GUIDELINES FOR WRITING A THESIS PAPER

CONTENT
The most common problems related to content are a failure to answer a question correctly or understand a topic,
incomplete research or consideration of the subject, and repetition of common observations with no original or
distinguishing thought.

RHETORIC
Rhetoric, simply stated, is the art of persuasion, or the skilled use of language to determine what is right and wrong
in philosophy, law, literary criticism, politics, and even science. It is so important to a civilized way of life that the
Greeks deified it as the goddess Peitho. Under this heading, we will examine the most effective way of structuring
your written arguments, the logical flow of your arguments, and the tone you adopt to enhance your persuasiveness.

Adopting the Correct Rhetorical Strategy

Identify the rhetorical strategy of your paper, whether it is comparison, analysis, cause and effect, or evaluation, and
structure your argument according to the most effective way of pursuing this strategy. For example, a comparison
argument may be organized in a point-by-point fashion, or in two large blocks where one subject is presented in its
entirety and then the other. Evaluation, which is both a definition argument and a comparison, should establish the
standards by which a subject is to be evaluated early in the essay, and then proceed to compare the subject to these
standards.

Paragraphs
In a conventional essay, a paragraph may introduce the argument, develop the argument, or conclude the argument.
The Introductory Paragraph
The introductory paragraph is the most important paragraph in your paper. It should contain the thesis of your
essay and break that thesis down into its principal components, or what might be called the sub-theses. It may
also contain background information or definitions. The thesis may appear anywhere in the introductory paragraph,
but if it appears at the end of the paragraph, the material that comes before it must be essential and lead directly to
the thesis.
When writing your introductory paragraphs, keep the following suggestions in mind:
1. Avoid generalizations such as, Throughout history, people have often written about love.
2. Avoid catchy hooks. If you write logically and have a good argument, there is no need to resort to tricks to
command the readers attention.
3. Use dictionary definitions only when you are examining an unusual word, or an unusual definition of a
common word. A common definition of a common word adds nothing to an argument.
4. Dont begin your argument with a quotation (even when your paper is an analysis of a quotation). Use
quotations to support your argument, not to catch the readers attention.
The Body Paragraphs
The body paragraphs should develop your argument and provide evidence or quotations to support your claims.
These paragraphs are more specific than the introductory and concluding paragraphs.

The Concluding Paragraph

The concluding paragraph, like the introductory paragraph, frames your argument with statements that are more
general than the details you have used to support your argument in the body paragraphs. In concluding, you should
state the essentials of your argument again to demonstrate that you have proven your thesis.

Organization within Paragraphs

A paragraph, like an essay, should be fully developed with a thesis (commonly called a topic sentence), a body of
supporting evidence, illustrations, or explanations, and a concluding sentence. The topic sentence should be
logically connected to the thesis of the essay and may be similar to one of the sub-theses of the introductory
paragraph (the word topos in Greek means form of argument, and the claim of a topic sentence gives form to your
argument). Paragraphs of one or two sentences are generally not very effective in a thesis paper because they do not
examine points thoroughly. They should therefore be assimilated into longer paragraphs.
Dont begin or end paragraphs with quotations. A quotation cannot function as precisely as your own words
when stating the claim or conclusion of a paragraph. Use quotations to support your argument, not to make it.
Emphasis: You are not narrating or describing. You are arguing. In an argument essay, always begin
paragraphs with topic sentences containing arguable claims rather than observations or facts.

Transitional Coherence
Transitional coherence refers to the logical continuity of your argument. It involves both content and language. Do
your sentences follow each other logically? Do your paragraphs? You may achieve transitional coherence in several
ways. Use transitional words or phrases such as therefore, in addition to, on the contrary, furthermore,
and finally to clarify the logical direction of your argument. You may also create links between sentences and
paragraphs by using pronouns and by repeating key words judiciously (avoid unnecessary repetition).
Emphasis: Revise carefully to ensure you have made logical connections between all sentences.

Tone
Tone may be described as the writers attitude toward his or her subject or readers. Is the writer congenial?
Engaging? Sympathetic? Condescending? Hostile? Arrogant? Indifferent? If the authors purpose is to persuade his
or her readers, a confident yet congenial tone is going to be more effective than a hostile or indifferent tone. In
college papers, you should avoid a chatty or ingratiating tone as well as an attitude that is predictably critical or
tendentious.

