to look for patterns in your evidence and construct a purpose statement.

• Franco first tried to negotiate with the Axis
• Franco turned to the Allies when he couldn’t get some concessions that he wanted from the Axis

Possible conclusion:

Spain’s neutrality in WWII occurred for an entirely personal reason: Franco’s desire to preserve his own (and Spain’s) power.

Purpose statement

This paper will analyze Franco’s diplomacy during World War II to see how it contributed to Spain’s neutrality.

• The simile compares Simoisius to a tree, which is a peaceful, natural image.
• The tree in the simile is chopped down to make wheels for a chariot, which is an object used in warfare.

At first, the simile seems to take the reader away from the world of warfare, but we end up back in that world by the end.

This paper will analyze the way the simile about Simoisius at 4.547-64 moves in and out of the world of warfare.

Derive purpose statement from topic

To find out what your “controlling idea” is, you have to examine and evaluate your evidence . As you consider your evidence, you may notice patterns emerging, data repeated in more than one source, or facts that favor one view more than another. These patterns or data may then lead you to some conclusions about your topic and suggest that you can successfully argue for one idea better than another.

For instance, you might find out that Franco first tried to negotiate with the Axis, but when he couldn’t get some concessions that he wanted from them, he turned to the Allies. As you read more about Franco’s decisions, you may conclude that Spain’s neutrality in WWII occurred for an entirely personal reason: his desire to preserve his own (and Spain’s) power. Based on this conclusion, you can then write a trial thesis statement to help you decide what material belongs in your paper.

Sometimes you won’t be able to find a focus or identify your “spin” or specific argument immediately. Like some writers, you might begin with a purpose statement just to get yourself going. A purpose statement is one or more sentences that announce your topic and indicate the structure of the paper but do not state the conclusions you have drawn . Thus, you might begin with something like this:

• This paper will look at modern language to see if it reflects male dominance or female oppression.
• I plan to analyze anger and derision in offensive language to see if they represent a challenge of society’s authority.

At some point, you can turn a purpose statement into a thesis statement. As you think and write about your topic, you can restrict, clarify, and refine your argument, crafting your thesis statement to reflect your thinking.

As you work on your thesis, remember to keep the rest of your paper in mind at all times. Sometimes your thesis needs to evolve as you develop new insights, find new evidence, or take a different approach to your topic.

Compose a draft thesis statement

If you are writing a paper that will have an argumentative thesis and are having trouble getting started, the techniques in the table below may help you develop a temporary or “working” thesis statement.

Begin with a purpose statement that you will later turn into a thesis statement.

Assignment: Discuss the history of the Reform Party and explain its influence on the 1990 presidential and Congressional election.

Purpose Statement: This paper briefly sketches the history of the grassroots, conservative, Perot-led Reform Party and analyzes how it influenced the economic and social ideologies of the two mainstream parties.

Question-to-Assertion

If your assignment asks a specific question(s), turn the question(s) into an assertion and give reasons why it is true or reasons for your opinion.

Assignment : What do Aylmer and Rappaccini have to be proud of? Why aren’t they satisfied with these things? How does pride, as demonstrated in “The Birthmark” and “Rappaccini’s Daughter,” lead to unexpected problems?

Beginning thesis statement: Alymer and Rappaccinni are proud of their great knowledge; however, they are also very greedy and are driven to use their knowledge to alter some aspect of nature as a test of their ability. Evil results when they try to “play God.”

Write a sentence that summarizes the main idea of the essay you plan to write.

Main idea: The reason some toys succeed in the market is that they appeal to the consumers’ sense of the ridiculous and their basic desire to laugh at themselves.

Make a list of the ideas that you want to include; consider the ideas and try to group them.

• nature = peaceful
• war matériel = violent (competes with 1?)
• need for time and space to mourn the dead
• war is inescapable (competes with 3?)

Use a formula to arrive at a working thesis statement (you will revise this later).

• although most readers of _______ have argued that _______, closer examination shows that _______.
• _______ uses _______ and _____ to prove that ________.
• phenomenon x is a result of the combination of __________, __________, and _________.

What to keep in mind as you draft an initial thesis statement

Beginning statements obtained through the methods illustrated above can serve as a framework for planning or drafting your paper, but remember they’re not yet the specific, argumentative thesis you want for the final version of your paper. In fact, in its first stages, a thesis statement usually is ill-formed or rough and serves only as a planning tool.

As you write, you may discover evidence that does not fit your temporary or “working” thesis. Or you may reach deeper insights about your topic as you do more research, and you will find that your thesis statement has to be more complicated to match the evidence that you want to use.

You must be willing to reject or omit some evidence in order to keep your paper cohesive and your reader focused. Or you may have to revise your thesis to match the evidence and insights that you want to discuss. Read your draft carefully, noting the conclusions you have drawn and the major ideas which support or prove those conclusions. These will be the elements of your final thesis statement.

Sometimes you will not be able to identify these elements in your early drafts, but as you consider how your argument is developing and how your evidence supports your main idea, ask yourself, “ What is the main point that I want to prove/discuss? ” and “ How will I convince the reader that this is true? ” When you can answer these questions, then you can begin to refine the thesis statement.

Refine and polish the thesis statement

To get to your final thesis, you’ll need to refine your draft thesis so that it’s specific and arguable.

• Ask if your draft thesis addresses the assignment
• Question each part of your draft thesis
• Clarify vague phrases and assertions
• Investigate alternatives to your draft thesis

Consult the example below for suggestions on how to refine your draft thesis statement.

Sample Assignment

Choose an activity and define it as a symbol of American culture. Your essay should cause the reader to think critically about the society which produces and enjoys that activity.

• Ask The phenomenon of drive-in facilities is an interesting symbol of american culture, and these facilities demonstrate significant characteristics of our society.This statement does not fulfill the assignment because it does not require the reader to think critically about society.

Drive-ins are an interesting symbol of American culture because they represent Americans’ significant creativity and business ingenuity.

Among the types of drive-in facilities familiar during the twentieth century, drive-in movie theaters best represent American creativity, not merely because they were the forerunner of later drive-ins and drive-throughs, but because of their impact on our culture: they changed our relationship to the automobile, changed the way people experienced movies, and changed movie-going into a family activity.

While drive-in facilities such as those at fast-food establishments, banks, pharmacies, and dry cleaners symbolize America’s economic ingenuity, they also have affected our personal standards.

While drive-in facilities such as those at fast- food restaurants, banks, pharmacies, and dry cleaners symbolize (1) Americans’ business ingenuity, they also have contributed (2) to an increasing homogenization of our culture, (3) a willingness to depersonalize relationships with others, and (4) a tendency to sacrifice quality for convenience.

