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The paragraph that begins an essay causes students the most trouble, yet carries the most importance. Although its precise construction varies from genre to genre (and from essay to essay), good introductory paragraphs generally accomplish the same tasks and follow a few basic patterns. Some of them are listed below, but keep in mind that what follows are guidelines, not immutable templates.

Tasks: The introductory paragraph to a short essay usually attempts to do three things:

• Introduce the topic with some indication of its inherent interest or importance, and a clear definition of the boundaries of the subject area
• Indicate the structure and/or methodology of the essay, often with the major sections of the essay or its structural principle clearly stated
• State the thesis of the essay, preferably in a single, arguable statement with a clear main clause

Not every essay does all three in the first paragraph, and the degree to which an essay declares its structure or methodology may vary widely, depending on how necessary that information will be to the readers. Sometimes, the entire first paragraph will serve no other purpose than to generate interest in the subject or raise a question, leaving the other tasks for the second paragraph. However, this kind of opening requires a lot of skill, and you can lose your readers in the second and third paragraphs if do not make your purpose clear.

Patterns: The standard pattern for an introductory paragraph follows the order of the tasks outlined above. Below is an outline of that pattern, written as if it were the first section of a formal outline of the entire essay:

Introduction

1. The topic
   1. Its boundaries
   2. Why it is interesting
2. Structure and/or Methodology
   1. The essay’s main sections (structure)
   2. Why they come in that order (structural principle)
   3. How the author plans to draw the necessary conclusions from the information available (methodology)
3. The Thesis Statement (usually a single sentence)
   1. Its premise (the general claim about the information available)
   2. Its conclusion (the consequences of the first claim)

Not every essay contains every element in precisely this order, but most good essays cover all of them, either explicitly or implicitly. In longer and more scholarly essays, the structure/methodology section should be longer, or can even be its own paragraph. It should also include some mention of the essay’s position within the field as a whole.