what is the neale thesis

Steve Neale and Genre Theory

Introduction.

When the British Film Institute and Steve Neale published “Genre” in 1980, they wanted to start a new conversation about the importance of genre to our understanding of film culture, especially the way cinema “functions as a social institution”. Neale argued more focus was needed on the social context behind the practices of cinema, including economic pressures and the audience’s desire to be entertained.

Focusing on the signifying processes of filmmaking, Neale also set out some key concepts to challenge and extend our understanding of genre. This article will explore his initial thoughts on genre conventions, including narrative structure and codes, cinematic signifiers, technical codes, and representation.

Genre and Semiotics

Steve Neale (1980) defined genres as “specific variations of the interplay of codes” which moved from one film to the next through a process of “repetition and difference”. This definition might seem ridiculously complex, but a little explanation will help clarify what he meant.

First, using the language of semiotics , Neale described films as a “series of signifying processes” which created “meanings and positions”. For instance, the use of costume can help locate the story in a particular social and historical context, the audience knows a character is angry if the actor delivers their lines in a violent or aggressive manner, and the use of pulsing heartbeats and eerie music in a scary film can make us cower behind a pillow in fear.

Of course, films can also encode certain ideologies and values through the representation of character, setting and plot. This is epitomised by war films which might shock the audience with their depictions of senseless violence or position us to view the conflict as a heroic battle between good and evil. You should also consider Laura Mulvey’s concept of the male gaze and the negative impact the narrow representation of gender on the big screen has on the audience’s attitude towards women.

Anyway, a film’s message is encoded through costumes, sets, dialogue, non-diegetic sound, camera shots and movement, lighting techniques, narrative structure, and many other signs . This is what Neale meant by the “interplay of codes”.

We can then try to group texts according to their combination of these codes . If you are searching for something to watch on your favourite streaming service, for example, you can expect science fiction films to have spaceships, interstellar travel, alien creatures, and dystopian futures. By contrast, horror films will include supernatural disturbances, evil powers, and gore. These are the “specific variations” of codes.

Although we mostly think about genre as the “repetition” of codes, each film will actually construct meaning through their own unique combination of signs. Some science fiction stories are set “a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away” while others “boldly go where no one has gone before”. This is the “difference”.

Hopefully, Neale’s definition of genre makes more sense now.

Narrative Structure

Most people are taught stories have a start, middle and an end. The protagonist’s routine is established at the start, something happens to disrupt their world and then the main conflict is resolved at the end.

Steve Neale believed “genres are modes of this narrative system”.

For example, the disruptions in westerns, gangster films and thrillers are often physical and violent. Perhaps a gunslinger needs to protect his ranch from murderous outlaws, FBI agents hunt down bank robbers, or a father with a “very particular set of skills” tries to rescue his kidnapped daughter. These violent acts are linked to debates about crime, justice, civic responsibility, and social order.

The disruptions in horror films are usually violent as well – the young victim of a terrifying curse which will soon kill their friends, the ghosts who torment the family, and demonic creatures threaten to destroy the world. These savage acts raise questions about the human condition and our inability to control our lives.

By contrast, the “process of desire” causes the disruption in musicals and melodramas. There might be images of violence, but these films focus on the emotional and social needs of the characters. A pair of star-crossed lovers long to be with each other, a protagonist tries to escape their destructive home life, or a talented singer moves to New York to find fame and fortune. The conflict is quite often between the public and private.

Finally, the disruptions in comedies are either something completely absurd or the protagonist suffers a social misfortune, such as a loss of wealth and status.

In conclusion, Neale argued we can classify films according to ““the modes in which equilibrium and disruption are articulated”.

If you are unfamiliar with equilibrium and disruption, read our guide to Tzvetan Todorov’s narrative theory for more information. You might also want to look at Thomas Schatz and his concept of genres of order and integration because it also focuses on narrative structure.

Subject (Mode of Address)

We covered the importance of cause and effect in storytelling in our introduction to causality . To summarise, filmmakers need to arrange their plot into a coherent structure that will make sense to the audience. Moments of tension should reach their inevitable conclusions and mysteries should be solved.

Neale believed we enjoy the narrative “process” and experience the “pleasure of its closure”. Car chases on the big screen are exciting, superheroes batting their arch enemies is entertaining, and following detectives as they uncover the gruesome truth is great fun.

These are the action and enigma codes which Roland Barthes said formed the chronology of a story.

Neale thought each genre had “its own system of narrative address” and we could categories films according to their use of narrative codes. For example, the mode of narrative address in detective films is suspense and we have to “make sense of a set of disparate events, signs and clues”. Thrillers also rely on hermeneutic codes , but to a lesser extent.

Gangster films often create a sense of anticipation for the dramatic heist or conflict with law enforcement we know will happen later in the story. In comedies, the “mode of affect is laughter” and melodrama’s tension focuses on the characters’ desires. Finally, musicals are a balance of “narrative and spectacle”.

If narrative is “a means of organising and articulating process”, it is quite interesting to define genres according to their combinations of action and enigma codes.

Technical Codes

Neale suggested genre should also refer to “the matters of expression” and “the codes specific to cinema”, such as camera angles and movement, editing styles, lighting, CGI and special fx, diegetic sound, music, costumes, sets, and other aspects of filmmaking. Each of these technical codes can help convey the preferred reading to the audience. Inevitably, some signifiers also become closely associated with particular genres.

Consider the use of chiaroscuro in “The Big Sleep” (1946):

The intense contrast between the darkness of the room and the light on Humphrey Bogart’s face reinforces the uneasy tone of the scene. It also connotes the moral ambiguity of the hard-drinking character.

This lighting technique is a defining feature of film noir. Horror films also use high contrast to scare the audience, especially when there is a monster or demon lurking in the shadows.

It is no surprise audiences expect science fiction films to contain amazing special effects and fantastic computer-generated imagery (CGI) because the genre has always pushed the boundaries of what is possible. If you would like to know more about science fiction and innovative, this Screen Rant article about the 10 Sci-Fi Visual Effects That Changed Movies Forever is a quick read.

Neale noted widescreen technology enabled directors to capture the spectacle of chariot races, gladiatorial combats, and huge armies. Watch this scene from “Cleopatra” (1963):

Elizabeth Taylor’s entrance would not be so impressive and god-like if it was projected with a smaller frame size.

Finally, Hollywood musicals used lots of crane shots to capture the spectacular dance routines, “all the resources of the costume and make-up department are mobilised” to “frighten and terrify” the audience watching horror films, and fight sequences in action films are full of kinetic edits and quick-moving camerawork.

In this way, technical codes can also contribute to the establishment of a genre.

The question of realism is another approach we can take to develop our understanding of genre.

Neale said gangster films and war films “tend to be judged according to strict canons of realism”. Audiences and critics expect costumes and props to be accurate but also allow for more dramatic codes of speech and behaviour. In epic films, we almost demand Roman gladiators speak with a British accent and their fight sequences are choreographed to classical music which didn’t exist in that time period.

The “mode of authenticity” is different for fantasy and horror because those films create their own worlds and rules, often with an incredible level of detail and “rigorous conventionalism” which inspires dedicated fandoms . Gothic horror deals with psychological disturbances so the story is usually encoded with a more poetic tone.

By contrast, comedy “above all depends on an awareness that it is fictional”. Although the situations might be familiar to the audience, we know the scenes are an exaggerated version of reality.

Gender and Genre

Neale raised the issue of gender and sexuality at the end of the booklet because the “mechanisms and processes involved” in the representation of masculinity and femininity were only beginning to be “adequately examined” by social scientists. He mentioned the film industry’s marketing of westerns and war films towards a ‘male’ audience and defining melodramas and musicals as ‘female’ films.

In classical Hollywood cinema, men were always active participants in the narrative, even in melodramas and musicals. However, women were only included in westerns and war films as a “function of their relationship to men”.

Neale also referred to the fact most of the monsters in horror films seemed to be defined as ‘male’ because “the objects of their desire are almost exclusively women”.

To what extent do you think the imbalance of power still exists in modern storytelling?

Social Context

Neale was keen to emphasise the economic and cultural contexts behind cinema practices.

If you enjoy watching a film and appreciate its narrative and style, you will want to repeat that experience. Audiences enjoy going to the cinema to see horror films because they offer an exciting sort of terror, superhero films are full of wonderous spectacle that leave fans demanding more, and comedies have the power to make us laugh.

