Name: Engaging Introductions (General Purpose)
Review: The job of an introduction is to do the following…
Hook: Grab the reader’s attention in a way when piques their curiosity and makes the want to read. (See reverse of this page.)Bridge: From your hook, include a transitional phrase or sentence that pulls your reader into the synopsis. (See reverse side of this page.)
Synopsis: When writing about literature, give a four to seven sentence overview of the plot of the work in order to establish context and your ethos as a writer; include the major themes, events, and characters. When writing about other topics, use the synopsis to establish context that the reader needs in order to understand your argument; this might include explanations of key terms or historical background if necessary.
Thesis: Here, establish the essential proposition that the essay will proceed to prove. Some teachers will expect the traditional “three prong thesis” which establishes a proposition and preview the three main points that will be addressed in the essay.
Hook ‘em in: Attention Grabbers
Always choose an attention grabber that fits your thesis, audience, and purpose. Word your attention grabber in a way that matches the content of your paper.
Imagery, Anecdote or Narrative
People are drawn to stories—consider opening with a descriptive anecdote to draw the reader into the topic. Make sure what you write is relevant to the thesis!
The senators pressed close against Caesar. The emperor’s eyes darted from face to face. Suddenly, as Caesar locked eyes with his trusted friend Brutus, he knew that he was about to meet his fate.
Funnel (Generalization to Specificity)
Consider a generalization that can be made about your thesis—what universal statement is implied in your thesis? Open with this generalization, then focus in on a specific.
Many young people find themselves with a crisis of identity. They reinvent themselves and explore new experiences to see who they really are. For Chris McCandless, this crisis of self-discovery takes him on a journey across a continent.
Relevant Quotation
Two keys to success with a quotation: (1) choose one that is relevant to your overall point and (2) make sure to transition into your synopsis.
“They understood only too well the liberation into savagery that the concealing paint brought” (Golding 172). On the island in Golding’s Lord of the Flies, the face-paint used by Jack’s hunters seemed to give the boys permission to manifest their inner savagery.
Startling Statement
A bold, controversial statement (related to your topic) can draw your reader in, but make sure you aren’t offending your audience or turning them against you immediately.
Those who are out of the norm should expect to lose their freedoms. In Ray Bradbury’s The Pedestrian, Leonard Mead learns this lesson during an innocuous evening walk through the streets of his hometown.
Rhetorical Question
If done poorly, a question as a hook can ruin a paper. However, it is possible to pose a question that does engage the reader. The key: the whole essay should be aimed at developing an answer to that question. Never ask a question directly to the reader using “you”!
Are humans innately good or evil?
Was the assassination of Caesar an act of patriotism or an act of terrorism?
Connect it: Transitions are for your Reader
Always remember to connect the dots for your reader by articulating your thinking well. Part of this skill involves transitioning between ideas. Sometimes a transition can be part of a sentence, but often a full sentence is necessary to build an effective transition.
These words are not enough to merit a transition:
First, Second, Third, Next, Last, Finally
Also, However, Nevertheless, Furthermore
Fluent writing likely already includes natural transitions. Consider this paragraph:
At the end of the novel, Scout has a new perspective on her hometown. Standing on the Radley porch after the plot has concluded, Scout turns to stand in front of window. From this vantage point, she re-imagines all the events of the whole novel how Boo Radley must have seen them. She then realizes that “standing on the Radley porch” was enough for her to truly understand Boo and his world.
Notice how ideas overlap between sentences, and thus the thinking is easy to follow. If ideas do not overlap, then their connectedness is unclear, as in this bad example paragraph:
Through all his wanderings, Chris McCandless was influenced by many authors. He appreciated the world and nature in a way other people did not. Chris would write in the margins of his books and reveal his observations about philosophy and life. The mystery of his death baffled many people.
A transition should connect ideas. The transition should reach “back” to the idea of the previous sentence and reach “forward” to the idea of the following sentence. Consider the revisions below:
Through all his wanderings, Chris McCandless was influenced by many authors. Like the authors he read, Chris Heappreciated the world and nature in a way other people did not. Chris would write This appreciation was recorded in the margins of his books and revealed his observations about philosophy and life. Even though Chris recorded so many of his thoughts in his books, the mystery of his death still baffled many people.
In any two adjacent sentences within a paragraph, you should be able to clearly connect related ideas to show cohesiveness.