Writing Effective Introductions
Introduction Goals
A good introduction (also called a lead or opening) needs to accomplish two main goals: get a reader interested in the paper and tell the reader what focus of the paper will be.
Issues a Good Introduction Should Raise
· What is the main problem/question?
· What do I or the reader need to know?
· What is surprising in what I’m writing about?
· What do I want the reader to think/feel/do after reading this essay?
· What is new here?
· What central tension is there to the essay?
Checklist for Writing Effective First Lines
Quick: the reader decides to read or not in a few seconds
Accurate: readers can spot small errors and choose not to believe the rest
Honest: don’t promise more than you can deliver
Simple: Use proper nouns, active verbs, and concrete details
Packed with information: tell the reader what’s going on in the paper
Voice: the reader should hear a writer speaking to them
Effective Ways to Start a Paper
News: answer who, what, when, where, why
In this paper I will try to show how the Amityville Horror 2005 offers different explanations for why people commit evil acts, from possession to craziness to greed.
Story: tell a short story that captures the essence of your paper
Here’s a story of the classic American dream. After losing her first husband, a woman meets a new man who is hard working, honest, and good with her children. Then together they find the perfect house at a price almost too low to be imagined. Everything is going perfectly. Which is where the problems start.
In this paper I’ll examine how chasing the American dream can cost people everything they have.
Quotation: Use someone else’s words to establish the basic issue/theme of the paper—establishes some outside authority
“Houses don’t kill people, people kill people.”
This opening quote illustrates the basic tension captured in the film Amityville Horror 2005 of whether people only kill for personal reasons or can be possessed by supernatural forces.
Description: Provide a graphic example of what you want to write about
The Amityville house is a gigantic, bigger than life gothic building. It looks old and worn and unfriendly. The house is white, has ivy on it, and is isolated from people and other houses.
This setting makes a perfect place to examine the possibility of ghostly hauntings and demonic possession.
Problem/Tension: Explain that there is a basic question/issue you will try to resolve in the paper
Most people feel that ghosts and demons are things that only exist in our imagination. But can houses really be haunted? Can people be made to commit hideous deeds against their will? In this paper I’ll use the Amityville Horror 2005 to explore whether or not demonic possessions are really possible.