Neale suggested “pleasure lies in both the repetition of the signifiers and the fundamental differences” because genre provides the audience with a “coherent and systematic set of expectations”. Barthes (1973) thought cultural texts offered a “comfortable practice of reading”.

Also, do you ever feel a sense of satisfaction when you recognise the codes and conventions?

Critics might evaluate films in terms of their aesthetic and technical accomplishments, but production companies need to maximise their profits. It’s showbusiness. If a narrative was commercially successful, such as a western, the Hollywood studios would try to meet our demand for a similar experience and repeat the formula. Henry Jenkins called this standardisation of filmmaking formatting .

Genre is an effective marketing strategy because you are appealing to an audience which already exists; it is very difficult to advertise a new product without being able to anchor the consumer’s expectations by referring to previous experiences.

Finally. production companies might try to save some money by using and reusing “plant and personnel”. Have a look at Robby the Robot – the “hardest working robot in Hollywood”.

Genre is an economic necessity.

Final Thoughts

Although genres appear to be “clearly defined systems”, Neale argued it is impossible to reduce them to general statements – gangster films are not just stories about organised crime and westerns are more than the American frontier setting. He wanted to to “construct film as a coherent discipline that could be introduced to schools”. Hopefully, this article has helped continue the conversation.

Barthes, Roland (1973) “The Pleasure of the Text”. Neale, Steve (1980): “Genre”.

Further Reading

Music Videos and Genre

The Codes and Conventions of Horror Films

Iconography

Genres of Order and Integration

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The Reign of Elizabeth I pp 79–100 Cite as

• G. R. Elton  

58 Accesses

3 Citations

Part of the book series: Problems in Focus Series ((PFS))

It is at present particularly difficult to give an account of the role and history of Parliament in the reign of the first Elizabeth. The last three generations have seen two well entrenched interpretations shattered, one after the other, and we are still in the process of putting the new insights together. 1 Until about sixty years ago it was generally held that in the sixteenth century Parliament played very little part in a system of government which centred on an exceptionally strong, even autocratic, monarchy. Parliaments were thought of as ‘subservient’; the Tudor period supposedly formed an interruption in what was regarded as the normal and proper development of England — the subjugation of the Crown to the representative assembly. As recently as 1964, this medievalists’ view, which treated the Tudor age as a retreat from the position achieved under the Lancastrians, could be defended against the newer theories of Parliament’s novel political importance in the sixteenth century. 2

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Bibliography

The history of the Elizabethan Parliament is most fully rehearsed in the work of J. E. Neale: The Elizabethan House of Commons (1949); Elizabeth I and her Parliaments . 2 vols (1953, 1957); ‘The Commons’ Privilege of Free Speech in Parliament’, Tudor Studies ... Presented to A. F. Pollard . ed. R. W. Seton-Watson (1924) pp. 231–57.

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For much of his interpretation he relied on W. Notestein, ‘The Winning of the Initiative by the House of Commons’, Proceedings of the British Academy . XI (1924) 125–75.

Of late it has come to be recognised that these venerable works pretty thoroughly misinterpret what happened and leave important parts of the story untold, though the editorial contributions to Proceedings in the Parliaments of Elizabeth I . I: 1559–1581 . ed. T. E. Hartley (Leicester, 1981), still rely on Neale. Though the new approach has not so far produced a treatment as comprehensive as Neale’s and able simply to replace him, enough has appeared to document the need to start again. On records and procedure, Sheila Lambert has cleared up many of the errors found in the old view: ‘The Clerks and Records of the House of Commons, 1600–1640’, BIHR . XLII (1970) 215–31

and ‘Procedure in the House of Commons in the Early Stuart Period’, EHR . XCV (1980) 753–81. M. A. R. Graves, The House of Lords in the Parliaments of Edward VI and Mary I: An Institutional Study (Cambridge, 1981 ) at last, though not quite for the period in question, brings out the importance of the Upper House. Particular points of revision have been made by N. L. Jones, Faith by Statute: Parliament and the Settlement of Religion . Royal Historical Society Studies in History XXXII (1982); M. A. R. Graves, ‘Thomas Norton the Parliament Man: An Elizabethan MP’, HJ , XXIII (1980) 17–35

G. R. Elton, ‘Arthur Hall, Lord Burghley, and the Antiquity of Parliament’, Studies in Tudor and Stuart Politics and Government (Cambridge, 1983) III, 254–73.

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On the records of Parliament and their meaning see G. R. Elton, ‘The Sessional Printing of Statutes, 1484–1547’, ibid., pp. 92–109, and ‘The Rolls of Parliament, 1449–1547’, ibid., pp. 110–42, both of which document the transformational role of the reign of Henry VIII. Provisional attempts to provide a new interpretation for the Elizabethan Parliament are found in three papers by G. R. Elton: ‘Tudor Government — the Points of Contact: I. Parliament’, ibid., pp. 3–21; ‘Parliament in the Sixteenth Century: Functions and Fortunes’, ibid., pp. 156–82; and ‘The English Parliament in the Sixteenth Century: Estates and Statutes’, in Parliament and Community . ed. A. Cosgrove and J. I. McGuire (Dublin, 1983) pp. 69–95. Since one of the apparent strong points of the Neale thesis lay in its supposed fit to pre and post-Elizabethan parliamentary history, attention is drawn to recent revisions in those surrounding periods: J. Loach, ‘Conservatism and Consent in Parliament, 1547–59’, in The Mid-Tudor Polity c. 1540–1560 . ed. J. Loach and R. Tittler (1980) pp. 9–28; C. Russell, ‘Parliament History in Perspective, 1604—1629’, History . LXI (1976) 1–22

and Parliament and English Politics, 1621–1629 . (Oxford, 1979); R. C. Munden, ‘James I and “the Growth of Mutual Distrust”: King, Commons and Reform, 1603–1604’, in Faction and Parliament . ed. K. Sharpe (Oxford, 1978) pp. 43–72.

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© 1984 G. R. Elton

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Elton, G.R. (1984). Parliament. In: Haigh, C. (eds) The Reign of Elizabeth I. Problems in Focus Series. Palgrave, London. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-349-17704-2_4

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How it Feels to be Colored Me

Zora neale hurston, everything you need for every book you read..

Race and Difference

In her 1928 essay “How It Feels To Be Colored Me,” African-American writer Zora Neale Hurston argues that race isn’t an essential feature that a person is born with, but instead emerges in specific social contexts. Hurston introduces this theme by describing her childhood in the majority black town of Eatonville, Florida, where, until the age of thirteen, she was not yet “colored.” It was only when she moved to the more diverse Jacksonville and…

Performance

From the beginning of her essay, Zora Neale Hurston ’s ideas about race are bound up in creative performance. Her earliest experiences with white people are of singing and dancing for a white audience. Just as she reconfigures ideas of race to her advantage, she uses the otherwise unwelcome scrutiny of white people as an opportunity for creative development. In this way, Hurston’s essay is as much a story of her journey as an artist…

History and Opportunity

When Zora Neale Hurston wrote this essay in the 1920s, the United States was only 60 years removed from the Civil War, making the end of slavery well within living memory. As such, any account of the African-American experience would have to reckon with that legacy. Hurston does this in a uniquely idiosyncratic way. While acknowledging the persistence of racial discrimination, she minimizes the impact of slavery on the current circumstances of African-Americans. Instead, she…

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Join get revising, already a member, neale thesis.

• British monarchy - Tudors and Stuarts
• Created by: Alex
• Created on: 21-05-13 20:21

Neale's Theory

• The puritan choir- this was a group of puritan MPs which Neale identified as working together in an attempt to force Elizabeth to adopt policies and to strengthen the rights of Parliament - this choir forced Elizabeth to adopt a more Protestant Settlement. 
• He was able to identify numerous occasions of conflict - involving areas of religion foreign policy, the succession and marriage. The choir was known for stirring up trouble in 1563&66 over the Queens failure to marry or to name a successor, as well as agitating for the execution of Mary Queen of Scots and the Duke of Norfolk and campaigning to reform the COE
• Redress of grievances- 1566 the Commons attempted to postpone agreeing to the Queen's request for money until she ha satisfied their grievances. 
• Wentworth's speech criticising Elizabeth's policies and calling for freedom of speech is evidence of parliamentary opposition. 
• As far as Neale was concerned there could hardly be clearer evidence of the struggle for power between the monarch and parliaments lower house. 
• 'Transform the House of Commons'
• 'exploit the opportunities opened by Henry VIII's indulgent policy'

Opposing Views

• It became firmly established that Neale's Puritans choir was a figment of the imagination, based on a misunderstanding of the central piece of evidence. Some members of Neale's puritan choir were in fact the followers of members or the Privy Council.  In fact some of the individuals identified by Neale as members of the so called “Puritan Choir” were not even puritans. 
• The argument that the councillors influenced the MPs, in order to push their views forward. Parliament was being used by the ministers as an additional lever in their attempts to persuade their mistress to take action where she was proving reluctant to do so.
• There is no doubt that from time to time there was considerable discontent between the Queen and Parliament. The main opposition was over Elizabeth was over Elizabeths over her prerogative rights. Graves has demostrated beyond question that Elizabeth's parliaments never sared to challenger her royal prerogatives.
• Elton has been able to establish that the norm was coorperation between the Crown and Commons, that the House of Lords was of much greater importance than Neale thouht and that the attempts made by the Commons were knee-jerk responses by MPs who were temporarily stung into action by being bought face to face with the inferiority of their position.

