Introduction
In this resource we’ll explore basic overall and paragraph structure for critical essays and papers.
Basic structure follows the INTRODUCTION-MAIN BODY-CONCLUSION format with which most people will already be familiar. In the sections which follow we’ll break down each of these three parts in a bit more detail, with the help of our Essay Bites resource.
Writing effective introductions
It may seem obvious at first but when it comes to writing the introduction many people get confused as to what it should and shouldn’t contain, and how long or detailed it should be.
Your introduction is a key signpost – it tells your reader what the essay or paper is about, and how it will be structured. You do not want your introduction to take up a large proportion of your word count (the bulk of which should be spent on the main body). So avoid long explanations, definitions or background detail, and make sure you don’t start actually introducing evidence and arguments at this stage.
One simple structure for your introduction
There’s no single correct way to write an introduction and to some extent the exact format will depend on the nature of the work and the conventions of your discipline. That said, adopting the simple 3-step format that we suggest in Essay Bites will stand you in good stead in most cases.
Begin by setting out the general context or subject matter of the essay. This will likely be a broad statement which gives your reader a sense of the general subject area to which the essay belongs.
Next, focus-in on the specific theme that the essay will explore. Here you’re moving from that broad context above into the more focused concerns of the essay. What specific aspects or elements of the general subject area will your essay focus on. this will usually be determined by the demands of the question.
Finally, signpost how you will explore the question – tell your reader what you will cover in the order that you will cover it. This is an important step in helping your reader follow your line of argument.
The Main Body
The main body is the biggest and most important section of any essay or paper and is where you’ll organise your ideas and evidence into a coherent line of argument. Planning and structuring your main body is essential to writing a good essay.
Sub-sections
One important means of keeping control of longer essays is through the use of sub-sections. Dividing longer essays into shorter sections helps you to maintain control over both the content and the structural coherence of the chapter.
Sections and sub-headings also provide signposts and cues for your reader, making it easier for them to follow your arguments. Breaking an essay into (logical) chunks and allowing your reader to pause between sections in this way is an excellent way of helping them to make sense of the text.
Paragraphs – the building blocks of good writing
Paragraphs are another key means of controlling the structural coherence of your work. You should think of paragraphs as the building blocks of your writing. Each one adds to the strength and integrity of the overall structure.
It’s not enough simply to have a bunch of good paragraphs though – they also have to be organised in such a way as to flow from each other and give your writing that sense of logical flow.
The key rule to remember is 1 point, 1 paragraph. Each paragraph has its own job to do, its own idea or argument to evidence and elaborate on. If you try to do too much in one paragraph, your arguments are in danger of getting lost. Conversely if you don’t develop your paragraphs fully, then you’ll be left with little more than a list of bullet points rather than a well-argued essay.
One simple but powerful paragraph model – TEA
There are many different ways in which you can construct paragraphs and indeed it pays not to be too prescriptive. It’s also likely that the paragraph structure will depend to some extent on the content and complexity of the ideas being explored. However, in many cases a very basic TEA model will be perfectly adequate and will ensure that you are writing well developed, critical paragraphs.
- T = Topic Sentence
- E = Evidence
- A= Analysis
The topic sentence outlines the point or argument that you wish to explore in that paragraph. But it can also play an important role in linking this paragraph to the previous one, thus helping your writing to ‘flow’.
Once you’ve signposted the topic, present the evidence (with citations) that you intend to draw upon to help you make your point(s) or argument(s).
You’ve made your argument, you’ve presented your supporting evidence, now give your reader the analysis. Why do you think this is important or relevant? How does the evidence help you make your argument? What is it you want your reader to notice about the evidence you have just presented? This final step is often omitted but it’s what will make your work critical rather than descriptive. If you’ve ever had feedback that you’re not being critical enough or need to be more analytical, it’s probably this step that’s missing.
Example of TEA
Topic sentence… Whilst the volume and range of material available online means it is easier than ever to conduct extensive research, it also means that the researcher can quickly find themselves overwhelmed by the amount of material they potentially have to work through.
Evidence… Jones (2019) found that a large majority of new students were unsure how to handle the vast number of search results they encountered when researching for an assignment, although the same study noted that as time progressed students had developed much more effective strategies. Meanwhile, Black and White (2020) argue that being overwhelmed by available resources leads to procrastination and students reverting to easily accessed generic resources such as Wikipedia.
Analysis… Whilst overwhelm is clearly an issue, the solution appears to lie in equipping students with the skills to find, sift and evaluate resources quickly and effectively. As Jones found, more experienced students did not suffer from the same difficulties, having developed an understanding of how to research more effectively and efficiently. Training students at all levels, but particularly near the start of their courses, in effective research skills would reduce the problem of overwhelm and help them to make better decisions about the type of resource they used in their assignments.
Putting it all together…
Whilst the volume and range of material available online means it is easier than ever to conduct extensive research, it also means that the researcher can quickly find themselves overwhelmed by the amount of material they potentially have to work through. Jones (2019) found that a large majority of new students were unsure how to handle the vast number of search results they encountered when researching for an assignment, although the same study noted that as time progressed students had developed much more effective strategies. Meanwhile, Black and White (2020) argue that being overwhelmed by available resources leads to procrastination and students reverting to easily accessed generic resources such as Wikipedia. Whilst overwhelm is clearly an issue, the solution appears to lie in equipping students with the skills to find, sift and evaluate resources quickly and effectively. As Jones found, more experienced students did not suffer from the same difficulties, having developed an understanding of how to research more effectively and efficiently. Training students at all levels, but particularly near the start of their courses, in effective research skills would reduce the problem of overwhelm and help them to make better decisions about the type of resource they used in their assignments.
Coming to a Convincing Conclusion
You conclusion is your final chance to get the key messages of the essay over. It should contain no new arguments or evidence, but it should reinforce all the important points you want your reader to get out of the chapter.
The conclusion is another example of where planning can help. If you plan out your chapter before you start writing it, you can identify the conclusion you’re working towards, and that’s likely to give your writing much more of a sense of direction.
As was the case with the introduction, there’s no single correct way to write your conclusion. However, we would again suggest a fairly straightforward 3-step approach will work in many circumstances.
First, transition out of your main body and into your conclusion by reminding your reader of what the essay was about. This will likely relate back to the specific theme that you outlined in your chapter introduction
Next, gather together your key findings. This is where you remind your reader of all the good analytical points you’ve made that help you build towards your conclusion. If you have used the TEA structure in the main body, these findings would relate to the key analytical points you came up with in each section of the essay.
Finally, provide a concluding sentence or two which broadens things back out into the wider context, and in doing so links back to the question you’ve been answering.
Summing Up
Taking some time to carefully plan your essay or paper structure will mean you’re giving yourself the best chance of making your work as incisive and focused as possible. Consider breaking longer essays down into sections based on key themes and use effective paragraph planning to unpack these themes in a cohesive and critical manner.
