A paragraph
Definition
A paragraph, to put it simply, is a unit of written discourse which is built around a topic sentence. A topic sentence is like a mini thesis sentence. It supports the main thesis and contains the central idea to be discussed in the paragraph. Apart from a topic sentence, a paragraph might also contain specific details, examples, definitions, classifications, comparisons and contrasts, cause and effect arguments and a certain order - be it chronological, inductive or deductive. These items will often overlap and any one paragraph will never contain all of them. But more often than not, it will contain a topic sentence.
Purpose
In the body of an essay, you may use parapgraphs for any of these purposes:
- To introduce and give evidence for a main point supporting your essay's central idea
- Within a group of paragraphs centering on one main point, to develop a key example or other important evidence
- To shift approach -for instance, from pros to cons, from problem to solution, from questions to answers.
- To mark movement in a sequence, such as from one reason or step to another.
In addition, you will use paragraphs for special purposes:
- To introduce or to conclude your essay.
- To emphasize an important point or to mark a significant transition between points.
- In dialog, to indicate that a new person has begun speaking
The topic sentence
In an essay the thesis statement often asserts the main idea as a commitment to readers. In a paragraph a topic sentence often alerts readers to the essence of the paragraph by asserting the central idea and expressing the writer's attitude towards it. In a brief essay each body paragraph will likely treat one main point supporting the essay's thesis statement; the topic sentences simply elaborate on parts of the thesis. In longer essays paragraphs tend to work in groups, each group treating one main point. Then the topic sentence will tie into that main point, and all the points together will support the thesis.
Focusing on the central idea
Like the thesis sentence, the topic sentence is a commitment to readers, and the rest of the paragraph delivers on that commitment. You should expect digressions while you are drafting: if you allow yourself to explore ideas, as you should, then, of course every paragraph will not be tightly woven, perfectly unified. But spare your readers the challenge and frustration of repeatedly shifting focus to follow your rough explorations: revise each paragraph so that it develops a single idea.
While revising your paragraphs for unity, you may want to highlight the central idea of each paragraph to be sure it's stated and then focus on it. On paper you can bracket or circle the idea. On a computer you can format the idea in color or highlight it with a color background. Just be sure to remove the color or highlighting before printing the final draft. If you find certain sentences are not logically connected to the topic sentence, there are two options:
- perhaps you need a more general topic sentence, which encompasses the different points.
- perhaps you need to break a long paragraph into two shorter ones, each with their own topic sentence.
Placing the topic sentence
The topic sentence of a paragraph and its supporting details may be arranged variously, depending on how you want to direct readers' attention and how complex your central idea is. In the most common arrangements, the topic sentence comes at the beginning of the paragraph, comes at the end, or is not stated at all but is nonetheless apparent. The advantages of each approach are described below. If you write on a computer, you can easily experiment with the position of the topic sentence by moving the sentence around (or deleting it) to see the effect.
- topic sentence at the beginning In general to specific or deductive type of paragraphs, the topic sentence appears first in a paragraph, which can help you select the details that follow. For readers, the topic-first model establishes an initial context in which all the supporting details can be understood. The topic-first model is common not only in expository writing, but also in argument paragraphs. This is an example of a deductive, general to specific paragraph:
If 111 ninth graders in Honolulu are typical of today's teenagers, spelling and social science teachers may be in for trouble. In a recent experiment, not one of the students tested could write the Pledge of Allegiance correctly. In addition, the results showed that the students apparently had little understanding of the pledge's meaning. For example, several students described the United States as a "nation under guard" instead of "under God," and the phrase "to the Republic for which it stands" appeared in several responses as "of the richest stand" or "for Rachel stand." Many students changed the word "indivisible" to the the phrase "in the visible," and over nine percent of the students, all of whom are Americans from varying racial and ethnic backgrounds, misspelled the word "America."