Basic points

Support Neale -

• quite a few puritans in Parliament who put pressure on the Queen
• they also tried to gain more parliamentary rights such as freedom of speech.
• there were also instances of redress of grievances
• there were more MPs with training in law and they were growing in confidence

Against Neale -

• calls for freedom of speech were rare 
• there were no real cases of redress of grievances 
• By and large parliaments were cooperative on most issues
• Parliament was loyal to the Queen
• Neale had more evidence for Elizabeth reign cause it was so long, there would have been conflicts in other reigns
• Any discussions etc that there was, was just part of the debating process

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by Zora Neale Hurston

Sweat themes, hard work and suffering.

An important theme of "Sweat" that is embedded within the story's title itself is that of hard work and suffering. Because Sykes refuses to help Delia, and indeed actively obstructs her in many ways, Delia can rely only on herself for her own survival, all while supporting Sykes as well by paying for their house, food, and other supplies. Delia underscores this theme when she says to Sykes, "Ah been married to you fur fifteen years, and Ah been takin' in washin' fur fifteen years. Sweat, sweat, sweat! Work and sweat, cry and sweat, pray and sweat" (1023). The repetitiveness of the phrase as well as the emotion with which Delia expresses it communicates the difficulty of the life that she leads: Delia works constantly, every day of the week, and the only form of relaxation or leisure activity that we see her engage in are the religious services she attends on Saturday. The difficulty of Delia's economic circumstances is only compounded by the physical and emotional abuse she endures from Sykes, from whom she no longer hopes for love.

The Relationship between Men and Women

This is the subject of an important conversation between the village men on the porch of Joe Clarke 's store. The conversation they have suggests that the way Sykes treats Delia is not simply the matter of a bad marriage, or even of Sykes' specific moral character. Instead, the analogy that Joe Clarke makes of men treating women like pieces of sugarcane provides a way of understanding the dynamic between Sykes and Delia as existing in a broader, self-defeating system of troubled relations between men and women. Clarke suggests that many men treat women as they would a piece of sugarcane, wringing them out of all their sweetness and throwing them away when they are finished. Crucially, Clarke states that men understand exactly what they are doing when they are doing this, and that they hate themselves for it but are unable to stop. After women have been beaten down and ground up by the abuse, men then hate them even more for being a useless obstruction and a reminder of their failures. This is key to understanding how the relationship between Sykes and Delia may represent relationships between men and women more broadly. Instead of being grateful to Delia because she supports the two of them, Sykes instead hates and abuses her, perhaps feeling emasculated. Clarke's analogy suggests that the more a man abuses a woman, the harder it is for him to stop, because she reminds him of his failures. This certainly seems to be the case for Sykes.

Resilience and Reliability

Linked to the theme of hard work and suffering is that of resilience. The difficult circumstances in which Delia lives have required her to work very hard, and never once has Delia failed to meet this obligation. Delia is described as having survived over many years an ordeal that the men on the porch of Joe Clarke's store suggest would have killed three ordinary women, let alone ruined their looks. In every kind of weather, Delia comes around on Saturday: "Hot or col', rain or shine, jes ez reg'lar ez de weeks roll roun' Delia carries 'em an' fetches 'em on Sat'day" (1024), says Joe Lindsay . Even as Sykes continues to escalate his abuse of Delia by bringing a mistress to town and bringing a snake to her house, Delia is shaken, but ultimately defiant. These traits carry Delia through the story to its ambivalent ending.

Metamorphosis

In "Sweat," Delia undergoes a gradual but profound change in her attitude towards Sykes and life in general. At the beginning of the story, it is stated that Delia is resilient—she has endured, in an almost superhuman way, years of abuse—but she has also done so meekly and submissively. The Delia of the beginning of the story simply wishes that Sykes would let her live in peace, and can even, from time to time, entertain a certain hope that Sykes will repent of his abuse or find a rekindled love for her. She does not push back against Sykes, and appears to experience his abuse unhappily but pliantly. However, Delia develops first a "triumphant indifference" (1024) to Sykes that blooms into a full rebellion. This defiance possibly becomes a force in contradiction to her Christian kindness and generosity, as generally Christian charity would require Delia to help Sykes. However, she decides merely that she will allow Sykes to bear the consequences of his own actions, a true change from her earlier state.

Christianity and Christian Faith

Christianity and Christian faith are essential themes to the story. Delia is a woman of strong faith whose belief in a Christian God helps her significantly to endure the very hard life that she leads. Allusions to Christianity appear constantly. Sykes accuses Delia of being a hypocritical Christian because she works for white people on the Sabbath, which raises the question of how important it is to follow religion to the letter under difficult circumstances. During the time that Bertha is in town, Delia's suffering is compared to that of Jesus in Gethsemane, the garden where he prayed the night before he was crucified. Delia sings a song on the way back from church about the River Jordan, which in the Bible symbolizes deliverance. The presence of the snake in the story is also very meaningful, as snakes often symbolize the devil. In fact, the snake is literally referred to by Delia as "ol' satan." In this way, the story can be read as an allegory for the consequences of Sykes bringing evil and sin into the house he shares with Delia.

This is an important recurring theme in "Sweat," one distinct from but linked to the theme of Christianity and faith. Both near the beginning and the end of the story, Delia comforts herself in the midst of her turbulent life with Sykes by telling herself that sooner or later Sykes will experience a moment of reckoning. After Sykes first tricks Delia into thinking his bull whip is a snake, she says aloud to herself before falling asleep, "Oh well, whatever goes over the Devil's back, is got to come under his belly. Sometime or ruther, Sykes, like everybody else, is gointer reap his sowing" (1024). After Delia discovers the snake in the house and escapes to the barn, she experiences a rage followed by a calm, thinking to herself, "Well, Ah done de bes' Ah could. If things aint right, Gawd knows taint mah fault" (1029). Of course, Sykes does in fact experience a reckoning, one that is ironic because he brings it upon himself. While the concept of a Day of Judgment is central to Christianity, the concept of reckoning is made ambiguous by the fact that Delia chooses not to try to help Sykes as he dies, which arguably goes against concepts of Christian charity.

Racialized Understandings of Beauty

This is a subtle but important theme in "Sweat." Delia and Bertha are constructed as opposites of each other in a significant way that carries connotations of racialized understandings of beauty within the African-American community. Delia is described as thin, but once having been very pretty. Sykes is shown heaping abuse on Delia because he apparently finds her thin body ugly and unappealing. Bertha, on the other hand, is large in build, being described with positive connotation as "fat." Sykes lavishes praise on her for this characteristic. But she is also implied to be much darker-skinned than Delia, and for this reason the men on Joe Clarke's porch are brutally insulting of Bertha's looks, calling her a "big black greasy Mogul," an "eight-rock," saying that she isn't fit to kiss a sardine can, and comparing her to a hunk of liver with some hair on it. The reader cannot see what Bertha or Delia looks like beyond the opposed but equally biased eyes of Sykes and the men on the porch. However, the racialized language that the men on the porch use to describe Bertha suggests that they may be predisposed to find Bertha ugly because of colorist prejudice that exists within the African-American community.

Sweat Questions and Answers

The Question and Answer section for Sweat is a great resource to ask questions, find answers, and discuss the novel.

What did the dialogue between Delia and her husband, Sykes, suggest about their relationship?

Section please?

How does God work?

Please be more specific as to what religious aspect of the story you are referring to.