QUOTATIONS AND DOCUMENTATION

When to Use Quotations
Use quotations when they add to the credibility of your argument by showing you are familiar with scholarly
authorities on your subject, when they demonstrate a point with unusual concision or clarity, or when they allow
other writers to be understood in their own words.
Dont use quotations haphazardly. Never stack them. Always introduce them fully so the reader understands their
relevance to your argument.

Integrating Quotations
When using quotations, be sure to integrate them into your text grammatically. Never drop a quotation into your
text.
Incorrect: The Washington Post has revealed that General Herbert wrote a memo confirming the senators
suspicions. A memo citing cost overruns was published by the Washington Post on Tuesday.
There are two problems here. First, the quotation is not integrated into the original text. Second, the quotation does
not add anything substantial to the previous sentence.
1.

When the original text introduces a quotation with a verb like says, remarks, or claims, place a comma
after the introducing verb. Note: These words may occur in your introductory comment, but not direct the
reader to the quotation, in which case you wouldnt necessarily use a comma.

Correct: Mayor Menino confirmed this point when he said, Everyone in Boston should have heat this winter.
2.

When the original text uses an independent clause to introduce a quotation, place a colon at the end of the
clause.

Correct: Mayor Menino demonstrated his concern for the poor and elderly in his concluding statement: Everyone
in Boston should have heat this winter.
3.

In some cases, no punctuation is necessary when introducing a quotation. Take the quotation marks away
in your imagination and ask yourself whether the sentence would ordinarily require punctuation.

Correct: Mayor Menino has repeatedly stated that everyone in Boston should have heat this winter.

Punctuating Quotations
In the United States, we use double quotation marks around the outside of a quotation and place commas and
periods inside closing quotation marks. Also, if a sentence is a question, but the quotation inside the sentence is
not, the question mark is placed outside the quotation marks.
When using the MLA style of parenthetical citation, place the closing quotation marks before the opening
parenthesis and the period or comma after the closing parenthesis.
Words used as words or with special emphasis are also placed in double quotation marks.

Long Quotations
Use the block format for more than four typed lines of prose or more than three of poetry. Double-space long
quotations, and indent the entire quotation ten spaces or one inch. Do not use quotation marks. Do not leave
an additional line space before or after the quotation. Note: Place the final period before the parenthetical citation.
This is different from the style used for quotations in the body of your text.
When citing fewer than four lines of poetry, use backslashes to indicate line breaks. Leave spaces before and after
the slashes.
Dont forget to integrate long quotations.
Note: Do not place a comma between the authors name and page number in a parenthetical citation. This is
incorrect: (Jones, 46).

GRAMMAR
Sentence Structure
A sentence is a complete logical unit with a subject and predicate and usually modifiers, objects, and other elements.
Run-on Sentences
When such units are combined without the correct punctuation or with no punctuation, the result is a run-on
sentence.
Run-on sentences often occur when one uses a conjunctive adverb such as however or moreover between two
independent clauses. In such cases, insert a semicolon before the word and a comma after it:
Ive been going to work early every day; however, Ive been leaving early too.
Do not use a semicolon before a transitional expression in the middle of an independent clause or sentence:
Its clear that John, however, is not prepared for his finals.
Sentence Fragments
When such units are grammatically incomplete, lacking, for example, a subject or predicate.

Dangling Modifiers and Misplaced Modifiers

The sentence Having given Coach Smith one last opportunity, he failed to take advantage of it contains a dangling
modifier because Having given Coach Smith one last opportunity does not modify anything in the sentence. Who
gave Coach Smith one last opportunity?
The sentence Flying to San Francisco, the air traffic controllers diverted the plane to Denver contains a misplaced
modifier because the phrase Flying to San Francisco modifies the noun plane rather than air traffic controllers.
In order to avoid confusion, the noun modified should follow the phrase modifying it.
Most mistakes involving dangling modifiers occur in sentences beginning with a participial phrase
(functioning as an adjective), e.g., Having given Coach Smith one last opportunity and Flying to San Francisco.