This statement is now specific and fulfills all parts of the assignment. This version, like any good thesis, is not self-evident; its points, 1-4, will have to be proven with evidence in the body of the paper. The numbers in this statement indicate the order in which the points will be presented. Depending on the length of the paper, there could be one paragraph for each numbered item or there could be blocks of paragraph for even pages for each one.

Complete the final thesis statement

The bottom line.

As you move through the process of crafting a thesis, you’ll need to remember four things:

• Context matters! Think about your course materials and lectures. Try to relate your thesis to the ideas your instructor is discussing.
• As you go through the process described in this section, always keep your assignment in mind . You will be more successful when your thesis (and paper) responds to the assignment than if it argues a semi-related idea.
• Your thesis statement should be precise, focused, and contestable ; it should predict the sub-theses or blocks of information that you will use to prove your argument.
• Make sure that you keep the rest of your paper in mind at all times. Change your thesis as your paper evolves, because you do not want your thesis to promise more than your paper actually delivers.

In the beginning, the thesis statement was a tool to help you sharpen your focus, limit material and establish the paper’s purpose. When your paper is finished, however, the thesis statement becomes a tool for your reader. It tells the reader what you have learned about your topic and what evidence led you to your conclusion. It keeps the reader on track–well able to understand and appreciate your argument.

Writing Process and Structure

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Getting Started with Your Paper

Interpreting Writing Assignments from Your Courses

Generating Ideas for

Creating an Argument

Thesis vs. Purpose Statements

Architecture of Arguments

Working with Sources

Quoting and Paraphrasing Sources

Using Literary Quotations

Citing Sources in Your Paper

Drafting Your Paper

Generating Ideas for Your Paper

Introductions

Paragraphing

Developing Strategic Transitions

Conclusions

Revising Your Paper

Peer Reviews

Reverse Outlines

Revising an Argumentative Paper

Revision Strategies for Longer Projects

Finishing Your Paper

Twelve Common Errors: An Editing Checklist

How to Proofread your Paper

Writing Collaboratively

Collaborative and Group Writing

Reference management. Clean and simple.

How to write a thesis statement + examples

What is a thesis statement?

Is a thesis statement a question, how do you write a good thesis statement, how do i know if my thesis statement is good, examples of thesis statements, helpful resources on how to write a thesis statement, frequently asked questions about writing a thesis statement, related articles.

A thesis statement is the main argument of your paper or thesis.

The thesis statement is one of the most important elements of any piece of academic writing . It is a brief statement of your paper’s main argument. Essentially, you are stating what you will be writing about.

You can see your thesis statement as an answer to a question. While it also contains the question, it should really give an answer to the question with new information and not just restate or reiterate it.

Your thesis statement is part of your introduction. Learn more about how to write a good thesis introduction in our introduction guide .

A thesis statement is not a question. A statement must be arguable and provable through evidence and analysis. While your thesis might stem from a research question, it should be in the form of a statement.

Tip: A thesis statement is typically 1-2 sentences. For a longer project like a thesis, the statement may be several sentences or a paragraph.

A good thesis statement needs to do the following:

• Condense the main idea of your thesis into one or two sentences.
• Answer your project’s main research question.
• Clearly state your position in relation to the topic .
• Make an argument that requires support or evidence.

Once you have written down a thesis statement, check if it fulfills the following criteria:

• Your statement needs to be provable by evidence. As an argument, a thesis statement needs to be debatable.
• Your statement needs to be precise. Do not give away too much information in the thesis statement and do not load it with unnecessary information.
• Your statement cannot say that one solution is simply right or simply wrong as a matter of fact. You should draw upon verified facts to persuade the reader of your solution, but you cannot just declare something as right or wrong.

As previously mentioned, your thesis statement should answer a question.

If the question is:

What do you think the City of New York should do to reduce traffic congestion?

A good thesis statement restates the question and answers it:

In this paper, I will argue that the City of New York should focus on providing exclusive lanes for public transport and adaptive traffic signals to reduce traffic congestion by the year 2035.

Here is another example. If the question is:

How can we end poverty?

A good thesis statement should give more than one solution to the problem in question:

In this paper, I will argue that introducing universal basic income can help reduce poverty and positively impact the way we work.

• The Writing Center of the University of North Carolina has a list of questions to ask to see if your thesis is strong .

A thesis statement is part of the introduction of your paper. It is usually found in the first or second paragraph to let the reader know your research purpose from the beginning.

In general, a thesis statement should have one or two sentences. But the length really depends on the overall length of your project. Take a look at our guide about the length of thesis statements for more insight on this topic.

Here is a list of Thesis Statement Examples that will help you understand better how to write them.

Every good essay should include a thesis statement as part of its introduction, no matter the academic level. Of course, if you are a high school student you are not expected to have the same type of thesis as a PhD student.

Here is a great YouTube tutorial showing How To Write An Essay: Thesis Statements .

Holman Library

Research Guide: Scholarly Journals

• Introduction: Hypothesis/Thesis
• Why Use Scholarly Journals?
• What does "Peer-Reviewed" mean?
• What is *NOT* a Scholarly Journal Article?
• Interlibrary Loan for Journal Articles
• Reading the Citation
• Authors' Credentials
• Literature Review
• Methodology
• Results/Data
• Discussion/Conclusions
• APA Citations for Scholarly Journal Articles
• MLA Citations for Scholarly Journal Articles

Hypothesis or Thesis

Looking for the author's thesis or hypothesis.

The image below shows the part of the scholarly article that shows where the authors are making their argument. 

(click on image to enlarge)

• The first few paragraphs of a journal article serve to introduce the topic, to provide the author's hypothesis or thesis, and to indicate why the research was done.  
• A thesis or hypothesis is not always clearly labeled; you may need to read through the introductory paragraphs to determine what the authors are proposing.
• << Previous: How to Read a Scholarly Article
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• Last Updated: May 4, 2024 2:04 PM
• URL: https://libguides.greenriver.edu/scholarlyjournals

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How do you find your thesis statement? (video)

Viewing time: 4 mins 24 secs 

The Write Question is a weekly video podcast all about writing. Today’s question? How can you find your thesis statement? If you have a question you’d like me to answer you can email me , tweet me @pubcoach, or leave a message for me at the Skype account, The Write Question.

Transcript:  

How do you find your thesis statement? That’s the topic I’m addressing today in The Write Question. I’m Daphne Gray-Grant, the Publication Coach, still in pandemic mode.

I have a question from Marie Calibre, a grad student based in San Diego, California. Here’s what she’s asked by email….