Which statement best expresses a major theme of the short story?

I'm sorry, "which statement" means that you have been provided with answer choices for your question. Please include all information in your posts.

Study Guide for Sweat

Sweat study guide contains a biography of Zora Neale Hurston, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis.

• About Sweat
• Sweat Summary
• Character List

Essays for Sweat

Sweat essays are academic essays for citation. These papers were written primarily by students and provide critical analysis of Sweat by Zora Neale Hurston.

• Delia's Trek Toward Freedom
• Zora Neale Hurston: An Alchemist of Modernism
• Gender in Sweat by Zora Neale Hurston
• Nature's Role in American Literature
• Portrayals of Domestic Abuse and Passive Resistance in “Sweat”

Wikipedia Entries for Sweat

• Introduction

Module: Beyond the Five-Paragraph Essay

Beyond formulaic writing, learning objective.

• Identify characteristics of organically structured essays

Understanding that college writing will demand more than a five-paragraph essay is the first step. But then what? How do writers move beyond the formulas that are so familiar and well practiced and begin to develop organic writing?

A good starting place is to recharacterize writing as thinking. Experienced writers don’t figure out what they want to say and then write it. They write in order to figure out what they want to say. Experienced writers develop theses in dialog with the body of the essay. An initial characterization of the problem leads to a tentative thesis. Then, drafting the body of the paper reveals thorny contradictions or critical areas of ambiguity, prompting the writer to revisit or expand the body of evidence and then refine the thesis based on that fresh look. The revised thesis may require that body paragraphs be reordered and reshaped to fit the emerging thesis. Throughout the process, the thesis serves as an anchor point while the author wades through the morass of facts and ideas. The writer continues to read to learn more about his or her issue and refines his or her ideas in response to what is learned. The dialogue between thesis and body continues until the author is satisfied or the due date arrives, whatever comes first.

Consider the following example.

Your political science professor asks you to write a paper on legislative redistricting. The professor spent a lot of time in class talking about motivations for redistricting, state redistricting laws, and Supreme Court redistricting cases. You decide to write about those three topics using the following thesis: Legislative redistricting is a complicated process that involves motivations for redistricting, state redistricting laws, and Supreme Court decisions. Then you write a section on motivations, a section on state laws, and a section on Supreme Court decisions. On the first draft of the paper, the professor comments: “This paper tries to cover too much and has no point to make. What’s the original point you are trying to defend? You are just restating everything we said about redistricting in class. Keep thinking.” You realize at this point that you have tried to write a five-paragraph essay and it won’t work.

You go back to the drawing board. Your professor said you needed an arguable, original point and to avoid just restating everything from class. You think about what interested you most in the discussion of redistricting and remember talking about the Goldilocks principle of getting the balance of voters just right. You also remember that the professor mentioned a current case before the Supreme Court involving your home state.

You research the case and decide to revise your thesis to argue that your state has not achieved the Goldilocks balance but has erred on the side of excessive racial representation in some districts. Rather than using the body paragraphs of the paper to give three reasons for why that overrepresentation occurred, you decide to first give background on the racial divisions within the state, followed by profiles of two districts where over-representation of one race has occurred.

After writing those sections, you read further about the current status of the Supreme Court case and find that one of the districts you discuss in the paper isn’t involved in the case and that the Court’s decision has still not been handed down. You decide to rewrite one of the profile sections to focus on the district in the Supreme Court case. Then you add a section overviewing the current court case. You use your conclusion to make a recommendation to the Supreme Court about how the case should be decided.

Once the conclusion is drafted, you go back to the introduction and tighten the thesis to focus just on the two districts covered in the court case. You also revise the initial background section to include specific mention of those two cases. Now you are writing like a college writer, using writing as a tool for thinking and developing the paper in response to your growing understanding.

An organically structured argument is a beautiful thing. For one, it gives a paper authentic momentum. The first paragraph doesn’t just start with some broad, vague statement; every sentence is crucial for setting up the thesis. The body paragraphs build on one another, moving through each step of the logical chain. Each paragraph leads inevitably to the next, making the transitions from paragraph to paragraph feel wholly natural. The conclusion, instead of being a mirror-image paraphrase of the introduction, builds out the argument by explaining the broader implications. It offers new insight without departing from the flow of the analysis.

A paper with this kind of momentum often reads like it was knocked out in one inspired sitting. But in reality, just like accomplished athletes and artists, masterful writers make the difficult look easy. As writer Anne Lamott notes, reading a well-written piece feels like its author sat down and typed it out, “bounding along like huskies across the snow.” However, she continues,

This is just the fantasy of the uninitiated. I know some very great writers, writers you love who write beautifully and have made a great deal of money, and not one of them sits down routinely feeling wildly enthusiastic and confident. Not one of them writes elegant first drafts. All right, one of them does, but we do not like her very much. [1]

• Anne Lamott, Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life (New York: Pantheon, 1994), 21. ↵
• Revision and Adaptation.. Provided by : Lumen Learning. License : CC BY-NC-SA: Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike
• Three-story theses and the organically structured argument. Authored by : Amy Guptill.. Provided by : The College at Brockport, SUNY. Located at : http://textbooks.opensuny.org/writing-in-college-from-competence-to-excellence/ . Project : riting in College: From Competence to Excellence. . License : CC BY-NC-SA: Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike

 MacTutor

Victoria ruth neale.

I think I was lucky in the teachers that I had who were always very supportive. I enjoyed the mathematics that I did at school. I think I was probably the annoying kid who kept wanting to be fed more.

I spent a lot of time playing music. I learned the piano and the oboe when I was at school and I spent quite a lot of my secondary school time playing in orchestras. I loved playing in orchestras. So, I didn't do that much mathematics outside of school. I had a few opportunities come up through Royal Institution Masterclasses when I was thirteen or fourteen ... but I spent a lot of time sitting in the middle of an orchestra playing an oboe.

I remember it being completely clear that I wanted to do mathematics and further mathematics and I figured I should do physics because it seemed that was what you should do and what I kind of wanted to do was French and German but I sort of had this idea that mathematics, further mathematics, physics and chemistry was a thing. I'd somehow got that impression and I remember having a conversation with my mathematics teacher who was very wise and very helpful and said if you want to do French and German, do those. So I loved doing the languages alongside that. … I joined the physics A level but there was really never any doubt at all in my mind I think that I would be applying to do mathematics at university.

I wasn't very interested in the competition part of the competitions, but I loved the fact that they gave me interesting mathematics to think about and I loved that when I got to go to a couple of these events I met other young people who were also super excited about mathematics and we could talk about mathematics but also talk about things other than mathematics. I mean it's not like we talked about mathematics the whole time but it was great just interacting with other people who didn't think I was a bit odd for enjoying mathematics.

This is the point at which, it seems, the Editor of 'Eureka' has traditionally had an opportunity to justify the existence of a student journal for recreational mathematics. Personally, I consider the existence of the journal to be a justification in itself; despite a fairly large gap since 'Eureka 55 ' was published, I have been very pleasantly surprised to discover how forthcoming contributions have been. In October 2003 , when I became Editor, I was handed some of the material that appears on later pages, including a letter from an individual who has been reading 'Eureka' for longer than I have been alive, but who still reads it as avidly as ever ... It only remains for me to add that I hope very much that I too shall be reading 'Eureka' seventy years after I matriculated, and to hope that you enjoy what follows!

I worked alongside Vicky for the NRICH program in Cambridge for a summer before we started our respective PhDs - at the dawn of our professional lives. She stood out then for her brilliance, passion, and clarity of purpose.

One of the classical problems of additive number theory, known as Waring 's problem, is to show that the kth powers form a basis for the integers. That is, for any k there is some s = s ( k ) such that every positive integer is a sum of s kth powers. Lagrange 's theorem, which says that every positive integer is a sum of four squares, is a special case of this. Waring 's problem was first solved by Hilbert , and then a few years later Hardy and Littlewood supplied a new proof, using what is now known as their circle method.

I was one of the academic programme coordinators for the Cambridge Mathematics Sutton Trust summer school in August 2011 , and gave several lectures and supervisions at the 2012 and 2013 Cambridge Mathematics Sutton Trust summer schools. I contributed to various other activities organised by the Cambridge Admissions Office and by Murray Edwards College, Cambridge. ... I spent almost two years working on Underground Mathematics, which was then called the Cambridge Mathematics Education Project, creating a website with free online resources for teachers and students of A-level Mathematics.

