Writing Effective Thesis Statements

The thesis statement is popularly referred to as the “road map” for an essay because it provides critical structure and guidance. Most academic essays require the student to create an objective and analytical argument which will be established in the thesis and then explained and analyzed in more depth in the body paragraphs. If the thesis is not objective, the author may fail to make his/her point effectively and may then endanger his/her performance on the particular assignment.

What Does it Mean to Write an Objective Thesis Statement?
In the art of academic and persuasive writing, making an objective argument means that the author must defend and support his/her point without straightforwardly stating his/her stance in the first or second person (I, we, you). The act of using third person pronouns (he, she, it, they), rather than first or second person, shifts the perspective off of the author and reader in order to make a substantive argument that does not rely on explicitly stated personal opinion.

Avoiding “I” in the Thesis Statement
One of the biggest challenges that new writers face is removing “I” from a thesis statement. Many students are tempted to write a sentence such as the following: “In my paper, I am going to talk about why the death penalty should be abolished.” This student has clearly attempted a thesis statement here, but this falls short of the goal of creating a substantive and objective thesis. This statement wastes valuable space by announcing to the reader what the writer will discuss and it also fails to specifically state the reasons why the death penalty should be abolished.

In this case, using an objective thesis statement would create a more convincing and professional-sounding argument. For example, the student could write, “The death penalty should be abolished because of its cost to tax-payers, because it is not a proven deterrent to crime, and because innocent people are at risk of being wrongly convicted and put to death.” This objective statement eliminates the unnecessary “I” element, takes a solid argumentative stance, and gives the reader a brief introduction to the support that will be used to defend the author’s position.

Avoiding “You” and “We” in the Thesis Statement
Another issue that new writers face is using “you” or “we” in the thesis statement. Students are often tempted to write statements such as “Throughout this paper, you will see why the death penalty should be abolished” or “Together, we will see the reasons why the death penalty should be abolished.” While these statements are noble attempts to make the reader feel like an active participant, in this case the writer runs the risk of alienating the reader.

Depending on the circumstances, if the reader does not agree (i.e. “see”) the author’s point or if the reader does not feel that the author has made his/her case well enough in the thesis, the reader may give up and abandon the paper altogether, thereby eliminating any possibility that the author might have had to convince the reader to formulate a new perspective or stance.
As such, the trick to writing a successful thesis statement is to draw readers in and guide them gently through the paper while offering the strongest evidence possible to support the given argument. A thesis statement that is objective and analytical is much more likely to keep a reader engaged, regardless of the topic at hand, since an objective thesis shows professionalism and critical thinking.

Writing an effective thesis statement requires a lot of practice. Keep in mind that trial and error is completely natural while developing one’s writing abilities, but with time and effort this process will often become second-nature.

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