How to Write Essay Body Paragraphs

HOW TO WRITE ESSAY BODY PARAGRAPHS

- All essays need a Thesis Statement: A single sentence that explains what the entire essay will be about.

- The focus of all body paragraphs is to prove the thesis statement

- Steps for writing body paragraphs:

- Step #1: Begin each body paragraph with a topic sentence – a single sentence that explains what the upcoming body paragraph will be about - The topic sentence should begin with a transition – a word or phrase that helps to connect the writer’s ideas together - The topic sentence should contain a similar idea to what was said in your thesis statement - Step #2: Set up your quotation/example that will prove your topic sentence - Use a transition to help introduce your quotation/example - Provide any necessary information to help the reader understand the quotation: - Who is speaking? - Who are the characters/people involved? - What is the context in which the quotation appears in the literature? - Step #3: Write the quotation/example - Only include the part of the quotation to help prove your point - Step #4: Paraphrase the quotation (only if necessary) and explain how the quotation proves your thesis statement - This is the most important step - You need to explain how your quotation/example proves your thesis in at least three sentences - Step #5: End your paragraph with a concluding sentence that sums up what the paragraph was about - Use a concluding transition to help conclude your paragraph - This should be similar in idea to your topic sentence

THINGS TO REMEMBER: 1) By using this format, each paragraph should be at least 7 sentences. If your paragraphs are shorter, see which part you left out 2) You may (and probably should) use more than one quotation in each paragraph. If you do, make sure you set up and explain each quotation individually. This will require repeating steps 2, 3, and 4. 3) Write your paragraphs as if the person reading the essay has not read the book. More detail is always better than too little. SAMPLE THESIS AND BODY PARAGRAPH

Thesis: In William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, Tybalt is the cause of the play’s tragedy in several ways.

Step 1 (Topic Sentence): The first reason why Tybalt is the cause of the tragedy in Romeo and Juliet is that he is the first, and most aggressive, character in the play.

Step 2 (Setup of quotation): For instance, in the first scene of the play, Shakespeare sets up a comic fight between members of the Capulets and Montagues, the two feuding families in the play. Benvolio, a member of the Montague family, comes in and tries to break up the fight, but when Tybalt enters, he only makes things worse:

Step 3 (Quotation): “What, drawn and talk of peace? I hate the word as I hate hell, all Montagues, and thee. Have at thee coward!” (Shakespeare 28).

Step 4 (Explanation of Quotation/Proof of Thesis): When Tybalt enters, rather than help Benvolio break up the fight, he acts as the aggressor and urges the men to fight even more. This accentuates the conflict between the Capulets and the Montagues, and even when the two sides try to peacefully settle their differences later in the play, Tybalt continues this aggression by threatening “to strike [Romeo] dead” (Shakespeare 68). Tybalt’s aggressive attitude prevents peace from ever being achieved between the two families, and because of this, both families lose loved ones.

Step 5 (Concluding Sentence): Thus, Tybalt’s unwarranted anger and aggression towards the Montagues is the beginning of the tragedy that will take place in Romeo and Juliet.

THIS IS WHAT THE PARAGRAPH LOOKS LIKE WHEN PUT TOGETHER:

The first reason why Tybalt is the cause of the tragedy in Romeo and Juliet is that he is the first, and most aggressive, character in the play. For instance, in the first scene of the play, Shakespeare sets up a comic fight between members of the Capulets and Montagues, the two feuding families in the play. Benvolio, a member of the Montague family, comes in and tries to break up the fight, but when Tybalt enters, he only makes things worse: “What, drawn and talk of peace? I hate the word as I hate hell, all Montagues, and thee. Have at thee coward!” (Shakespeare 28). When Tybalt enters, rather than help Benvolio break up the fight, he acts as the aggressor and urges the men to fight even more. This accentuates the conflict between the Capulets and the Montagues, and even when the two sides try to peacefully settle their differences later in the play, Tybalt continues this aggression by threatening “to strike [Romeo] dead” (Shakespeare 68). Tybalt’s aggressive attitude prevents peace from ever being achieved between the two families, and because of this, both families lose loved ones. Thus, Tybalt’s unwarranted anger and aggression towards the Montagues is the beginning of the tragedy that will take place in Romeo and Juliet.