Notes on Academic Writing

Notes On Academic Writing

In academic and professional writing, the introduction serves a variety of purposes. In general the introduction should do four things: (1) get attention and interest; (2) reveal the topic and plainly state your thesis or claim; (3) provide a preview of the essay; and (4) smoothly transition into the next section. It is important to have a well-written introduction because it is used to help establish your credibility, and to show that you are a well informed and clever writer.

Examples of Attention Getters

• "In the town of Yellow Springs, Ohio, an experiment in bureaucratized intimacy is taking place. At the heart of this experiment lies a much publicized and debated document titled: "The Antioch College Sexual Offense Policy . . ."

• "The Internet and the World Wide Web continue to emerge as an information and entertainment medium. Indeed, current estimates on the use of the Web in the U.S. now suggest that "60 per cent [sic] of US citizens, or a total of 168 million, used the Internet from home, work or both (Rice, 2002, p. 105). . . ."

• "Most organizations believe that a Web site is an important part of their corporate communication efforts. Web sites, for better or worse, are the windows through which organizations are viewed. Every day journalists visit organizational Web sites for specific reasons—gathering information for news stories, confirming rumors, to write features, etc. Unfortunately, many journalists leave dissatisfied with what they find. It does not have to be this way."

Thesis The purpose of the thesis is to plainly spell out what you want to prove, analyze, critique, illumine, discuss, refine, extend, or clarify. The thesis is not a preview of what will be discussed in the paper and in what order—that is what a preview of the essay is for. Rather, the purpose of the thesis is to assert what is at stake in the essay, or what issues will be discussed in the essay. Again, as with the introduction, the length of the thesis varies depending upon the complexity or subtlety of your claims.

Examples of Theses

• "Rush Limbaugh's popularity rests on an assortment of American values that permeate his rhetoric, and create familiarity and structure for his audience . . ."

• "In this essay I will explain how situational ethics are incompatible with moral social interaction by comparing a situational model of social interaction to a prescribed model of interaction. . . ."

• "The Internet is a hybrid medium with many of the same advantages and limitations as broadcast and print journalism. While the entelechial end (Burke, 1966, p. 17) of the Internet is not yet known, it is clear that it will continue to grow as an information and entertainment medium . . ."

Preview The preview of an essay serves as a signpost for the reader. Previews are designed to make understanding an essay easier. The preview is where you tell the reader exactly what issues will be discussed in the essay and in what order they will be discussed.

The essay preview does not take the place of internal summaries or transitions; rather, the preview is used to make the arguments and structure of the essay clearer. Not all authors employ previews. Skillful writers often preview sections of essays with internal summaries and transitions. Keep in mind however, that the more complex and intricate an argument is, the more useful the reader will find the preview. Previews are recommended.

Examples of Previews

• "This essay will be divided into four sections. In section one I will explain . . .; in section two I will compare . . .; in section three I will attempt to reconcile the issues raised in sections one and two . . .; finally, I will conclude with a discussion of . . ."

• "I will first discuss the Pentadic aspects of Limbaugh's rhetorical position and their respective ratios. Second, I will discuss Steele and Redding's "American Values" and explain how they relate to Limbaugh's rhetoric. Third, I will identify the representative anecdote present in Limbaugh's rhetoric and explain its significance. Finally, I will conclude with . . ."

• "The first section of the article traces the history of public opinion polling from its inception to its use today as an entertainment vehicle. The second section of the article presents two critical frameworks to better understand the convergence of information and entertainment in Internet polling by the news media: Daniel Boorstin's concept of the "pseudo-event," and Murray Edelman's concept of "symbolic representation." The final section of the article conducts a critique of the media's use of contemporary public opinion polls."

Body The body of the paper is where you actually make your argument. The body should contain only arguments/sections introduced in your preview. Each paragraph should have a direct relationship to the thesis/claim advanced by the author. The reader should always be able to hold up any particular paragraph within the essay to the section/subsection to which it belongs and see an obvious connection.

The body of the paper is not a place for polemical tangents or irrelevant digressions (use a footnote for that). As a general rule, long essays are usually divided into no more than three or four sections and corresponding subsections.

Transitions The purpose of a transition is to take the reader smoothly from one idea to another. Transitions should be employed between all major sections and subsections. Transitions are employed by authors to make ideas/arguments easier for the reader to follow. Transitions are also useful for reinforcing ideas from previous sections. For example, one might say: "Having explained why teachers are unable to understand student concerns, I will now move on to a discussion of why teachers are out of touch with reality . . ." As with any good writing, authors should avoid using the same transition each time. That is, do not always say: "having now explained X, I will now move on to a discussion of Y."

Summary The purpose of a summary is, not surprisingly, to summarize. The summary is your chance to reinforce your claims. In the summary you recap what was discussed/argued in the body of the paper and to make a final attempt to support your thesis/claim. The strength of the summary is repetition. Use it to remind your reader what your points were.

Conclusion The purpose of the conclusion is to reinforce your thesis/claim. The conclusion is not a summary. The conclusion is your chance to explain what you believe the value of the essay really was—if any. The classic use of the conclusion is to provide a forum for the author to discuss the heuristic, or educational value, of the essay. The conclusion is also the place where you recommend avenues for future research or inquiry.

Generally the conclusion is the one place in the essay where you can actually say what you really thought the value of the scholarly activity was. That is, you can admit that your research contained some flaws, or that the essay explored some groundbreaking issue.

The purpose of the conclusion is not to complain about the assignment given by the teacher—sorry to tell you this—nor is it the place for you to claim that your efforts were a waste of time. If writing your essay was a waste of time, then reading it must also be a waste of time as well. You want to leave your reader with a good feeling for having plodded through your essay to the end.

Note: Often the summary and conclusion are combined into one section.