Final Short Answer

What Makes a Good Essay?

What makes a good essay to me is that you capture your reader’s attention through a startling fact, quote, or even a short anecdote. You should make sure this attention grabber, also known as a hook, is relevant to your topic. Next you should give background information on your topic, which then should lead to your central argument, known as your thesis. After you state your thesis, start a new paragraph to prove your thesis. This paragraph, or paragraphs, is known as your body paragraph. The body paragraph should contain a topic sentence, which should be a mini form of your thesis that will tell the reader what the whole paragraph is about and how it connects to your thesis. After your topic sentence, you should give some context on the evidence you’re about to argue so that the reader knows what you’re saying and that it flows correctly. After your context you place your evidence from primary sources because they are the only credible sources if you’re arguing something. After placing your evidence and correctly citing it, you should have a few sentences of analysis, which explains the evidence in your own words and then connects it to your thesis so that it all flows together. After placing X amount of evidence and analyses, you should have a concluding sentence that could also transition to the next body paragraph, if you have one. The concluding sentence should also summarize your whole paragraph before you start the new one. After your X amount of body graphs, you then have a conclusion. You should restate your thesis for the reader then give the reader a reason to actually care about your essay. Sure you have this brilliant argument, but why should they care? Open it up to a different perspective like connecting it to your government and see how it could possible affect them. I personally like ending my conclusions with quotes but you can also put a rhetorical question.