- topic sentence at the end In some inductive paragraphs, the central idea may be stated at the end, after supporting sentences have made a case for the general statement. The opposite of deductive paragraphs, the order here is from specific to general, as inductive paragraphs begin with an examination of particular details and then conclude with a larger point or generalization about those details (in the topic sentence). Since this model leads the reader to a conclusion by presenting all the evidence first, it can prove effective in argument. And because the point of the paragraph is withheld until the end, this model can be dramatic in exposition, too. Expressing the central idea at the end of the paragraph does not eliminate the need to unify the paragraph. The idea in the topic sentence must still govern the selection of all the preceding details.
Immediately after the attacks on the twin towers of the World Trade Center and on the Pentagon, public discourse turned to war. Three years, and two wars, later, his may with hindsight seem obvious. Condoleezza Rice, for instance, recently told Time magazine that for her ‘the attacks that day meant the idea of the nation being at war was no longer a figure of speech’. ‘For both the eight years of the Clinton Administration and for the first eight months of ours’, she said, ‘we were not on a war footing. War really came to us in a different way on Sept. 11’ (Time, 5 April 2004, p. 31). If, however, we try and recapture the process as it unfolded in the historical moment, it is clear that – even then – there were other discursive choices available that could have opened up other frameworks of description and other courses of action. Indeed, in its details and at the time the discursive turn to war was not smooth, obvious or inevitable.
- central idea not stated Occasionally a paragraph's central idea will be stated in previous paragraphs r will be so obvious that it need not be stated at all. Paragraphs in descriptive writing and in narrative writing (relating a sequence of events) often lack stated topic sentences. But a paragraph without a topic sentence still should have a central idea, and its details should develop that idea.
Developing paragraphs
There are several ways of developing paragraphs: by using examples, definitions, cause(s) & effect(s), and so on. Please have look at Plan & Discourse development for more information.
Unity
Readers expect a paragraph to explore a single idea, expressed in the topic sentence. They will be alert for that idea and will patiently follow its development. In other words, they will seek and appreciate paragraph unity: clear identification and clear elaboration of one idea and of that idea only even though the examples may differ. For instance, the following paragraph talks of four different leaders during World War II, but the topic focuses on one point:
World War II provided the stage for five dynamic leaders who will be remembered differently in history but who shared a charismatic quality that enabled them to win the support of their people (Topic Sentence). Hitler, with his animated oratorical style and promises of German superiority, had the Germans believing their country's destiny was to rule all of Europe and set standards for the world. Benito Mussolini, who could be as charming as he was brutal, roused Italy with promises of a return to the glory of the Roman Empire. Both men projected an image of military strength and national glory. Franklin Roosevelt projected a different but equally effective image. With his wheel chair and his weekly "fireside chats" to the America public, Roosevelt was at one human and wisely paternal. He projected a confidence that America could do the job, no matter what the job. Like Roosevelt, Winston Churchill, with his cigars and bowler hats, seemed very human. But Churchill was as tenacious as a bulldog -and looked a bit like one- and through his unflinching demeanor and inspiring speeches gave Britons the confidence that they could stave off the Nazis and ultimately triumph.
Although the four leaders discussed were very different from one another, the example of each works to support a single idea: that all had a charisma that inspired people. When you are drafting an essay, keeping a paragraph unified can be difficult because one example or idea can lead to another that does not fit the topic of the paragraph. For instance, in discussing Hitler, the writer may have been tempted to mention his cruelty, but though Hitler was cruel, the topic of the paragraph focuses on charisma. As you write and revise your draft, consider the unity of the each paragraph. If you have development that does not fit your topic, remove those examples to unify the paragraph.
Checklist for writing and revising paragraphs
- Is the paragraph cohesive? Do the sentences follow a clear sequence? Are the sentences linked as needed by parallelism, repetition or restatement, pronouns, consistency, and transitional expression? More information on cohesion & coherence
- Is the paragraph unified? Does it adhere to one general idea that is either stated in a topic sentence or otherwise apparent?