Page 171 - Wordsmith A Guide to College Writing

Topic 4: Discuss your methods of coping with stress.

Tips for Introducing Your Essay

Carefully consider which type of introduction would be most
effective for your topic. Ask yourself if there is a quotation or an

anecdote that might be particularly effective with your topic. See if

there is a contrasting idea that you could use or a way to lead into

your thesis with a broad-to-narrow introduction. Once you have

thought through each method of introduction, ask yourself which
one would work best with your topic and be most appealing to a

reader.

Place your thesis at the end of your introduction. Then make sure

that the sentence that leads into the thesis does its job smoothly,

providing a logical transition from your lead-in to your main idea.

Learning Objectives Review

LO1 Identify the The purposes of an introduction are to draw

purposes of the reader in, advance the general topic of the
an essay, provide necessary background, and
introduction. present the thesis.

What are the
purposes of an

introduction? (See
pp. 60–61.)