Ever energetic, Vicky was involved many other organisations. She dedicated much of her time to those that encouraged young people, particularly girls, to enjoy and experience mathematics. She was Executive Director of PROMYS Europe, a scheme to bring secondary school students from around Europe to sample mathematics at Oxford. She was a volunteer for the United Kingdom Mathematics Trust ( UKMT ) and served on its council for many years; was a trustee of the recently founded Mathematics Education for Social Mobility and Excellence ( MESME ) and, perhaps most poignantly of all, was to be President of the Mathematical Association in 2024 - 2025 .

I'm really glad I had the opportunity to do the PGCert programme. I enjoyed the chance to exchange ideas during the workshops with colleagues from other subjects, and it has given me a welcome opportunity to reflect on my own teaching practice, and to think about how best I can support the learning of students in the Maths Institute and at Balliol.

Vicky was very active in the LMS. She was a member of the Newsletter Editorial Board and was a regular contributor to the LMS Newsletter. She served on the Education Committee for 6 years, where she could be relied upon to produce sensible and workable solutions to the problems faced. She was a Holgate Session Leader from 2015 to 2017 , and in 2013 was an LMS Popular Lecturer. Her talk, 'Addictive Number Theory', which was, of course, on her love of prime numbers, is the 4 th most popular video on the LMS's YouTube channel. Another of her talks, an introductory lecture on complex numbers for Oxford University, currently has over 2 . 3 million views.

Prime numbers have intrigued, inspired and infuriated mathematicians for millennia, and yet mathematicians' difficulty with answering simple questions about them reveals their depth and subtlety. Join Vicky to learn about recent progress towards proving the famous Twin Primes Conjecture, and to hear the very different ways in which these breakthroughs have been made - a solo mathematician working in isolation, a young mathematician displaying creativity at the start of a career, a large collaboration that reveals much about how mathematicians go about their work.

Her mathematical interests went beyond such abstract topics to include arts and crafts. She was keen on crafting, particularly knitting and crocheting, and created mathematically patterned Christmas cards.

This podcast series was both a personal and professional endeavour for Vicky. In March 2021 , she began receiving treatment for a rare form of cancer, prompting her to discover more about how her colleagues in the mathematical community contribute to cancer research - from prevention, through to diagnosis and treatment. Throughout the series she talked to a range of experts to find out more about the role of mathematics and statistics in cancer research, as well as to discover more about the people behind the work.

I will be the President of the Mathematical Association in 2024 - 2025 . I am deeply honoured to be following in the footsteps of so many eminent people.

She was an absolutely excellent lecturer who taught me Groups and Group Actions in 2015 . Vicky brought the subject alive with her enthusiasm and passion.

I was taught by Vicky as my lecturer for first year Group Theory, and then in third year when I was in her Graph Theory class. She was a first class teacher, producing immaculate lecture notes and solutions, and always going the extra mile to explain something another way when we were confused. I will always remember her entertaining style, as well as her colourful trousers!

Thank you Vicky. You were my Director of Studies at Cambridge, and have taught me so much. Your patience and enthusiasm helped me through many difficult problem sheets, and helped drive my love for mathematics. It is difficult to imagine what my time at university would have been like without you, and I will forever have a little virtual Vicky pop up in my head whenever I am doing maths, correcting and encouraging me.

I've known many people with a love of mathematics, but none with the same passion Vicky had for sharing this love with others. I was lucky enough to be tutored by Vicky at Balliol College. She had an incredible understanding of the way mathematics is learned, and always had ways of explaining the most complex concepts that not only made them seem simple, but also revealed the beauty and fascination in each theorem and proof. I had uncountable "Oh, I get it now!" moments in her tutorials and lectures. Her skill, empathy and sense of humour made learning mathematics a joy.

Vicky was someone who really cared about making other people understand and enjoy maths. In our tutorials, she was always passionate about getting to the very root of what we didn't understand. She really did have a psychic ability to work out when you didn't understand a tricky idea, but were just nodding along, hoping to get away from the scary abstract algebra as quickly as possible. There was nowhere to hide! But she undid the fear of the hard maths, by showing everyone that with enough patience, every detail could be worked out. She gave you confidence in your own ability.

Vicky was a brilliant tutor - the benchmark for what an educator should be. She made every problem clear and accessible, and had a remarkable knack for figuring out what exactly is the core of my confusion and clearing it up. She was always on hand to receive questions outside of tutorials ( whether through emails or office hours ) and went far out of her way to answer them ( including giving extra problems, hints, and offering one-on-one calls to clear things up if needed ) . I must add that Vicky was also an incredibly kind and thoughtful person who really cared about her students. Vicky's enthusiasm, love for maths and education, and her calm and kind nature continue to inspire me today.

One of the challenges of mathematics is that tackling more sophisticated problems often means first tackling more sophisticated terminology and notation. I cannot find a piece of mathematics beautiful unless I first understand it properly - and that means it can take a while for me to appreciate the aesthetic qualities. I don't think this is unique to mathematics. There are pieces of music, buildings, pieces of visual art where I have not at first appreciated their beauty or elegance - and it is only by persevering, by grappling with the ideas, that I have come to perceive the beauty.

References ( show )

• C Beveridge, Review: Closing the Gap: The Quest to Understand Prime Numbers, by Vicky Neale, The Aperiodical Reviews (2 February 2018) . https://aperiodical.com/ 2018 / 02 /review-closing-the-gap-by-vicky-neale/
• C Beveridge, Review: Why study mathematics?, by Vicky Neale, The Aperiodical Reviews (18 November 2020) . https://aperiodical.com/ 2020 / 11 /review-why-study-mathematics-by-vicky-neale/
• Bookshelf, Review: Closing the Gap: The Quest to Understand Prime Numbers, by Vicky Neale, Notices of the American Mathematical Society 66 (5) (2019) , 754 .
• Chalkdust, Review: Why study mathematics?, by Vicky Neale, Chalkdust Magazine (4 March 2021) . https://chalkdustmagazine.com/blog/why-study-mathematics/
• D Chun, Review: Closing the Gap: The Quest to Understand Prime Numbers, by Vicky Neale, London Mathematical Society Newsletter 482 (2019) , 35 - 36 .
• Dr Vicky Neale (1984 - 2023) , London Mathematical Society . https://www.lms.ac.uk/news/neale
• M Freiberger, Review: Closing the Gap: The Quest to Understand Prime Numbers, by Vicky Neale, Plus Magazine (20 December 2017) . https://plus.maths.org/content/closing-gap
• M N Fried, Review: Closing the Gap: The Quest to Understand Prime Numbers, by Vicky Neale, Mathematical Thinking and Learning 20 (3) (2018) , 248 - 250 .
• B Haran, Why study maths - with Vicky Neale, Numberphile Podcast (8 December 2020) . https://www.numberphile.com/podcast/vicky-neale
• K Houston, Vicky Neale: 1984 - 2023 , London Mathematical Society Newsletter 507 ( July 2023) , 40 .
• M Hunacek, Review: Closing the Gap: The Quest to Understand Prime Numbers, by Vicky Neale, Mathematical Association of America Reviews (2 December 2018) . https://www.maa.org/press/maa-reviews/closing-the-gap
• F Ilett, Review: Why study mathematics?, by Vicky Neale, London Mathematical Society Newsletter 498 ( January 2022) , 54 - 55 .
• N Kalaydzhieva and S Porritt, Review: Closing the Gap: The Quest to Understand Prime Numbers, by Vicky Neale, Chalkdust Magazine (28 June 2018) .
• D Klyve, Review: Closing the Gap: The Quest to Understand Prime Numbers, by Vicky Neale, Mathematical Reviews MR 3751356 .
• Maths + Cancer, Podcast hosted by Dr Vicky Neale . https://oxford.shorthandstories.com/maths-plus-cancer/#group-section-Episode- 5 -Modelling-cancer-ZBG 2 H 7 Kc 1 J
• My memories of Vicky, University of Oxford. https://www.maths.ox.ac.uk/memories-of-vicky-neale
• V Neale, Why study mathematics?, Plus (10 February 2021) . https://plus.maths.org/content/why-study-mathematics- 0
• V Neale, Why study mathematics? ( London Publishing Partnership, 2020) .
• V Neale, Mathematics is beautiful ( no, really ) , The Conversation (17 February 2017) . https://theconversation.com/mathematics-is-beautiful-no-really- 72921
• V Neale, Closing the Gap: The Quest to Understand Prime Numbers ( Oxford University Press, 2017) .
• V Neale, Bracket quadratics as asymptotic bases for the natural numbers, Beyond Part III. http://beyondpartiii.soc.srcf.net/neale.pdf
• I Sample, Magic numbers: can maths equations be beautiful, The Guardian (21 November 2016) . https://www.theguardian.com/science/ 2016 /nov/ 21 /magic-numbers-can-maths-equations-be-beautiful
• O Toller, Review: Closing the Gap: The Quest to Understand Prime Numbers, by Vicky Neale, The Mathematical Gazette 102 (555) (2018) , 561 .
• Vicky Neale Home Page, University of Oxford. http://people.maths.ox.ac.uk/neale/
• Vicky Neale 1984 - 2023 , Balliol College, University of Oxford (4 May 2023) . https://www.balliol.ox.ac.uk/news/ 2023 /may/vicky-neale- 1984 - 2023
• Vicky Neale, Mathematical Institute, University of Oxford (4 May 2023) . https://www.maths.ox.ac.uk/node/ 64230
• Vicky Neale, Mathematical Association (4 May 2023) . https://staging.m-a.org.uk/news/?id= 369

