Essay structure and organization
The basic structure of an essay always consists
of an introduction, a body, and a conclusion.
But for many students, the most difficult part of
structuring an essay is deciding how to organize
information within the body.
Essay structure and organization
Part Content
Introduction •Presents your topic
•Provides background
•Gives your thesis statement
Body •Core arguments and analysis
•Presents evidence (e.g. quotes)
•One main point per paragraph
•Each paragraph starts with a topic
sentence
•All paragraphs relate to your
thesis
Conclusion •Ties together your main points
•Shows why your argument
matters
Essay introductions
• Essay introductions generally have three basic
parts. The introduction begins with the hook,
moves into the bridge, and ends with the
thesis. The best way to visualize the motion of
these three parts is to think of a funnel. At the
wide end of the funnel is the hook, and at the
narrow end is the thesis.
Essay introductions
• Hook - The hook is the opening line of the
introduction. It draws attention to the essay with
an interesting statement or question.
• Bridge - The bridge is the link between the hook
and the thesis. It provides vital background
information.
• Thesis - The thesis previews the central argument
that is going to be made across the rest of the
piece. It helps readers connect the various claims
being made by knowing what they are building
to.
Essay introduction
• Hook
• Just like a fishing hook grabs a fish and doesn't let
go, the hook of an essay should grab the reader.
The hook is also known as an attention getter or
an attention grabber. The hook sentence should
be written in a way to entice the reader to read
more. But how should the hook be written?
There are a lot of ways to write a good hook, and
picking the best one to use in an essay really
depends on what the essay is about.
HOOK
• if the essay is expository, a great hook could include giving
a jaw-dropping statistic or fact that relates to the essay.
• If the essay is argumentative, a good way to start off might
be to ask an interesting question (that the reader probably
doesn't know) which will be answered in the essay.
• If the essay happens to be more narrative, then starting off
with an anecdotal( informal) hook about something
mysterious or odd that happened is a great beginning.
• All essay types can use a quote as a hook. The quote can
come from a source attached to the essay, or it could
simply be a quote that relates to the essay.
•
HOOK
• 7 Types of Essay Hooks
• Here are 7 writing hooks that make readers want to
find out what you will say in the rest of your essay.
• Interesting Question Hook
• Strong Statement/Declaration Hook
• Fact/Statistic Hook
• Metaphor/ Simile Hook
• Story Hook
• Description Hook
• Quotation Hook.
1. The Interesting Question Hook
• People are inquisitive. When we hear or read
a question we want to know the answer. If we
don’t have an answer then we need to find
out.
• So, when you start your essay with a question
hook, this signals to your readers that if they
keep reading you’ll give them the answer.
The Interesting Question Hook
• Example of an interesting question hook on
the topic of succeeding in college:
• What is the difference between successful
college students and unsuccessful college
students?
•
. The Strong Statement/Declaration Hook
• A strong statement hook is a sentence that makes
an assertive claim about your topic. It connects to
the thesis statement and shows the importance
of your essay or paper.
•
• A strong statement is a great technique because
it doesn’t matter if your reader agrees or
disagrees with your statement. They will want to
see how you support your statement.
The Strong Statement/Declaration
Hook
• This is an example of a strong statement on
the topic of the vegan diet.
• Vegans are the healthiest group of people in
the world.
• This statement either supports your point of
view about the vegan diet, or it makes you
want to argue against it (especially if you love
meat). Either way, you are curious about what
the writer says.
The Fact/ Statistic Hook
• Facts and statistics hook your reader because
they give real information about a topic. You
can impress your reader with your knowledge
and evidence from the very beginning of your
essay. But, you need to include facts that are
accurate, interesting, and reliable. Evaluate
your information and make sure it comes from
a credible source.
The Fact/ Statistic Hook
• Almost two-thirds of American adults at
some point in their life lived in a home with
at least one gun.
The Metaphor / Simile Hook
• The metaphor/simile hook engages your readers
because it makes them think about a topic in a
different way. Your audience wonders what you
mean and how you compare a topic to something
that seems unconnected.
•
• A metaphor is a figure of speech that directly
compares one thing to another, but these two
things seem unrelated. An example of a
metaphor is: Her brother is a rat. The brother is
not really a rat, but he behaves like one.
• A business blog is like a magnet that pulls
clients to a company.
The Story Hook
• This is a hook where you begin with a short
story or episode that relates to your
topic. Readers love stories, especially a well-
written story that is memorable. The key to a
great story hook is making sure the story
directly connects to your essay or paper
topic. Your story can be personal or someone
else’s story.
The Story Hook
• Here’s an example of a story hook for an essay about
the differences between British and American
English. I used my own story about a trip to England.
•
• I got off the train and pulled my luggage behind
me. A cab pulled up to the curb, and the driver got
out. He lifted my luggage and said, “Miss, I’m just
going to put your stuff in the boot.” I didn’t know
what he meant until I saw him open the car’s
trunk. Then I realized the boot means car trunk. I got
in the cab, wondering how many other words would
be different in England.
Considerations
• You’ll see this story hook is longer than other
types of essay hooks. That’s okay. Your hook can
be longer, but it shouldn’t be a large part of your
essay or paper. Compare the length of your hook
to the length of the essay.
•
• Also, consider your audience (especially an
academic audience). Ask yourself, “Will a story
hook be acceptable in this course?” If you’re
unsure you can ask your teacher or professor or
you could select a different type of hook.
The Description Hook
• This is a hook where a vivid description of a
scene draws your readers into your writing. A
good description hook will make your reader
want to know what comes next in your
writing. It’s most popular in narrative essays,
but you can use a description hook with any
type of writing (yes even academic papers).
But, like the story hook ask yourself, “Will this
description hook be acceptable in this
course?”
The Description Hook
• Here’s an example of a description hook for a
personal narrative essay about saving a dog:
• The dog howled in pain and limped along the
side of the road. His leg was cut and blood
streamed down his leg.
• Doesn’t this scene make you curious about
what will happen to the dog?
•
The Quotation Hook
• This is a hook where you begin your essay with a
quotation. The quotation could be from a
famous person, but it doesn’t have to be. You can
quote anyone if it connects to what you’re writing
about.
•
• If you write an essay on the topic of education
you could start
• Nelson Mandela said, “Education is the most
powerful weapon you can use to change the
world.”
The Quotation Hook
• If you want to use a quotation for a hook,
make sure you quote the words
exactly. Choose quotations where the words
are striking, powerful, and/ or memorable.