“With academic writing, how do you home in on the premise of your work? I’m writing a master’s thesis and I’m having a hard time identifying my ‘thesis statement.’ Do you have any suggestions for me?”

Thanks for your question , Marie. For people who aren’t familiar with academic practices, let me begin by giving a definition. A thesis statement is a sentence or short paragraph summarizing the main point of an essay or research paper. In fact, “thesis” is a Greek word meaning ‘proposition.’ So a thesis statement is really the main point you want to make.

An effective thesis statement needs to do three main things:

• It must be very specific and debatable
• It must be appropriate to the type of paper you’re writing
• It must appear within the first section of your text so that it is clear to your reader what the paper is about

Here, for example, is a weak thesis statement:

Shakespeare was the leading playwright of the last 500 years.

Notice that this statement is quite non-specific and, for many people, would hardly be debatable. In fact, if you wanted a better statement, you might propose something like, “Edward Albee [see link in the show notes] is the leading playwright of the last 500 years.” At least it’s a surprising argument!

Anyway, before constructing your thesis statement, you need to do some significant research. Read some good overview literature in your subject area so that you’re really familiar with it.

Once you have a basic understanding of the broad subject area, I suggest you start mindmapping to identify possible thesis statements. I’ve written lots of blog posts and done a number of videos on mindmapping. See links in the show notes below.

But let me emphasize one point about mindmapping that will make a big difference to you. DON’T just write the topic in the centre of the page. Instead, be sure to use a question.

The act of writing a question will force you to become much more specific, which will be helpful to  you as you work to identify your thesis statement.

Also understand that it’s perfectly fine to ask yourself a ‘meta’ question like, “what’s an interesting thesis statement I could use for my paper?”

Keep in mind that you may change the thesis statement several times as you work on the paper. This is normal and expected because the more you work with your topic, the more familiar you will become with the major issues involved.

You might even find that you want to argue in the opposite direction – and that’s okay as well. Writing a paper is a creative process and not one that always proceeds in a predictable way.

Finding a good thesis statement is probably the most important — and most challenging — part of writing a paper. But when you get a good one, it will make the work of writing that paper so much easier!

Finally, let me wrap up with a quote from the American poet Jenny Zhang :

“ Sometimes I worry that people who read my fiction think that I am making some kind of thesis statement.”

Marie , while poets don’t have to worry excessively about thesis statements, academic writers really need to. Take the time to find one that’s going to work for you. It’s well worth the effort.

If you’d like to learn more about how to make writing a happier and more rewarding process, check out my latest book Your Happy First Draft . I don’t sell it in bookstores or via Amazon. The only place to buy it is on my website, link on the screen below and in the show notes.  

Edward Albee

Mindmapping 

Your Happy First Draft  

Open Access Theses and Dissertations

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About OATD.org

OATD.org aims to be the best possible resource for finding open access graduate theses and dissertations published around the world. Metadata (information about the theses) comes from over 1100 colleges, universities, and research institutions . OATD currently indexes 7,254,624 theses and dissertations.

About OATD (our FAQ) .

Visual OATD.org

We’re happy to present several data visualizations to give an overall sense of the OATD.org collection by county of publication, language, and field of study.

You may also want to consult these sites to search for other theses:

• Google Scholar
• NDLTD , the Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations. NDLTD provides information and a search engine for electronic theses and dissertations (ETDs), whether they are open access or not.
• Proquest Theses and Dissertations (PQDT), a database of dissertations and theses, whether they were published electronically or in print, and mostly available for purchase. Access to PQDT may be limited; consult your local library for access information.

Thesis Statement Finder

Looking for help with your thesis? Try our thesis statement finder tool! It will help you create a custom-made thesis statement for an argumentative, informative, or comparative essay.

Need some help with formulating a thesis? This thesis statement finder will save your time and nerves! Follow these 3 steps:

• 👌 The Tool’s Benefits
• 🕵️ Finding a Thesis in a Text
• 🤔 Formulating Your Thesis
• ✅ Checklist with Examples

🔗 References

👌 thesis statement finder: 4 benefits.

• This thesis statement finder works for any essay type (argumentative, analytical, compare-and-contrast, or informative). You can specify it for a better result. Besides, the program offers a thesis example specifically for each genre.
• It is intuitively clear . You can check ready-made thesis examples during your work with the tool. All the samples are education-related, as this is the subject area of this website.
• The tool is 100% free . We don’t charge our users either at the first instance of their using the thesis statement finder or afterward.
• It doesn’t require registration . We have done our best to eliminate all the unnecessary features that could eat up your time.

🕵️ How to Find a Thesis Statement in a Text

A thesis statement is the last sentence of the introductory paragraph.

If your text is longer, for example, in a research paper, you can find this sentence at the end of the introduction.

But to make sure the line you’ve spotted is the one, you should know the roles of a thesis statement.

• It describes the principal idea of the essay. Besides, it unifies all the main body statements under a shared message.

Online education is beneficial for low-income students because it gives them better access to education resources, trains their online learning skills, and eliminates the need to travel abroad.

Here the author united three random facts under a single idea that online education helps poor students.

• It foreshadows the focus of the essay and narrows down the scope of the text.

This essay will explore the adverse consequences of globalization in terms of third-world economic development.

Here the author puts away the positive effects of globalization and focuses on the negative outcome for the developing economies.

• It presents the writer’s position in the argument.

This essay aims to prove that a prison sentence does not rehabilitate dangerous criminals.

This example implies the author’s opinion: confinement is ineffective for severe offenders.

• It promises to explain every statement of the thesis statement.

All the examples above tell the reader that they will find a proper explanation in the main body. However, the first variant gives only a hint, and the other two provide an explicit formula: “This essay will…”

Implicit Thesis Statements

A PhD thesis statement is explicit and takes the form of a separate sentence in the first part of the dissertation. Still, some types of academic writing include the thesis only in the conclusion.

On the other hand, you’ll rarely find a specific sentence summing up the central concept in literary works. On the contrary, your job as the reader is to find out what the piece conveys. In such cases, you have to deal with an implicit thesis statement, i.e., the message is transmitted indirectly throughout the entire work. (In literature, we call it the theme.)

Academic papers may also rely on implicit thesis statements, although quite rarely.

🤔 Finding a Thesis for Your Paper in 3 Steps

A thesis statement is a line that sums up the key message of your paper. Unfortunately, you will never formulate it on the first try before the entire work is ready. After all, a good thesis comprises your principal conclusions. You will work on this single sentence throughout the time you dedicate to the paper. And even if you come up with an idea in the process, it will likely require editing.

