THESIS STATEMENTS

A THESIS STATEMENT is the controlling idea of your paper. The idea embodied in this central statement is the kernel from which your essay grows and takes form. The thesis sets the expectations of your reader who will assume you will follow through.

A LITERARY THESIS makes a statement that is not at once obvious to the reader. This statement will require an explanation of proof before the reader accepts it. The writer needs to persuade the reader to accept this statement by presenting and discussing evidence from the text.

Another way to think about a thesis statement is as a statement of an opinion that can be supported by evidence. Or, think of it as the answer to a question for which you are going to offer proof of its validity.

THREE TYPES OF THESIS STATEMENTS

STATIC (SIMPLE) THESIS

The static thesis focuses on one literary element with the intent of identifying that element and then defining and describing it further. For example,

Dr. Jekyll is a kind and generous person who values scientific knowledge and discovery.

The essay that would follow would describe Dr. Jekyll further and provide examples of his kindness, generosity, and desire for knowledge. Other static thesis statements might identify a theme or a symbol and the essay that follows would explain how the symbol operates within the work or give examples of how the theme is evident in the work.

Examples

The theme of The Joy Luck Club is that although children may not realize it, parents only want what is best for them.

The conflicts in The Joy Luck Club are caused by a lack of communication between the mothers and their daughters.

The feather in The Joy Luck Club represents the hopes and dreams that mothers have for their daughters.

DYNAMIC THESIS

The dynamic thesis takes into account a change that occurs in a literary element over the course of the novel: a change in character, in setting, in tone, in point of view, etc. Theme is not going to change so it will not be the subject of a dynamic thesis. An example of a dynamic thesis:

The kind, generous and intellectual Dr. Jekyll is periodically overcome and then finally overpowered by his brutal, animalistic alter-ego, Mr. Hyde.

The essay will examine a literary element as it is in the beginning of a work vs. how it is in the end of the work, examining as many changes in between as necessary. Comparison will be a means of organization. In the above example, the essay would provide examples of Dr. Jekyll’s kindness, generosity and intellect, examples of how or why or when he is overcome by Mr. Hyde, and then examples of his being ultimately overpowered by the brutal Mr. Hyde.

Examples of dynamic thesis statements:

Jing-Mei in The Joy Luck Club realizes that learning about her mother will help her understand herself.

In The Joy Luck Club, the intercolary chapters act as metaphors for the lessons that the daughters will learn in the proceeding chapters.

INTEGRATED THESIS

The integrated thesis attempts to explain the interaction between the parts of a literary work. Literary elements not only exist or change, but help to fulfill the author’s purpose. This type of essay examines character, imagery, setting, point of view, tone, conflict, and symbolism not by themselves, but as a way of understanding their purpose in the worl. When we talk about theme, we are talking about the entire work. A thesis that focuses on theme integrates other elements into the discussion because theme is developed and revealed through these other elements. Example:

Through the transformation of the kind, intellectual, Dr. Jekyll into the deformed, brutal Mr. Hyde, Stevenson points out the dangers of human interference with nature.

To formulate an integrated thesis, ask yourself how do the characters, the symbols, the setting, the structure, the point of view, the tone, etc., affect, develop, or complement the theme.

Another example of an integrated thesis:

The theme of Tim O’Brien’s “The Things They Carried”, that the soldier’s memories weighed more heavily on them than their physical burdens, is developed through the symbol of Martha’s pebble, the cataloguing of items, and Lt. Cross’s act of burning Martha’s letters.