- CSS Essay Course
- Module 4
How to Write a CSS Essay Thesis Statement
Thesis writing: A one-sentence stance you can defend. Write ten per topic, keep the best.
By the end of this module you can
- Write a thesis that takes a side
- Test a thesis for arguability, scope and direction
- Place the thesis correctly in the introduction
Examiners in 2016 and 2017 found essays that were narrative or descriptive rather than argued. The cause is almost always a missing thesis. Without a position, there is nothing to prove, so the candidate describes.
A thesis is one sentence that answers the topic's question and could be disagreed with by a reasonable person. It also hints at how you will prove it.
The weak version states a fact no one disputes. The strong version takes a side on "bigger than" and sets up the measures the essay will use.
- Arguable: could a sensible reader disagree?
- Answers the topic: does it address every operative word?
- Directional: does it suggest the reasons you will give?
- One sentence: if you need three, you haven't decided.
Activity: Pick the strongest thesis
- CPEC is a very important project for Pakistan.
- CPEC has many advantages and disadvantages.
- CPEC will change Pakistan's fortunes only if it shifts from borrowed infrastructure to export-earning industry; otherwise the debt will outlast the roads.
- This essay will discuss CPEC in detail.
Show answer
CPEC will change Pakistan's fortunes only if it shifts from borrowed infrastructure to export-earning industry; otherwise the debt will outlast the roads. — It answers the "or", sets a condition, and previews the argument. The others take no position.
- Knowledge is very important in life.
- Knowledge becomes power only where institutions let people act on it, which is why Pakistan's graduates remain powerless.
- Many great thinkers have said knowledge is power.
- Knowledge has been valued since ancient times.
Show answer
Knowledge becomes power only where institutions let people act on it, which is why Pakistan's graduates remain powerless. — Only this one could be disputed, and it sets the essay's direction.
- The quality of Pakistan's institutions determines whether aid helps or harms.
- The causes of the crisis lie in governance, not geography.
- The rise of populist leaders across the world reflect a crisis of trust.
- Neither the army nor the courts have solved the problem.
Show answer
The rise of populist leaders across the world reflect a crisis of trust. — The subject is "rise" (singular), so the verb should be "reflects". The phrase "of populist leaders" is not the subject.
- Social media is harmful for youth.
- Social media connects people across the world.
- Social media has widened our networks but narrowed our sources, trading depth of information for speed of contact.
- There are many social media platforms today.
Show answer
Social media has widened our networks but narrowed our sources, trading depth of information for speed of contact. — It addresses "connected" and "less informed" and explains the link between them.
This week's grammar: Prepositions and Pakistani-English usage
Many expressions common in Pakistani English are errors in standard English. Examiners notice them at once.
Open grammar unit 4Deliverable: Thesis bank
Frequently asked questions
Where should the thesis go in a CSS essay?
At the end of the introduction, so the examiner knows exactly what the essay will prove.
Can a thesis be more than one sentence?
Keep it to one. If you need three sentences, you have not decided your position yet.