Still, you’ll have to formulate an initial or working thesis statement at the beginning of your work on a Master’s or PhD topic. It will also create direction and structure in the essay. Here’s how you can do it.

Step 1: Formulate the Question

If your assignment already contains the question, you can skip this point. You’ll have to distill the task into a single interrogatory sentence in all the other cases. No matter how complicated the assignment is, it is always possible to reduce it.

For example, consider the task:

Based on the proposed literature, research the positive and negative features of the teaching methods of the previous century.

If you turn it into a question, you’ll get:

What were the positive and negative features of the teaching methods of the previous century?

If an assignment contains several questions, look for the most general one. The remaining ones will help you structure the text.

Step 2: Draft up the Answer to the Question

Once you’ve completed the initial research and determined your opinion about the studied problem, write down a tentative answer to the question we described above. It will be non-academic and straightforward at this point but enough to guide the research and writing. Here is an explanation of what you are expected to write in a thesis statement of each essay genre. Press “Show Example” to consult the illustrations of each variant in our tool.

• In an argumentative essay , take a side on the issue by stating your opinion.
• In an analytical essay , list the main findings of your research and offer a solution.
• In a compare and contrast essay , highlight whether the compared categories are similar or different and explain why.
• In an informative article , outline the scope of your research and name the key facts.

Step 3: Add Details

Your answer will flesh out as you read into the topic and start writing on it. This step narrows down the scope of your future research and saves you much time. The more specific the thesis statement is, the less literature you’ll have to search for the necessary facts.

Why is this your answer? How do you plan to convince the reader? Which information should be mentioned in this sentence to disambiguate it? The final version of a thesis statement doesn’t just clarify your opinion. It summarizes the argument and states what it does not comprise.

For instance, your draft answer was as follows:

Screen time is bad because it deteriorates eyesight and increases nervousness.

Thus, a final version could be:

Extended screen time for children under ten years old is unwanted, as it deteriorates their eyesight and raises the possibility of nervous disorders.

✅ Thesis Statement Checklist with Examples

Below you can find a thesis generator free checker: look through the checklist to verify the result.

Thus, a good thesis statement:

• Is focused enough for the reader to know what it is not about.
• Expresses your opinion on the problem under investigation.
• Is formulated as a statement without self-interrogation.
• Opens a discussion with the reader.
• Is brief and fits in one or two sentences.
• Can be easily found in the text.

📌 Thesis Statement Finder FAQ

What is the thesis finder.

A thesis statement finder is a tool that analyses your central finding and the evidence you used in its support to create a perfect thesis. It is adjustable to the essay genre in question, as the same thesis for an analytical and argumentative text will be different. If you doubt the genre, you can check the example.

Find a Thesis Statement?

A thesis statement is located at the end of the last introductory paragraph in most texts. More rarely, it can be found in the conclusion. But most literary works and even some academic papers have an implicit thesis statement. To know if you’ve spotted the right sentence, check if it conveys the central message of the text.

What Is an Example of a Thesis Statement?

• The growth of the human population changes and breaks down the traditional social structures.
• This essay aims to establish the relationship between low income and substance abuse in young people.
• This research has demonstrated that punishment is a less efficient educational strategy than encouragement.

How Long Is a Thesis Statement?

If you ask this question doubting how to write a thesis statement correctly, don’t make it longer than two sentences. One would be even better. Professional researchers working on a hundred-page text can formulate their thesis in three or even four sentences. But for educational purposes, that is too much.

Updated: May 24th, 2024

• Thesis Statements – UNC Writing Center
• How to Write a Thesis Statement
• Developing A Thesis
• Developing a Thesis Statement – UW-Madison Writing Center
• How to Write a Good Thesis Statement – ThoughtCo

How to Craft Your Ideal Thesis Research Topic

Table of contents

Catherine Miller

Writing your undergraduate thesis is probably one of the most interesting parts of studying, especially because you get to choose your area of study. But as both a student and a teacher who’s helped countless students develop their research topics, I know this freedom can be just as intimidating as it is liberating.

Fortunately, there’a a step-by-step process you can follow that will help make the whole process a lot easier. In this article, I’ll show you how to choose a unique, specific thesis topic that’s true to your passions and interests, while making a contribution to your field.

Choose a topic that you’re interested in

First things first: double-check with your teachers or supervisor if there are any constraints on your research topic. Once your parameters are clear, it’s time to identify what lights you up — after all, you’re going to be spending a lot of time thinking about it.

Within your field of study, you probably already have some topics that have grabbed your attention more than others. This can be a great place to start. Additionally, consider using the rest of your academic and extra-curricular interests as a source of ideas. At this stage, you only need a broad topic before you narrow it down to a specific question. 

If you’re feeling stuck, here are some things to try:

• Look back through old course notes to remind yourself of topics you previously covered. Do any of these inspire you?
• Talk to potential supervisors about your ideas, as they can point you toward areas you might not have considered.
• Think about the things you enjoy in everyday life — whether that’s cycling, cinema, cooking, or fashion — then consider if there are any overlaps with your field of study.
• Imagine you have been asked to give a presentation or record a podcast in the next three days. What topics would you feel confident discussing?
• Watch a selection of existing lectures or explainer videos, or listen to podcasts by experts in your field. Note which topics you feel curious to explore further.
• Discuss your field of study with teachers friends and family, some with existing knowledge and some without. Which aspects do you enjoy talking about? 

By doing all this, you might uncover some unusual and exciting avenues for research. For example, when writing my Master’s dissertation, I decided to combine my field of study (English teaching methodology) with one of my passions outside work (creative writing). In my undergraduate course, a friend drew on her lived experience of disability to look into the literary portrayal of disability in the ancient world. 

Do your research

Once you’ve chosen your topic of interest, it’s time to dive into research. This is a really important part of this early process because it allows you to:

• See what other people have written about the topic — you don’t want to cover the same old ground as everyone else.
• Gain perspective on the big questions surrounding the topic. 
• Go deeper into the parts that interest you to help you decide where to focus.
• Start building your bibliography and a bank of interesting quotations. 

A great way to start is to visit your library for an introductory book. For example, the “A Very Short Introduction” series from the Oxford University Press provides overviews of a range of themes. Similar types of overviews may have the title “ A Companion to [Subject]” or “[Subject] A Student Companion”. Ask your librarian or teacher if you’re not sure where to begin. 

Your introductory volume can spark ideas for further research, and the bibliography can give you some pointers about where to go next. You can also use keywords to research online via academic sites like JStor or Google Scholar. Check which subscriptions are available via your institution.

