The University Writing Center - Thesis Statements (Page 2 of 2) in pdf

THE UNIVERSITY WRITING CENTER

you have solid examples and facts to support your claim(s)? It may help to write down all your

answers to these questions. Now you are ready to start forming and refining your thesis

statement. Let’s assume your assignment is to construct a response to the use of the death

penalty in cases involving minor defendants.

You may write something like “The death penalty is sometimes used as punishment in cases

involving minor defendants.”

This statement could be used as a starting point, but it essentially just restates the assignment. It

does not include your opinion or argument. The next step is to refine your idea and construct

your thesis, incorporating your specific stance or argument.

Refining Your Idea

It may help to construct a sentence about your opinion on the topic. You can start by writing a

sentence using the model “I think that________.”

Fill in the blank with the opinion you formed during the brainstorming process. Let’s assume

that, after completing all your research, you come to the conclusion that the use of the death

penalty as punishment for minors is wrong. Now you have a rough idea of your opinion and what

you want to argue. The next step is to express the why behind your opinion using the following

model:

“I think that the use of the death penalty as punishment for minor defendants is wrong

because_______.”

Fill in the blank with why you think the death penalty should not be used in cases involving

minors. Your sentence may read something like “I think the use of the death penalty as

punishment for minor defendants is wrong because it violates the ‘cruel and unusual punishment’

clause of the Eighth Amendment of the US Constitution.”

Now you have a solid idea and argument to use as the base for your thesis statement! The next

step is to refine your idea by removing yourself from the previous statement. The goal is to make

your final thesis statement in the form of a central claim.

Refining Your Thesis

The first step is to get rid of the “I” in your thesis statement to make it sound more academic and

less like a personal opinion. You want to boil down your thesis statement down to your central

claim to make it as a concise as possible. To do this, all you have to do is remove the “I think”

from your sentence: “The use of the death penalty as punishment for minor defendants is wrong

because it violates the ‘cruel and unusual punishment’ clause of the Eighth Amendment of the

US Constitution.”

Congratulations! You now have the tools you need write a great thesis statement!

The University Writing Center - Thesis Statements Page 2