6 Converting an argument Into a Thesis Statement

An argument should then be converted into a thesis statement. A thesis statement is the heart of a paper. It is ultimately the argument that is being conveyed. A thesis statement is generally one sentence long though it can be longer. A good thesis statement is debatable, concise, and specific (Strauss). A good thesis statement is debatable because otherwise there would be no need to write an academic paper. A good thesis is concise and should be easy to locate at the end of the introductory paragraph. A lengthy thesis can make it confusing for the reader to identify what the main point being discussed is. A good thesis is also specific not only to the topic but the overall argument that the paper is making. Ultimately one’s thesis should match the theme of their paper. It can be easy with very complex topics to stray from the main thesis to focus on tangents and other points related to the topic but that will result in a weak paper. While writing the student should frequently refer back to what their thesis is and while editing their paper ensure that the main point of each paragraph also ties into their thesis point. While other points may be interesting if they don’t relate to the thesis they are not relevant to the paper and should therefore be excluded.