MDC Create a Thesis Statement Online

Part 1: Create a thesis statement

Topic: Living in a City/Living in the Country

This is the one sentence in your paper that tells your reader exactly what your paper is going to be about. This will ultimately be located at the end of your introductory paragraph.

Thesis must be INFORMATIVE – simply comparing the two subjects without judgement as to which is better.

For a compare and contrast composition, you want your thesis to do three things: 

Name the two topics you’ll be discussing

Identify your method of development  — are you comparing, contrasting, or both?

Set up the three points you plan to discuss for each of your topics.

Remember, they need to be consistent throughout the essay.  If you’re going to talk about Point 1, Point 2, and Point 3 for Topic A, you need to discuss those exact same points for Topic B. 

AN EXAMPLE

For example, if the topic is pet ownership of cats and dogs, a thesis statement might be:

While cats and dogs have similarities, they differ in their obedience, training, and ease of care

What to submit here: A one-sentence thesis statement. 

1. Part 2: Create an outline
2. Now that you’ve selected two topics to explore for your compare and contrast essay and written a thesis statement, it’s time to make a plan.  An outline is like a roadmap for your essay.  Just like you wouldn’t get in the car to drive across the country without a good map telling you how to get from Point A to Point B, you don’t want to start an essay without planning exactly what you’re going to include and how those details will be arranged.  
3. Download this outline template, save it using your name in the file name, and edit it to fit your essay. This includes the title page!

point-by-point-outline-template.docxOpen this document with ReadSpeaker docReader

• The topic sentences for each of your body paragraphs should do two things:  (a) remind the reader of the thesis and (b) tell the reader what point that specific paragraph will make.   These should be complete sentences, even in your outline. 

Something to consider:  The outline provided for this assignment allows for four body paragraphs, with five details per paragraph.  You may need more or less, depending on where you plan on taking your writing.  A video showing you how to add sections is included in the lecture material in this unit.

*Plagiarism will result in a zero for the assignment; penalties may apply according to Written Assignment Policy

Part 3: 

Share the compare and contrast thesis statement and provide a brief outline of how you plan to approach the topic. (USLO 3.3). There is immense value in everyone looking at what you have so far and giving feedback!