Writing Support Services, Student Success Centre ucalgary.ca/ssc/writing-support
How to Structure an Essay The Basics An essay usually follows a standard format, which makes it easier for you to write and for your reader to understand. At some point, you’ve probably encountered the ‘burger’ or ‘5 paragraph’ technique for writing papers. Below, a modified version of this technique that better suits university academic writing is described. Let’s structure our paper around the following thesis statement: “The censoring of movies shown on television violates the producer’s right to freedom of artistic expression and the viewer’s right to freedom of choice.” The purpose of an introduction is to explain to your reader what you are going to prove. In the first sentence, your main goal should be to engage readers. In this example, a sentence about vulgarity in movies might seem appropriate. The middle of your introduction should contextualize your topic for readers; if we use the thesis statement from above, we would want to detail censoring, the freedom of artistic expression, and the viewer’s right to freedom of choice. Finally, your last (or 2nd last) sentence should be your thesis statement. If you have written a strong thesis statement, you can often structure your body paragraphs around it. Continuing with our example, we might focus body paragraph 1 on the freedom of artistic expression, and how it is violated through censoring. In the second body paragraph, we could discuss the viewer’s right to freedom of choice. The third body paragraph, depending on the length of the essay, might not be necessary or you may need a fourth and fifth paragraph. The number of paragraphs is up to you. On the other side of this sheet, we offer ways to help you structure your paragraphs. The first step in writing a conclusion is to restate your thesis statement (in different words). This restatement reminds your reader, and yourself, of your argument. The rest of the conclusion, though, is not a restatement of the introduction. The conclusion needs to gather the arguments you have made in your body paragraphs together for the reader and explain their significance. It should explain why all of the information you have presented proves your thesis statement. To end your conclusion, you may want to mention how your topic relates to broader issues.
Interest Context Thesis Body Paragraph 1 Body Paragraph 2
Body Paragraph 3
Thesis
Gather
Relate Revised June 2014
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Structuring Your Body Paragraphs: Each body paragraph should be structured so that your argument is apparent to your reader. There are two common ways to structure a body paragraph: The Shaffer formula and the MEAL plan. The Shaffer Formula
The MEAL plan
TS
Topic Sentence
Main Idea
M
CD
Concrete Detail
Example
E
CM
Commentary
Analysis
A
CM
Commentary
Link to Thesis
L
Concluding Sentence We can use both of these formulas together to construct a body paragraph. Let's break them down: Topic Sentence or Main Idea: The topic sentence of a paragraph needs to tell your reader what your paragraph is about. It is the main idea of the paragraph, and sets out what you will prove in the paragraph. Concrete Detail or Example: In this sentence, you want to use an example from the text that supports your idea. Usually an example is a quotation, but it can also be your own paraphrasing of the material. Commentary 1 or Analysis: Your first commentary should analyze your example, and explain why it is important for your argument. If you cannot explain why your example is relevant or important, then chances are your reader won't know why either. Commentary 2 or Link to Thesis: Your second commentary should link back to your thesis statement. Here you can explain to your reader how your example shows that your thesis statement is true. If you wish, you can also leave your ‘Link to Thesis’ as the concluding sentence, and use your second CM for more analysis. Repeat: You might also choose to use another example in the paragraph. If you do, use the same CD, CM, CM or E, A, L structure. Concluding sentence: This sentence should summarize for the reader why everything you have just told them is important. You can modify this formula to meet the needs of your essay, or discipline, as well. In the Sciences, for example, it is usually better to include two CDs and only one sentence analyzing them. Play around and see what works best for you!
