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Body Paragraphs and Topic Sentences
To Make A Hamburger:
Hamburger Graphic
Hamburger Powerpoint with Pathways Student Sample
Hamburger Handout PDF
Useful Links for Building Effective Paragraphs:
Topic sentences and the macro-organization of essays
In order to make your essay as clear as possible, it should be organized around paragraphs that have an obvious beginning, middle, and end. Most importantly, each and every paragraph should begin with a carefully-crafted topic sentence that adheres to the following two guidelines:
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The opening sentence should clearly identify how the material in that paragraphs relates to your essay's main argument. Topic sentences are critical to helping your reader follow the logic of your paper's larger argument. If a paragraph's topic sentence does not refer the reader back to the thesis statement, either rewrite this sentence or remove the entire paragraph (do the latter if it is not clear why the material is necessary to the larger argument of the essay). |
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The opening sentence should make a summary statement that captures the essence of the materials that will be covered in that paragraph. If you find that you are shifting topics midway through a paragraph, either start a new one or rework the paragraph's topic sentence so that it explains how seemingly two seemingly unrelated topics fit together. |
How do you identify and fix problems with topic sentences and the macro-organization of your essays?
Typically, when an essay is beginning to lose focus, you will find yourself starting your paragraphs with topic sentences that refer mostly to the content of the immediately-preceding paragraphs rather than back to the paper's thesis statement. The best way to keep your essay organized and focused is to ask yourself several questions as you begin each and every paragraph:
| How will the materials covered in this paragraph relate to my paper's main argument? |
| Why I am writing on this topic now? Would this argument go better somewhere else in the paper? |
| What materials do I need to cover in this paragraph? Am I being tempted to include materials that are interesting, but not really all that closely related to my paper's main argument? |
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Do I have just one major idea that I need to cover in this paragraph, or would it make more sense to break up a set of complex ideas into a series of smaller paragraphs? |
You should always leave time to examine carefully your topic sentences as part of the proofreading process. I recommend that you use a highlighter to mark your thesis statement and the beginning sentence of each paragraph. Now, read through the essay's topic sentences one by one to check the logical flow of your paper's major argument. Ask yourself each of the following questions:
| Does the argument laid out in the thesis statement appear to be completely and adequately defended based on the arguments presented in your topic sentences? Does the main argument developed in the paper fully answer the essay question to which you are responding? |
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Is each topic sentence written so that it clearly and explicitly explains how the paragraph's materials are linked to the thesis statement? |
| Does each and every topic sentence adequately state what the paragraph is about? |
| Are there any paragraphs where the opening sentence indicates that the paragraph is about one topic and yet material in the paragraph covers other issues? |
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Can you follow the logic of your essay based on a reading of just these paragraph-starting sentences? |
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Would the development of your argument make more sense if some paragraphs were moved around? |
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Are there unnecessary or irrelevant paragraphs in the paper that need to be either removed or more carefully linked to the paper's logical argument? |
As
you proofread, keep an eye out for long, unwieldy paragraphs that could be
easily shortened. Keep in mind that a paragraph that is much longer than half a page
is usually hard for your reader to follow unless you have provided some type of
organizational substructure (e.g.: There were three major consequences of the
Civil War....A second outcome of the war was...A third consequence
was...). Unless an idea/argument is
so detailed and complicated that it requires a single-paragraph treatment to
make sense, break up long paragraphs (three-quarters of a page or more in a
double-spaced paper) into a series of smaller arguments that begin
with separate topic sentences.