A Lack of Parallelism
The sentence I went to the store to buy shoelaces, batteries, and play the lottery lacks parallelism because two
nouns in a sequence (shoelaces and batteries) are followed by a verb (play). If and is inserted between shoelaces
and batteries, and to is introduced before play to create parallel infinitives, the sentence will be correct: I
went to the store to buy shoelaces and batteries, and to play the lottery.

Split Infinitives
An infinitive functions as a noun, adjective, or adverb in a sentence, and may be easily recognized as to plus the
base form of the verb (go, drive, see, etc.). Never split an infinitive with an adverb when that adverb may be
placed elsewhere in the sentence.
Incorrect: In this situation, it is always best to honestly express ones views.
Correct: In this situation, it is always best to express ones views honestly.

Tenses
Tenses must be consistent. Dont shift from the present to the past or the past to the present without a clear time
reference to indicate that the time you are referring to has changed. This often happens when you confuse textual
time (the historical present) and real time. Also, remember to use the past perfect for an action that occurs before
an action occurring in the past.
If you need to change the tense of a quotation in order to integrate it grammatically, use brackets.

Agreement
Subjects and predicates, as well as pronouns and antecedents, should always agree in number.
Subject and Verb Agreement
Mistakes often occur when the subject is compound.
Incorrect: The house where we used to stay on summer vacations and our old Ford no longer exists.
Correct: The house where we used to stay on summer vacations and our old Ford no longer exist.
The contraction theres is often used incorrectly with a plural subject in spoken English.
Incorrect: Theres evidently two ways of going about this.
Correct: There are evidently two ways of going about this.
Pronoun and Antecedent Agreement
A pronoun is a word that takes the place of a noun or pronoun in order to avoid repetition. Personal pronouns include
I, you, he, she, and they. Notice that pronouns indicate both the gender and number of the antecedent
nouns they replace. One of the most common mistakes is to use the plural pronoun they for a singular noun of
indefinite gender, such as student. The correct pronoun for this antecedent is he or she.
Incorrect: Each student must hand in six papers. They will fail the course if they dont.
A sentence may seem awkward if the pronoun he or she is used several times. In this case, it is better to rewrite
the sentence than to use they.

Who/That
In general, use who to refer to people and that to refer to things. In some cases, that may be used to refer to
classes or groups of people.
Incorrect: The sailor that fell off the ship was named Palinurus.
Correct: The sailor who fell off the ship was named Palinurus.

Possession
Indicate that a noun is possessive with the correct use of the apostrophe.
Incorrect: Mothers car keys are in the drawer.

Correct: Mothers car keys are in the drawer.

When a noun does not end in s, add an apostrophe and s.
When a noun is singular and ends in s, add an apostrophe and s.
(When a noun is singular and ends in s, but is polysyllabic, it may be better to add only an apostrophe. For
example, write Keatss, but not Socratess. If an additional s sounds awkward, leave it out.)
When a noun is plural and ends in s, add an apostrophe but no additional s.
Note: Its is a possessive pronoun, but lacks an apostrophe in order to avoid confusion with the contraction its.

Active and Passive Voice

The active voice occurs when the subject of a sentence performs the action of the sentence:
At Washington High School, Mr. Miller teaches band.
The passive voice occurs when the subject of the sentence is acted upon (the by, whether stated or implied,
is an indication of the passive voice):
At Washington High School, band is taught by Mr. Miller.
In some cases, the actor is absent from the sentence:
At Washington High School, band is taught.
Although writers often believe that the passive voice sounds more formal, the active voice is generally preferable
to the passive because it is more direct. In some cases, the passive voice is necessary, for example, when the actor
is unknown:
Band is taught in Chinese schools.

The Ellipsis
An ellipsis is three spaced periods used to indicate words have been omitted from a quotation. Never begin a
quotation with an ellipsis, and only conclude a quotation with an ellipsis if you have omitted the final words from
a quotation. It is not to be used as a philosophical comment on the inconclusiveness of human experience.

The Dash
Do not use a hyphen in the place of a dash (use two hyphens together if your computer does not have a dash). Do
not insert spaces before or after a dash.

You/One
You is a definite personal pronoun. When you use it in a paper, you are referring to a particular person: your
reader. One is an indefinite pronoun referring to an unknown or hypothetical person. For this reason, it is better
to use one in your papers unless you mean to refer to me (which you shouldnt do).

Incorrect: You may find Hamlets response puzzling.