Additional Resources ( show )

Other pages about Vicky Neale:

• Vicky Neale's books

Other websites about Vicky Neale:

• Mathematical Genealogy Project
• MathSciNet Author profile
• zbMATH entry

Honours ( show )

Honours awarded to Vicky Neale

• Young Researchers in Mathematics Speaker 2015

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6.3: Formulaic vs. Organic Structure

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Learning Objective

• Differentiate between formulaic and organic structure

In high school, the SAT and other standardized testing formats value a very rigid, formulaic approach to essay writing. Some students who have mastered that form, and enjoyed a lot of success from doing so, assume that college writing is simply more of the same. The skills involved in a very basic kind of essay—often called the five-paragraph theme—are indispensable. If you’re good at the five-paragraph theme, then you’re good at identifying a clear and consistent thesis, arranging cohesive paragraphs, organizing evidence for key points, and situating an argument within a broader context through the introduction and conclusion.

In college you need to build on and move beyond those essential skills. The five-paragraph theme, as such, is bland and formulaic; it doesn’t compel deep thinking. Your college professors are looking for a more ambitious and arguable thesis, a nuanced and compelling argument, and real-life evidence for all key points, all in an organically structured paper.

Figures 3.1 and 3.2 contrast the standard five-paragraph theme and the organic college paper. The five-paragraph theme, outlined in Figure 3.1, is probably what you’re used to: the introductory paragraph starts broadly and gradually narrows to a thesis, which readers expect to find at the very end of that paragraph. In this idealized format, the thesis invokes the magic number of three: three reasons why a statement is true. Each of those reasons is explained and justified in the three body paragraphs, and then the final paragraph restates the thesis before gradually getting broader. This format is easy for readers to follow, and it helps writers organize their points and the evidence that goes with them. That’s why you learned it.

Figure 3.2, in contrast, represents a paper on the same topic that has the more organic form expected in college. The first key difference is the thesis. Rather than simply positing a number of reasons to think that something is true, it puts forward an arguable statement: one with which a reasonable person might disagree. An arguable thesis gives the paper purpose. It surprises readers and draws them in. You hope your reader thinks, Huh. Why would the author come to that conclusion? and then feels compelled to read on. The body paragraphs, then, build on one another to carry out this ambitious argument. In the classic five-paragraph theme (Figure 3.1) it hardly matters which of the three reasons you explain first or second. In the more organic structure (Figure 3.2), each paragraph specifically leads to the next. The last key difference is seen in the conclusion. Because the organic essay is driven by an ambitious, non-obvious argument, the reader comes to the concluding section thinking, OK, I’m convinced by the argument. What do you, author, make of it? Why does it matter? The conclusion of an organically structured paper has a real job to do. It doesn’t just reiterate the thesis; it explains why the thesis matters.

Five Paragraph Essay vs. organic essay

Compare the five paragraph model on the left with the organic model on the right.

The substantial time you spent mastering the five-paragraph form in Figure 3.1 was time well spent; it’s hard to imagine anyone succeeding with the more organic form without the organizational skills and habits of mind inherent in the simpler form. But if you assume that you must adhere rigidly to the simpler form, you’re blunting your intellectual ambition. Your professors will not be impressed by obvious theses, loosely related body paragraphs, and repetitive conclusions. They want you to undertake an ambitious, independent analysis, one that will yield a thesis that is somewhat surprising and challenging to explain.

https://assessments.lumenlearning.co...sessments/5603

• Revision and Adaptation. Provided by : Lumen Learning. License : CC BY-NC-SA: Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike
• Moving beyond the five-paragraph theme.. Authored by : Amy Guptill.. Provided by : The College at Brockport, SUNY. Located at : http://textbooks.opensuny.org/writing-in-college-from-competence-to-excellence/ . Project : Writing in College: From Competence to Excellence. . License : CC BY-NC-SA: Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike
• Organic and Inorganic. Authored by : John D.. Located at : https://www.flickr.com/photos/john-pa/6425182999/ . License : CC BY-NC-ND: Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives

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• What Is a Thesis? | Ultimate Guide & Examples

What Is a Thesis? | Ultimate Guide & Examples

Published on September 14, 2022 by Tegan George . Revised on November 21, 2023.

A thesis is a type of research paper based on your original research. It is usually submitted as the final step of a master’s program or a capstone to a bachelor’s degree.

Writing a thesis can be a daunting experience. Other than a dissertation , it is one of the longest pieces of writing students typically complete. It relies on your ability to conduct research from start to finish: choosing a relevant topic , crafting a proposal , designing your research , collecting data , developing a robust analysis, drawing strong conclusions , and writing concisely .

Thesis template

You can also download our full thesis template in the format of your choice below. Our template includes a ready-made table of contents , as well as guidance for what each chapter should include. It’s easy to make it your own, and can help you get started.

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Table of contents

Thesis vs. thesis statement, how to structure a thesis, acknowledgements or preface, list of figures and tables, list of abbreviations, introduction, literature review, methodology, reference list, proofreading and editing, defending your thesis, other interesting articles, frequently asked questions about theses.

You may have heard the word thesis as a standalone term or as a component of academic writing called a thesis statement . Keep in mind that these are two very different things.

• A thesis statement is a very common component of an essay, particularly in the humanities. It usually comprises 1 or 2 sentences in the introduction of your essay , and should clearly and concisely summarize the central points of your academic essay .
• A thesis is a long-form piece of academic writing, often taking more than a full semester to complete. It is generally a degree requirement for Master’s programs, and is also sometimes required to complete a bachelor’s degree in liberal arts colleges.
• In the US, a dissertation is generally written as a final step toward obtaining a PhD.
• In other countries (particularly the UK), a dissertation is generally written at the bachelor’s or master’s level.

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The final structure of your thesis depends on a variety of components, such as:

• Your discipline
• Your theoretical approach

Humanities theses are often structured more like a longer-form essay . Just like in an essay, you build an argument to support a central thesis.

In both hard and social sciences, theses typically include an introduction , literature review , methodology section ,  results section , discussion section , and conclusion section . These are each presented in their own dedicated section or chapter. In some cases, you might want to add an appendix .

Thesis examples

We’ve compiled a short list of thesis examples to help you get started.

• Example thesis #1:   “Abolition, Africans, and Abstraction: the Influence of the ‘Noble Savage’ on British and French Antislavery Thought, 1787-1807” by Suchait Kahlon.
• Example thesis #2: “’A Starving Man Helping Another Starving Man’: UNRRA, India, and the Genesis of Global Relief, 1943-1947″ by Julian Saint Reiman.

The very first page of your thesis contains all necessary identifying information, including:

• Your full title
• Your full name
• Your department
• Your institution and degree program
• Your submission date.

Sometimes the title page also includes your student ID, the name of your supervisor, or the university’s logo. Check out your university’s guidelines if you’re not sure.

Read more about title pages

The acknowledgements section is usually optional. Its main point is to allow you to thank everyone who helped you in your thesis journey, such as supervisors, friends, or family. You can also choose to write a preface , but it’s typically one or the other, not both.

Read more about acknowledgements Read more about prefaces

Receive feedback on language, structure, and formatting

Professional editors proofread and edit your paper by focusing on:

• Academic style
• Vague sentences
• Style consistency

See an example

An abstract is a short summary of your thesis. Usually a maximum of 300 words long, it’s should include brief descriptions of your research objectives , methods, results, and conclusions. Though it may seem short, it introduces your work to your audience, serving as a first impression of your thesis.

