Process and Structure

 

Pile and Dig - Pile up everything you know or have read about your topic, then dig around in the pile to find a controlling idea.  Now shovel the text into smaller piles all in a row until it looks nice.

        Advantages - can be helpful in overcoming fear of the blank page, lots of sentences and quotes to choose from, all materials for construction are in the pile somewhere, great material is not left out - everything is used, result is bigger

        Disadvantages - there may be no central idea, the accumulated material may be difficult to sort once it is all stuffed into sentences and paragraphs, the writer will resist a complete change of course though it may be necessary, though it looks nice it may be pointless, bigger isn't always better

 

Build and Fill - Build a framework around a central argument, or thesis, then write what is necessary to fill it in.

        Advantages - paper is more likely to be lucid, readers are more likely to be convinced or able to restate the main points, less time consuming in the long run though more up-front time is required, illogic and weak proofs are exposed early in the process

        Disadvantages - will not work for the writer who has no purpose for the piece, decisions about the structure guide the research but cannot be made without some knowledge of the subject, a thesis can be chosen for which the writer cannot find sufficient material

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thesis Controlled Structure - Not for all Styles of Writing

 

THINK - What is my main point?  What am I trying to prove or demonstrate?  What am I trying to argue is true, or to tell the reader all about?  Why?  Who is my audience?  Why will this paper be helpful or meaningful or interesting to them?  What barriers are there to complete understanding and agreement between me and my reader?  

 

NOW WRITE - Write a clear, lucid, well-crafted statement which will be the controlling thought, the central idea, the focus of your paper.  If you do not have such a clear idea, your paper will reflect it no matter how nice the individual sentences are within it. 

 

When this thought is clear, write a lead-in paragraph to move the reader from a broad view of the subject area to the particular point you are trying to make.  The first sentence of the first paragraph meets the reader where he is, and the last drops him off where you are.  You are letting him into your thought process and telling him where the paper will take him if he continues to read it. You give him a 'map' showing the steps you are about to take together in getting to the destination.  For many, this will be enough, so make it good!  Do not feel you must make your conclusion a surprise to keep him hooked.  Show respect for his intellect by the clarity and transparency of your first paragraph.

 

KEEP GOING - Make your point as you have promised: by the 'map' you have drawn up to follow step by step.  Smooth the transitions between the major ideas or arguments.  If you assert anything to be true, check to see whether you have actually proved it.  If you draw conclusions, check to see that the supporting evidence or train of thought is included.  Double check all cause and effect statements for accuracy.  Look for assumptions and state them.  Look for words whose definitions should be clarified for use in the context of your argument. 

 

NOW - Restate the original thesis and make broader application of it.  Show the reader the significance or ramifications or inspiration that follows from your thesis into their life, the modern world, or the field of knowledge.