Correct: One may find Hamlets response puzzling.

STYLE
Titles
A title should indicate the subject of your argument precisely and not be a riddle or vague enigma.
When a work is book length, its title should be underlined or italicized. Capitalize all important words. (Books [both
fiction and non-fiction], long poems, plays, films, magazines, newspapers, etc.)
When a work is shorter than book length, its title should be placed in double quotation marks. Capitalize all
important words. (Short stories, short poems, articles, essays, songs, etc.)
Titles of your essays should not be italicized, underlined, or placed in quotation marks except where they
contain the title of another work. However, you should capitalize their most important words.

Diction
Choose the correct register for your papers. Dont be overly formal in an effort to impress, and dont use colloquial
language in an effort to be familiar.
Incorrect: Soil was conferred to his motley regalia.
Incorrect: Aeneas finally gets his act together and leaves Dido.
Note: Class discussion is often conducted in conversational English that would be inappropriate in a formal paper.

A LIST OF WORDS AND CONSTRUCTIONS TO AVOID

1.

Except in special circumstances, dont use humans in place of people or human beings. Would
you say there were a lot of humans at the party last night or a lot of humans riding the T this morning?

2.

Dont attempt to raise the register of your paper by writing utilize when use will do. Incorrect:
The student utilized a chair to reach the book on the top shelf.

3.

The phrase in which is often redundant. For example, you dont need to use it in the following sentence:
The way in which people express themselves says a lot about their educational background.

4.

Avoid using words like truly, really, and incredibly as unnecessary intensifiers. In the following
example, truly is not only unnecessary, but it is also used to split an infinitive: It is important to truly
remember those who have died for their country.

5.

The word infamous does not mean famous. Look up the difference in a dictionary. Incorrect: Milton
wrote his infamous poem Paradise Lost when he was blind.

6.

Do not use the word drastically when you mean dramatically. Drastically means extremely or
severely, whereas dramatically denotes great contrast. If it is sunny one minute and stormy the next, we
say the weather changed dramatically, not drastically.

7.

Works of non-fiction and works of poetry are not novels. The word novel means a long work of prose
fiction. Incorrect: Thoreaus Walden is one of my favorite novels.

8.

Never write based off of. The correct expression is based on. Incorrect: Based off of my experience,
that is difficult to prove. Correct: Based on my experience, that is difficult to prove.

9.

There is a difference between the words therefore and thereby. The definition of therefore
includes consequently and as a result of something. The definition of thereby is by that means.

10. Dont use within when in will do. Incorrect: Another problem within the play is the ghost.
11. Dont use a participle in place of a verb. In this sentence, the participle is an adjective that modifies nothing
in an incomplete clause or fragment. Incorrect: Hamlet is deeply bothered by his mothers actions and
complacency; therefore, developing an urgency for revenge. Correct: Hamlet is deeply bothered by his
mothers actions and complacency; therefore, he develops an urgency for revenge. Another example: One
aspect being that we know the true identity of that character. Correct: One aspect is that we know the true
identity of that character.
12. Avoid the word mindset. It is still considered to be colloquial. Avoid the word relatable, for example,
in the following sentence: I found that argument very relatable. Also avoid commonality, positivity,
and morph.
13. Avoid the phrase as to in the following context: Plato discusses this belief during his assertion as to the
need for philosopher kings. Correct: Plato discusses this belief when he asserts that philosopher kings are
needed.
14. The word that may follow some verbs such as claims, asserts, points out, or argues, but not other
verbs such as expresses, describes, and conveys. Incorrect: Hamlet expresses that a great man like
his father should not be quickly forgotten.
15. The word simplistic is not synonymous with simple. It has a negative connotation and means overly
simplified rather than uncomplicated.

PROOFREADING
Probably the single most important thing you can do to ensure your paper is well written is to proofread it carefully
once it has been completed. Running a spell check is no substitute for proofreading. Also, Google Translate creates
many errors, so dont rely on it if you are having ESL problems.
Incorrect: Aeneas and his men discovered they had reached their destination when they sat down on the ground
and ate their beard.
Emphasis: If you have the time, proofread your paper at least twenty-four hours after you have finished it.
This will enable you to assess it more objectively. This is the single most important thing you can do to
improve your writing. Also, it wouldnt hurt to review this handout before proofreading.