Read more about abstracts

A table of contents lists all of your sections, plus their corresponding page numbers and subheadings if you have them. This helps your reader seamlessly navigate your document.

Your table of contents should include all the major parts of your thesis. In particular, don’t forget the the appendices. If you used heading styles, it’s easy to generate an automatic table Microsoft Word.

Read more about tables of contents

While not mandatory, if you used a lot of tables and/or figures, it’s nice to include a list of them to help guide your reader. It’s also easy to generate one of these in Word: just use the “Insert Caption” feature.

Read more about lists of figures and tables

If you have used a lot of industry- or field-specific abbreviations in your thesis, you should include them in an alphabetized list of abbreviations . This way, your readers can easily look up any meanings they aren’t familiar with.

Read more about lists of abbreviations

Relatedly, if you find yourself using a lot of very specialized or field-specific terms that may not be familiar to your reader, consider including a glossary . Alphabetize the terms you want to include with a brief definition.

Read more about glossaries

An introduction sets up the topic, purpose, and relevance of your thesis, as well as expectations for your reader. This should:

• Ground your research topic , sharing any background information your reader may need
• Define the scope of your work
• Introduce any existing research on your topic, situating your work within a broader problem or debate
• State your research question(s)
• Outline (briefly) how the remainder of your work will proceed

In other words, your introduction should clearly and concisely show your reader the “what, why, and how” of your research.

Read more about introductions

A literature review helps you gain a robust understanding of any extant academic work on your topic, encompassing:

• Selecting relevant sources
• Determining the credibility of your sources
• Critically evaluating each of your sources
• Drawing connections between sources, including any themes, patterns, conflicts, or gaps

A literature review is not merely a summary of existing work. Rather, your literature review should ultimately lead to a clear justification for your own research, perhaps via:

• Addressing a gap in the literature
• Building on existing knowledge to draw new conclusions
• Exploring a new theoretical or methodological approach
• Introducing a new solution to an unresolved problem
• Definitively advocating for one side of a theoretical debate

Read more about literature reviews

Theoretical framework

Your literature review can often form the basis for your theoretical framework, but these are not the same thing. A theoretical framework defines and analyzes the concepts and theories that your research hinges on.

Read more about theoretical frameworks

Your methodology chapter shows your reader how you conducted your research. It should be written clearly and methodically, easily allowing your reader to critically assess the credibility of your argument. Furthermore, your methods section should convince your reader that your method was the best way to answer your research question.

A methodology section should generally include:

• Your overall approach ( quantitative vs. qualitative )
• Your research methods (e.g., a longitudinal study )
• Your data collection methods (e.g., interviews or a controlled experiment
• Any tools or materials you used (e.g., computer software)
• The data analysis methods you chose (e.g., statistical analysis , discourse analysis )
• A strong, but not defensive justification of your methods

Read more about methodology sections

Your results section should highlight what your methodology discovered. These two sections work in tandem, but shouldn’t repeat each other. While your results section can include hypotheses or themes, don’t include any speculation or new arguments here.

Your results section should:

• State each (relevant) result with any (relevant) descriptive statistics (e.g., mean , standard deviation ) and inferential statistics (e.g., test statistics , p values )
• Explain how each result relates to the research question
• Determine whether the hypothesis was supported

Additional data (like raw numbers or interview transcripts ) can be included as an appendix . You can include tables and figures, but only if they help the reader better understand your results.

Read more about results sections

Your discussion section is where you can interpret your results in detail. Did they meet your expectations? How well do they fit within the framework that you built? You can refer back to any relevant source material to situate your results within your field, but leave most of that analysis in your literature review.

For any unexpected results, offer explanations or alternative interpretations of your data.

Read more about discussion sections

Your thesis conclusion should concisely answer your main research question. It should leave your reader with an ultra-clear understanding of your central argument, and emphasize what your research specifically has contributed to your field.

Why does your research matter? What recommendations for future research do you have? Lastly, wrap up your work with any concluding remarks.

Read more about conclusions

In order to avoid plagiarism , don’t forget to include a full reference list at the end of your thesis, citing the sources that you used. Choose one citation style and follow it consistently throughout your thesis, taking note of the formatting requirements of each style.

Which style you choose is often set by your department or your field, but common styles include MLA , Chicago , and APA.

Create APA citations Create MLA citations

In order to stay clear and concise, your thesis should include the most essential information needed to answer your research question. However, chances are you have many contributing documents, like interview transcripts or survey questions . These can be added as appendices , to save space in the main body.

Read more about appendices

Once you’re done writing, the next part of your editing process begins. Leave plenty of time for proofreading and editing prior to submission. Nothing looks worse than grammar mistakes or sloppy spelling errors!

Consider using a professional thesis editing service or grammar checker to make sure your final project is perfect.

Once you’ve submitted your final product, it’s common practice to have a thesis defense, an oral component of your finished work. This is scheduled by your advisor or committee, and usually entails a presentation and Q&A session.

After your defense , your committee will meet to determine if you deserve any departmental honors or accolades. However, keep in mind that defenses are usually just a formality. If there are any serious issues with your work, these should be resolved with your advisor way before a defense.

If you want to know more about AI for academic writing, AI tools, or research bias, make sure to check out some of our other articles with explanations and examples or go directly to our tools!

Research bias

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The conclusion of your thesis or dissertation shouldn’t take up more than 5–7% of your overall word count.

If you only used a few abbreviations in your thesis or dissertation , you don’t necessarily need to include a list of abbreviations .

If your abbreviations are numerous, or if you think they won’t be known to your audience, it’s never a bad idea to add one. They can also improve readability, minimizing confusion about abbreviations unfamiliar to your reader.

When you mention different chapters within your text, it’s considered best to use Roman numerals for most citation styles. However, the most important thing here is to remain consistent whenever using numbers in your dissertation .

A thesis or dissertation outline is one of the most critical first steps in your writing process. It helps you to lay out and organize your ideas and can provide you with a roadmap for deciding what kind of research you’d like to undertake.

Generally, an outline contains information on the different sections included in your thesis or dissertation , such as:

• Your anticipated title
• Your abstract
• Your chapters (sometimes subdivided into further topics like literature review , research methods , avenues for future research, etc.)

A thesis is typically written by students finishing up a bachelor’s or Master’s degree. Some educational institutions, particularly in the liberal arts, have mandatory theses, but they are often not mandatory to graduate from bachelor’s degrees. It is more common for a thesis to be a graduation requirement from a Master’s degree.

Even if not mandatory, you may want to consider writing a thesis if you:

• Plan to attend graduate school soon
• Have a particular topic you’d like to study more in-depth
• Are considering a career in research
• Would like a capstone experience to tie up your academic experience

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Harlem Was No Longer the Same After This Dinner Party

Harlem was synonymous with the arts. But what I didn’t know was how that had come to be.

By Veronica Chambers

This article is also a weekly newsletter. Sign up for Race/Related here .

As a kid growing up in Brooklyn, Harlem always seemed like a magical place. I learned about the Studio Museum in Harlem and artists like Alma Thomas and Romare Bearden. Langston Hughes’s poems were featured on posters in my local library, and everybody knew Duke Ellington because of his signature tune, “Take the A Train,” written by Billy Strayhorn. There were the Apollo Theater, where Ella Fitzgerald first sang, and dance troupes like the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater and Dance Theater of Harlem. Harlem was synonymous with the arts. But what I didn’t know was how that had come to be.

My senior thesis in college was on the dinner party that launched the Harlem Renaissance. It was amazing to me that a group of creative giants had prioritized art to serve as a case study in marrying talent to opportunity. The people I knew often said that art could make a difference, but the Harlem Renaissance showed me it was truly possible. In the early 1920s, Black Americans were excluded from many of the fields in which other Americans were building bases of power and generational wealth: from the unions to Wall Street and Congress. But as the historian David Levering Lewis noted, “no exclusionary rules had been laid down regarding a place in the arts. Here was a small crack in the wall of racism, a fissure that was worth trying to widen.”