At this stage, you may not wish to read every single paper you come across in full — this could take a very long time and not everything will be relevant. Summarizing software like Wordtune could be very useful here.

Just upload a PDF or link to an online article using Wordtune, and it will produce a summary of the whole paper with a list of key points. This helps you to quickly sift through papers to grasp their central ideas and identify which ones to read in full. 

Get Wordtune for free > Get Wordtune for free >

You can also use Wordtune for semantic search. In this case, the tool focuses its summary around your chosen search term, making it even easier to get what you need from the paper.

As you go, make sure you keep organized notes of what you’ve read, including the author and publication information and the page number of any citations you want to use. 

Some people are happy to do this process with pen and paper, but if you prefer a digital method, there are several software options, including Zotero , EndNote , and Mendeley . Your institution may have an existing subscription so check before you sign up.

Narrowing down your thesis research topic

Now you’ve read around the topic, it’s time to narrow down your ideas so you can craft your final question. For example, when it came to my undergraduate thesis, I knew I wanted to write about Ancient Greek religion and I was interested in the topic of goddesses. So, I:

• Did some wide reading around the topic of goddesses
• Learned that the goddess Hera was not as well researched as others and that there were some fascinating aspects I wanted to explore
• Decided (with my supervisor’s support) to focus on her temples in the Argive region of Greece

As part of this process, it can be helpful to consider the “5 Ws”: why, what, who, when, and where, as you move from the bigger picture to something more precise. 

Why did you choose this research topic?

Come back to the reasons you originally chose your theme. What grabbed you? Why is this topic important to you — or to the wider world? In my example, I knew I wanted to write about goddesses because, as a woman, I was interested in how a society in which female lives were often highly controlled dealt with having powerful female deities. My research highlighted Hera as one of the most powerful goddesses, tying into my key interest.

What are some of the big questions about your topic?

During your research, you’ll probably run into the same themes time and time again. Some of the questions that arise may not have been answered yet or might benefit from a fresh look. 

Equally, there may be questions that haven’t yet been asked, especially if you are approaching the topic from a modern perspective or combining research that hasn’t been considered before. This might include taking a post-colonial, feminist, or queer approach to older texts or bringing in research using new scientific methods.

In my example, I knew there were still controversies about why so many temples to the goddess Hera were built in a certain region, and was keen to explore these further.

Who is the research topic relevant to?

Considering the “who” might help you open up new avenues. Is there a particular audience you want to reach? What might they be interested in? Is this a new audience for this field? Are there people out there who might be affected by the outcome of this research — for example, people with a particular medical condition — who might be able to use your conclusions?

Which period will you focus on?

Depending on the nature of your field, you might be able to choose a timeframe, which can help narrow the topic down. For example, you might focus on historical events that took place over a handful of years, look at the impact of a work of literature at a certain point after its publication, or review scientific progress over the last five years. 

With my thesis, I decided to focus on the time when the temples were built rather than considering the hundreds of years for which they have existed, which would have taken me far too long.

Where does your topic relate to?

Place can be another means of narrowing down the topic. For example, consider the impact of your topic on a particular neighborhood, city, or country, rather than trying to process a global question. 

In my example, I chose to focus my research on one area of Greece, where there were lots of temples to Hera. This meant skipping other important locations, but including these would have made the thesis too wide-ranging.

Create an outline and get feedback

Once you have an idea of what you are going to write about, create an outline or summary and get feedback from your teacher(s). It’s okay if you don’t know exactly how you’re going to answer your thesis question yet, but based on your research you should have a rough plan of the key points you want to cover. So, for me, the outline was as follows:

• Context: who was the goddess Hera?
• Overview of her sanctuaries in the Argive region
• Their initial development 
• Political and cultural influences
• The importance of the mythical past

In the final thesis, I took a strong view on why the goddess was so important in this region, but it took more research, writing, and discussion with my supervisor to pin down my argument.

To choose a thesis research topic, find something you’re passionate about, research widely to get the big picture, and then move to a more focused view. Bringing a fresh perspective to a popular theme, finding an underserved audience who could benefit from your research, or answering a controversial question can make your thesis stand out from the crowd.

For tips on how to start writing your thesis, don’t miss our advice on writing a great research abstract and a stellar literature review . And don’t forget that Wordtune can also support you with proofreading, making it even easier to submit a polished thesis.

How do you come up with a research topic for a thesis?

To help you find a thesis topic, speak to your professor, look through your old course notes, think about what you already enjoy in everyday life, talk about your field of study with friends and family, and research podcasts and videos to find a topic that is interesting for you. It’s a good idea to refine your topic so that it’s not too general or broad.  

Do you choose your own thesis topic?

Yes, you usually choose your own thesis topic. You can get help from your professor(s), friends, and family to figure out which research topic is interesting to you. 

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What is a thesis? Key components of a thesis

Derived from the Greek word, “thesis” means “putting forward”. Thesis plays a vital role in completing a degree. For students planning to study abroad, it is crucial to understand what a thesis is.

As per diverse institutions and educational systems, the thesis obtains different meanings. For the British education system , the word thesis means the longest piece of writing that is completed at the end of a PhD. It often expresses the writer’s exceptional research and analyses.

For the US and other educational systems , the word thesis signifies the content created as the final step of one’s master’s and bachelor’s degrees .

Regardless of the educational system , the meaning of a thesis is a writing document that allows students to choose a topic and include research. It is important for them to conduct thorough research based on their chosen topic.

As you know the meaning of thesis, let’s understand ‘what is a thesis paper?’, ‘what is a college thesis?’ and ‘What does a thesis consist of?

What is a thesis paper? Understand its meaning!

A thesis paper is a type of document that is based on your original research. It is generally completed by students in the last year of a degree program, on a chosen topic.

The thesis paper is the longest piece of writing that expresses the topic. It depends on the students’ capability of how they do research, choose a relevant topic, create a proposal, gather data, establish a strong analysis, generate impactful conclusions and write a precise, clear and well-defined thesis.

A thesis is generally found at the end of the introduction of a thesis paper. In all research papers, it’s important to include a strong, concise thesis to grab the attention of readers.

Now, read ahead to know ‘what is a college thesis?’

Understanding a college thesis

A college thesis is a type of research project that students need to generate in their last year of graduation. Generally, students have to choose a topic they studied.

After choosing a topic, they need to share it with an advisor. Then, students can begin their research about the selected topic and start writing after the meeting with an advisor. Later, when they complete their thesis paper, college lecturers check it and decide if the paper is accurate and has all the required points and instructions for graduating from school.

