Page 164 - Wordsmith A Guide to College Writing

Anecdote

An anecdote is a brief story that illustrates a point. Brief is the key
word. Introductions should be short, so keep your story to a few

sentences and be sure to include a transition that connects the

anecdote to the thesis.

Example of an Anecdotal Introduction
When Erin saw her front door standing open, she knew

there had been another break-in. She took her five-year-

old daughter next door and returned with a neighbor and

a borrowed baseball bat. Hesitantly, she entered. Vulgar

graffiti covered the walls, and white stuffing protruded

from deep slashes in the sofa. In neighborhoods like Erin’s

transition to thesis
where crime is out of hand, residents often feel powerless.

Community involvement such as neighborhood watches,

neighborhood patrols, and insistence on police presence