Key components of a thesis

Now, you may ask ‘What does a thesis consist of?’ So, here are some major components that a thesis consists of, which include:

• Introduction
• Literature Review
• Methodology
• Discussion and Conclusion

We hope that now you know the answer to the question ‘What is thesis?’. A thesis usually expresses the chosen topic in a structured way, providing thorough research.

So, to write a clear and precise thesis, you must determine your thesis topic, do thorough research, create a draft, check the structure, and edit and proofread your paper, to ensure your final project is accurate.

For any assistance, connect with Edvoy . The expert team will help you get answers to all your queries.

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In the 4 years since George Floyd was killed, Washington can't find a path forward on police reform

By Hunter Woodall , Taurean Small , Aaron Navarro

May 25, 2024 / 7:14 PM EDT / CBS News

Four years after George Floyd was murdered by a Minneapolis police officer, momentum in Washington to pass sweeping reform in the Minnesota man's name has almost faded away completely. 

The death of Floyd , a 46-year-old Black man, in May 2020 sparked outrage and calls for change. Sensing the deep anger across the United States, Democrats and Republicans in Congress put forward different bills in response less than a month after he was killed.

But as more time passes since a police officer kneeling on Floyd's neck for more  than nine minutes  shocked the nation, there's been little urgency about making the kind of sweeping changes that President Biden has wanted to see.   

"That's the insult right there, not taking action," Keeta Floyd, George's sister-in-law, said. 

What happens on the issue moving forward could be decided by the 2024 elections as Mr. Biden contends with the prospect of his support softening with Black voters who are key to his effort to win the White House once more. 

There have been killings by police in the years since Floyd's death, including in early 2023 when Tyre Nichols , a 29-year-old Black man, died in Tennessee. Not long after, South Carolina Republican Sen. Tim Scott gave a speech faulting Democrats and politics for a lack of progress. 

Scott, the only Black Republican in the Senate, was the lead GOP negotiator on police reform and had authored a bill of his own after Floyd's death that was blocked by Senate Democrats at a time when many in their party supported a farther-reaching effort of their own . 

"I hope that when the dust settles, and the issue is no longer on the front pages of our newspapers, no longer streaming across our TVs and our iPads and our computers, that we do something that says to the American people, we see your pain, we are willing to put our partisan labels and shirts and uniforms on the side, so that we can do what needs to be done," Scott said in his speech last year. 

Less than a year and a half later, Scott is viewed as a potential running mate for presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump. Scott's office declined interview requests about the struggle to pass policing changes in Congress. 

Mr. Biden made addressing the stark issues brought to light by Floyd's murder a focus of his 2020 presidential campaign . While Republicans and Democrats rallied behind separate bills in the weeks after Floyd was killed, no efforts came close to becoming law with Republican Donald Trump in the White House.  Early in his presidency when Mr. Biden addressed Congress for the first time, he used one of the biggest speeches of his life to call on Congress to finally find a path forward — and quickly. 

"We need to work together to find a consensus," Mr. Biden said in April of 2021. "But let's get it done next month, by the first anniversary of George Floyd's death."

Despite bipartisan negotiations, Congress failed to meet the president's timeline . And a few months later, the talks fell apart . Overhauling qualified immunity, which can protect law enforcement from civil lawsuits, was an issue Democrats cared deeply about but was strongly opposed by the GOP. 

Since then, attention on the issue in Congress has waned considerably. Republicans, in an attempt to portray themselves as the party of law and order, have continued to try and associate Democrats with the politically volatile "defund the police" slogan that was prominent after Floyd was killed, even though most congressional Democrats do not support that movement. 

The lack of action in Congress has come amid concerns about crime and worries about  recruitment  and  staffing shortages  for law  enforcement  during Mr. Biden's time in office.  

The president has taken limited action that he can carry out unilaterally. Two years after Floyd was killed, Mr. Biden signed an executive order focused on federal law enforcement that included creating a National Law Enforcement Accountability Database. 

"We've made progress," said Stephen Benjamin, a senior Biden White House adviser. "Are we where we used to be? Absolutely not. [Are we] where we want to be? Not just yet. But we'll get there." 

Far from Washington, policing in this day and age can be a deeply personal issue. 

Bridgette Stewart, a community activist in Minnesota joined dozens of people in blocking outside disruptors from entering the area where Floyd was killed in Minneapolis at the height of unrest across the city. Four years later, she says community-police relations are still strained.

 "Most Black neighborhoods in the United States of America where a Black man is killed, either at the hands of the police or by community, it's just a neighborhood that doesn't thrive," Stewart said. 

For Nate Hamilton, who said he plans to vote for Biden, reforming police practices has been a mission since his brother Dontre Hamilton was shot 14 times and killed during a confrontation with a Milwaukee police officer in 2014. 

Hamilton believes police reform and accountability "is a national issue," and voiced discontent with the federal government, from Congress to the Justice Department, for not doing enough follow up work on the cases like his brother's.

"We thought that they were going to take a real look into how they can support individuals that have lost their lives, but most importantly their families, because their families are still the ones that are traumatized," he said. 

There is recognition within the law enforcement community that in parts of the country, local police responded to the outcry that followed Floyd's death by making changes. 

"There's a perception that [because] Congress didn't pass a reform bill, that somehow there's not reform across this country," Fraternal Order of Police President Patrick Yoes said. "I don't think that's really the case. Each one of these local jurisdictions engage in discussions with the people involved, in finding ways to improve the criminal justice system." 

But for Floyd's family, congressional inaction stings, even as Biden and other Democrats have continued to call for reform to become law. 

That doesn't mean they fault Biden however as he runs for re-election this fall. 

"I do feel 100% comfortable saying that the Biden administration has done what they could do," Keeta Floyd, George's sister-in-law, said. 

Members of George Floyd's family appeared on Capitol Hill earlier this week to mark a renewed effort by Democrats to pass an overhaul of policing in his name. Though earlier versions passed the Democrat-controlled House in 2020 and 2021, the bill is almost certain not to pass this year, given that Republicans now hold the House. 

Despite the political setbacks the Floyd family has faced on the issue, George's brother, Philonise Floyd, has kept visiting Washington over the years, making his case for change to pass at long last. 

"My brother's life was stolen," Philonise Floyd said in Capitol Hill earlier this week. "So many other people's lives was stolen from them." 

• Death of George Floyd
• George Floyd Justice in Policing Act

Hunter Woodall is a political editorial producer for CBS News. He covered the 2020 New Hampshire primary for The Associated Press and has also worked as a Kansas statehouse reporter for The Kansas City Star and the Washington correspondent for Minnesota's Star Tribune.

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This high schooler won $10,000 because he saw a mysterious outbreak killing sea turtles in his Hawaii hometown and decided to do something about it

• Maddux Alexander Springer was free diving in Hawaii when he noticed green sea turtles with huge tumors.
• He spent 2.5 years researching the disease and discovered its likely root cause, plus a solution.
• He won a top award at the  Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair , securing $10,000 for college.

Maddux Alexander Springer spent his pandemic free time in Oahu's blue waters .

Every day the high schooler left the sea horses and eels and octopuses in his at-home fish tanks, walked a short distance to Kāneʻohe Bay, and went free diving .

"It's almost like you're an alien," Springer, who is now 18, told Business Insider. "You're just there by yourself in this environment that you don't really belong in."

Sometimes, though, it seemed like he was diving through a graveyard. He kept seeing green sea turtles with cauliflower-like tumors.

"They were just gross masses that were anywhere from the size of a penny to the size of a football. And it would just encapsulate the green sea turtles," he said. "They're on their eyes, their skin, their flippers, everywhere. And there would just be turtles on the bottom of the ocean just dying there with these tumors ."

He started scouring the internet for an answer. The turtles had a disease called fibropapillomatosis , or FP for short. It affects up to 97% of all sea turtles, but according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, scientists don't fully understand what causes the disease to spread.

That disappointing Google search launched Springer into a two-and-a-half year investigation. Green sea turtles are crucial for the health of reefs worldwide, as they eat algae that would otherwise suffocate the coral. Ultimately, FP is a threat to coral reefs everywhere, which are already stressed by rising ocean temperatures and acidity.

Springer may have gotten to the root of the disease's spread in Oahu. Even better, he found a clear solution.

Last week he won the $10,000 Peggy Scripps Award for Science Communication for his work, which he presented at the Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair along with over a thousand students . The money is for post-secondary education, but he hopes the prize will also bring attention to FP and the plight of sea turtles.

"It was an incredible feeling, just having my research validated," he said. "It's been a very long time since I have felt like some change can be made from my research."

Solving a biological mystery

At the beginning of his investigation, Springer applied for permits that would allow him to biopsy the turtles' tumors. But he was denied.

Determined not to give up, he set out to find a non-invasive way to conduct his research. He donned his diving gear and set up motion-sensing underwater cameras to snap photos of green sea turtles.

The tumors caused by FP can only form internally if they've already formed externally, so these pictures gave him a census of all the FP-infected turtles in Kāneʻohe Bay . The data confirmed his previous observations — FP was highly prevalent.

But the herpesvirus that causes FP must be activated by an external factor before it can produce those tumors. Previous biopsies of green sea turtle tumors had shown that they contained high levels of the amino acid arginine . Maybe that was the trigger, but where would the turtles get so much arginine?

Algae is a sea turtle's main food source, and they're not picky eaters. They'll eat whatever type is available. Through a photo survey, Springer found that most of the algae in Kāneʻohe Bay is invasive.

This invasive algae is extremely good at absorbing sewage . In fact, it absorbs 11 times more than native algae and converts the wastewater's rich nitrogen into arginine, which the algae stores in its tissues, Springer said.

Indeed, Oahu had a likely source of sewage entering the ocean.

"In Kāneʻohe Bay, and in Hawaii overall, cesspools are a huge problem," Springer said.

Related stories

Cesspools are pits dug beneath houses to collect wastewater . They have no barriers around them, and thus contaminated water leeches into Hawaii's porous, volcanic soil. During high tide, that wastewater gets pulled into the ocean.

400 hours of diving for algae

Springer had his suspicions, but he needed to test them out.

So he spent his weekends and evenings after school collecting algae samples, drying them, and crushing them into a powder. Then, he sent them off to a lab to run through a mass spectrometer , a machine that reveals the elements in a substance.

He was looking for a specific isotope of nitrogen that's associated with human wastewater, and he found it. That confirmed that the algae was, in fact, absorbing wastewater.

The sea-turtle food was rich in FP-causing arginine.

After two and a half years and 400 hours of diving, Springer found a link between rampant FP in Kāneʻohe Bay and wastewater pollution .

Students' research at ISEF is not held to the peer-review standard that studies published in scientific journals like Nature must meet. More research is needed to confirm the causal link Springer may have discovered.

"I believe this study shows that there is a significant relationship between wastewater output and this disease," Springer said. Without intervention, he fears that this entire marine ecosystem will be devastated.

Saving Hawaii's sea turtles

In total, there are 88,000 cesspools in Hawaii, and 11,000 on Oahu alone, according to Hawaii's Department of Health.

Springer says that the solution is to get rid of these cesspools and divert residential wastewater to treatment facilities . That would keep this contaminated water from polluting Hawaii's oceans and making sea turtles sick.

Building wastewater treatment facilities and the infrastructure needed to transport sewage to them would be expensive, Springer admitted. But based on his research, he thinks this is an issue that requires urgent attention.

"If we continue to go at this rate, and if we continue to just release raw wastewater into the bay, the environmental devastation is going to be unparalleled," he said.

But it's not just cost that stands in the way. In 2017, Hawaii's legislature passed Act 125, which protects the state from having to remove cesspools until 2050. To Springer, that's not nearly soon enough.

"Hawaii just really needs to step up, put the money down. I know it'll be expensive, but in the end it'll be worth it because 2050 is an unacceptable date, and it needs to happen now or unforeseen environmental devastation will occur," he said.

Currently, the state legislature is considering a bill that would begin imposing "pollution fees" on homeowners who have cesspools by 2025. That money would funnel into a new fund for mitigating the effects of cesspools, Honolulu Civil Beat reports .

It may be a step in the right direction, but Springer hopes that his research will help draw more attention to the urgency of this issue.

"I just really want to raise awareness that this is an issue, and that the only way that this can be solved is by government intervention ," he said.

Springer has plans to further his scientific career at Oregon State University, where he'll pursue a bachelor's degree in marine biology .

"I'm excited to explore somewhere new, and do more research on new problems that exist because research is problem-driven ," he said. "I feel like it's going to be a fun way to get more into research and delve deeper into the issues that fundamentally control our environment and run our ecosystem."

Watch: Most of the ocean's plastic started in rivers. Can giant trash barriers help?

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Is This the End of Instagram Cookware?

Once-hot direct-to-consumer pots and pans are up for grabs on secondhand marketplaces at steep discounts — or ending in the garbage.

Disappointed consumers are listing their “millennial aesthetic” cookware on Facebook Marketplace and Buy Nothing groups after buying into the hype just a few years ago. Credit... Shawn Michael Jones for The New York Times

Supported by

By Ella Quittner

• May 24, 2024

Just a few months after the pandemic sent Americans indoors, Mia Graber received a lidded nonstick skillet the color of spruce pine needles, complete with a steamer basket and a wooden spatula on the handle, as a gift from her husband.

“I was immediately like, ‘Oh, this is the pan I had been seeing all over Instagram,’” said Ms. Graber, 33, who was understandably excited. It was the Always Pan from Our Place , which, at the time, cost $145 and promised to “do the work of eight pieces of traditional cookware.”

To Ms. Graber’s disappointment, it did not. Fried eggs stuck to the nonstick surface, the pan couldn’t be put in the oven, and over time the interior ceramic coating began to chip away. Soon, she reached for it only when she needed to steam something, and it began to gather dust.

So last month, Mr. Graber listed the pan on Facebook Marketplace for $50. After a few inquiries fizzled, Ms. Graber, a communications manager in Mill Valley, Calif., dropped it off at her local Goodwill.

Ms. Graber’s Always Pan is one of a flurry of once-hot, direct-to-consumer (D.T.C.) cookware products popping up on digital secondhand marketplaces or in Buy Nothing communities — or being tossed entirely.

Within the last month, more than a dozen Always Pans (and one stray lid) were available on Facebook Marketplace within 100 miles of Echo Park in Los Angeles, and nearly two dozen appeared within 100 miles of Brooklyn. Around Austin, Texas, nearly 10 items from Caraway , another cookware startup that produces nonstick pots and pans in cheerful hues, were available for purchase at steep discounts.

In the East Village of Manhattan, a Dutch oven from the cookware startup Great Jones , which retails for $180, was listed “in perfect condition” at a more than 25 percent discount, with two others available nearby. There was a Great Jones loaf pan in New Jersey; two more Dutch ovens in Southern California; and a Great Jones frying pan in Maryland.

While it’s not exactly unusual to see well-loved cookware cast off at yard sales or thrift stores, it does raise eyebrows when that cookware hit the market in the last five years, often with long wait-lists in a superstorm of aspirational, pastel marketing.

“It was a lot of the same photography of a nicely manicured hand with J. Hannah nail polish holding a plate,” said Jo Ledda a 33-year-old dietitian who coveted the Always Pan after seeing it splashed all over social media. Ms. Ledda, who received an Always Pan as a gift in 2021, said it lost its nonstick capabilities within the first month of use. She eventually threw it out.

Tosin Odugbemi Hoskins purchased Caraway’s nonstick pots and pans in 2021 in the “cream” colorway after seeing influencers promote them. “They enlisted an army of people to tell you it was the best pan in the world,” she said. After about six months, the ceramic nonstick coating began to deteriorate.

“It was this whole dance,” she said of the four-piece set. “I had one if I wanted to make a steak, and one for only fish or egg.” She would micromanage her boyfriend — a chef — when he wanted to use one. In April, Ms. Odugbemi Hoskins finally listed the set for $50 on Facebook Marketplace from her home in Millbrook, N.Y.

During the pandemic, when direct-to-consumer companies were more equipped than ever to meet shoppers exactly where they were — at home in front of screens — startup cookware that embraced the so-described millennial aesthetic caught on faster than a saucier of cherries Jubilee . Caraway’s monthly D.T.C. sales increased by 390 percent from January to May 2020 when consumers were largely homebound, for example.

Exclusivity was often part of the pitch. A 2020 advertisement described Our Place’s Always Pan as “cult favorite, best-selling, wait-list inducing” cookware. (Supply chain limitations during the pandemic were partly to thank for the wait-lists.) Paramount to this narrative was the idea that an aesthetically pleasing life was just a pan away.

“The real goal was transforming physical products into characters and friends,” said Sierra Tishgart, a founder and the chief executive of Great Jones. “It’s not just a sheet pan,” she said of the company’s glossy, candy-colored nonstick baking pans , available for $40. “It’s Holy Sheet.”

Consumers bought into the vision. “The Always Pan felt like it bridged the gap to adulthood,” said Ms. Ledda, who felt intimidated at the time by legacy brands like Staub , All-Clad and Le Creuset . She also purchased Great Jones’s Holy Sheet in “blueberry.” While performing the “Sisyphean task of constantly trying to get grime off,” she said, “that’s when the paint came off.” She threw it out.

Some dissatisfied customers described a disconnect between the vision and the reality. “They’re called Always Pans,” said Katie Mui, 34, who donated her limited-edition Lunar New Year Always Pan after the interior scorched and her cleaning efforts proved futile.

But no cookware is indestructible. Ceramic nonstick coatings — made from sand-based blends and marketed as safer than Teflon — simply aren’t designed to withstand super high temperatures, nor to last forever.

Founders of several of these D.T.C. companies said secondhand sale listings are not representative of a larger trend.

Ms. Tishgart said Great Jones’s sheet pan sales have nearly doubled since the peak of the pandemic, and fewer than 1 percent of orders have been returned because of customer dissatisfaction with quality. (Only a few Great Jones products use nonstick coatings.)

Jordan Nathan, the founder and chief executive of Caraway, said the company’s revenue increased by more than 500 percent between 2020 and 2023. (Caraway, which began as a D.T.C. company, partnered with a handful of online retailers in 2020 and debuted in Crate & Barrel stores in 2021.)

Shiza Shahid, a founder and a chief executive of Our Place, said the company has seen “continued growth year over year,” and that the Always Pan remains its best-selling product.

“Cookware is a technology product, especially coatings,” Ms. Shahid said, adding, “Everyone is working to expand life span.” Our Place released an Always Pan 2.0, which is oven-safe up to 450 degrees Fahrenheit, in 2023, and a coating-free pan earlier this year. The coating-free pan costs $195, and the gold colorway sold out within days, Ms. Shahid said.

Some of the consumers who parted ways with their pandemic-era D.T.C. cookware have transitioned to legacy brands. After donating her Always Pan, Ms. Mui returned to Le Creuset cookware she’d had all along, and Ms. Odugbemi Hoskins recently purchased a set of cast-iron pans from Smithey Ironware .

“They’re marketing what would have been a Target-level product as a luxury item, but it’s not a luxury item,” Ms. Odugbemi Hoskins said. “That’s been my growth curve as a young woman. Thinking, ‘I will buy this and become an It Girl’ — I’ve passed that a little.”

After nearly a month on Facebook Marketplace, her set of Caraway pans sold last week for $40. “I hope they love their new home,” she said.

Follow New York Times Cooking on Instagram , Facebook , YouTube , TikTok and Pinterest . Get regular updates from New York Times Cooking, with recipe suggestions, cooking tips and shopping advice .

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