So on March 21, 1924, two Black academics, Alain Locke and Charles S. Johnson, invited more than 100 guests to the Civic Club in Manhattan with a grand plan to give young Black artists a shot at the kinds of opportunities they’d rarely had before: book deals with major publishing houses, their artwork on display in museums, their songs on radio and Broadway rotation. The party was, as we wrote about it recently in the Times , a major success. In the decade afterward, more than 40 major works by Black Americans were published. Levering Lewis wrote in When Harlem was in Vogue that no more than five Black American writers published significant books between 1908 and 1923.

What we know now, and what we’ll keep exploring in this series about the 100th anniversary of the Harlem Renaissance , is how that kind of creativity and hope can take on an astonishing velocity. From the inimitable voice of the writer Zora Neale Hurston and the painted murals of Aaron Douglas to the song stylings of Louis Armstrong, Harlem was forever changed after the Civic Club dinner. Wallace Thurman, a poet who lived in Harlem during the Renaissance, noted that the neighborhood had become “almost a Negro Greenwich Village. Every other person you meet is writing a novel, a poem or a drama.”

It’s not too hard to draw a line between the work that was begun then to the work that exists now: the poetry of Mahogany L. Browne and Kwame Alexander, the Black superheroes imagined by Eve L. Ewing and Malcolm Spellman, or the novels by Colson Whitehead, Edwidge Danticat and James McBride. The Harlem Renaissance reshaped the landscape of American culture, and for Black artists around the globe the aperture of what was possible widened.

Invite your friends. Invite someone to subscribe to the Race/Related newsletter. Or email your thoughts and suggestions to [email protected] .

Veronica Chambers is the editor of Narrative Projects, a team dedicated to starting up multi-layered series and packages at The Times. More about Veronica Chambers

A New Light on the Harlem Renaissance

A century after it burst on the scene in new york city, the first african american modernist movement continues to have an impact in the american cultural imagination..

The Dinner Party:  When Charles Johnson and Alain Locke thought that a celebration for Jessie Fauset’s book “There Is Confusion” could serve a larger purpose, the Harlem Renaissance was born .

A Period of Survival:  During the Harlem Renaissance, some Black people hosted rent parties , celebrations with an undercurrent of desperation in the face of racism and discrimination.

An Ambitious Show:  A new MoMA exhibition, “The Harlem Renaissance and Transatlantic Modernism,” aims to shift our view  of the time when Harlem flourished as a creative capital. It gets it right, our critic writes .

An Enduring Legacy: We asked six artists to share their thoughts on the contributions  that the Harlem Renaissance artists made to history

Crafting a New Life: At the dawn of the Harlem Renaissance, Augusta Savage fought racism to earn acclaim as a sculptor. The path she forged is also her legacy .

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What is a thesis | A Complete Guide with Examples

Table of Contents

A thesis is a comprehensive academic paper based on your original research that presents new findings, arguments, and ideas of your study. It’s typically submitted at the end of your master’s degree or as a capstone of your bachelor’s degree.

However, writing a thesis can be laborious, especially for beginners. From the initial challenge of pinpointing a compelling research topic to organizing and presenting findings, the process is filled with potential pitfalls.

Therefore, to help you, this guide talks about what is a thesis. Additionally, it offers revelations and methodologies to transform it from an overwhelming task to a manageable and rewarding academic milestone.

What is a thesis?

A thesis is an in-depth research study that identifies a particular topic of inquiry and presents a clear argument or perspective about that topic using evidence and logic.

Writing a thesis showcases your ability of critical thinking, gathering evidence, and making a compelling argument. Integral to these competencies is thorough research, which not only fortifies your propositions but also confers credibility to your entire study.

Furthermore, there's another phenomenon you might often confuse with the thesis: the ' working thesis .' However, they aren't similar and shouldn't be used interchangeably.

A working thesis, often referred to as a preliminary or tentative thesis, is an initial version of your thesis statement. It serves as a draft or a starting point that guides your research in its early stages.

As you research more and gather more evidence, your initial thesis (aka working thesis) might change. It's like a starting point that can be adjusted as you learn more. It's normal for your main topic to change a few times before you finalize it.

While a thesis identifies and provides an overarching argument, the key to clearly communicating the central point of that argument lies in writing a strong thesis statement.

What is a thesis statement?

A strong thesis statement (aka thesis sentence) is a concise summary of the main argument or claim of the paper. It serves as a critical anchor in any academic work, succinctly encapsulating the primary argument or main idea of the entire paper.

Typically found within the introductory section, a strong thesis statement acts as a roadmap of your thesis, directing readers through your arguments and findings. By delineating the core focus of your investigation, it offers readers an immediate understanding of the context and the gravity of your study.

Furthermore, an effectively crafted thesis statement can set forth the boundaries of your research, helping readers anticipate the specific areas of inquiry you are addressing.

Different types of thesis statements

A good thesis statement is clear, specific, and arguable. Therefore, it is necessary for you to choose the right type of thesis statement for your academic papers.

Thesis statements can be classified based on their purpose and structure. Here are the primary types of thesis statements:

Argumentative (or Persuasive) thesis statement

Purpose : To convince the reader of a particular stance or point of view by presenting evidence and formulating a compelling argument.

Example : Reducing plastic use in daily life is essential for environmental health.

Analytical thesis statement

Purpose : To break down an idea or issue into its components and evaluate it.

Example : By examining the long-term effects, social implications, and economic impact of climate change, it becomes evident that immediate global action is necessary.

Expository (or Descriptive) thesis statement

Purpose : To explain a topic or subject to the reader.

Example : The Great Depression, spanning the 1930s, was a severe worldwide economic downturn triggered by a stock market crash, bank failures, and reduced consumer spending.

Cause and effect thesis statement

Purpose : To demonstrate a cause and its resulting effect.

Example : Overuse of smartphones can lead to impaired sleep patterns, reduced face-to-face social interactions, and increased levels of anxiety.

Compare and contrast thesis statement

Purpose : To highlight similarities and differences between two subjects.

Example : "While both novels '1984' and 'Brave New World' delve into dystopian futures, they differ in their portrayal of individual freedom, societal control, and the role of technology."

When you write a thesis statement , it's important to ensure clarity and precision, so the reader immediately understands the central focus of your work.

What is the difference between a thesis and a thesis statement?

While both terms are frequently used interchangeably, they have distinct meanings.

A thesis refers to the entire research document, encompassing all its chapters and sections. In contrast, a thesis statement is a brief assertion that encapsulates the central argument of the research.

Here’s an in-depth differentiation table of a thesis and a thesis statement.

Now, to craft a compelling thesis, it's crucial to adhere to a specific structure. Let’s break down these essential components that make up a thesis structure

15 components of a thesis structure

Navigating a thesis can be daunting. However, understanding its structure can make the process more manageable.

Here are the key components or different sections of a thesis structure:

Your thesis begins with the title page. It's not just a formality but the gateway to your research.

Here, you'll prominently display the necessary information about you (the author) and your institutional details.

• Title of your thesis
• Your full name
• Your department
• Your institution and degree program
• Your submission date
• Your Supervisor's name (in some cases)
• Your Department or faculty (in some cases)
• Your University's logo (in some cases)
• Your Student ID (in some cases)

In a concise manner, you'll have to summarize the critical aspects of your research in typically no more than 200-300 words.

This includes the problem statement, methodology, key findings, and conclusions. For many, the abstract will determine if they delve deeper into your work, so ensure it's clear and compelling.

Acknowledgments

Research is rarely a solitary endeavor. In the acknowledgments section, you have the chance to express gratitude to those who've supported your journey.

This might include advisors, peers, institutions, or even personal sources of inspiration and support. It's a personal touch, reflecting the humanity behind the academic rigor.

Table of contents

A roadmap for your readers, the table of contents lists the chapters, sections, and subsections of your thesis.

By providing page numbers, you allow readers to navigate your work easily, jumping to sections that pique their interest.

List of figures and tables

Research often involves data, and presenting this data visually can enhance understanding. This section provides an organized listing of all figures and tables in your thesis.

It's a visual index, ensuring that readers can quickly locate and reference your graphical data.

Introduction

Here's where you introduce your research topic, articulate the research question or objective, and outline the significance of your study.

• Present the research topic : Clearly articulate the central theme or subject of your research.
• Background information : Ground your research topic, providing any necessary context or background information your readers might need to understand the significance of your study.
• Define the scope : Clearly delineate the boundaries of your research, indicating what will and won't be covered.
• Literature review : Introduce any relevant existing research on your topic, situating your work within the broader academic conversation and highlighting where your research fits in.
• State the research Question(s) or objective(s) : Clearly articulate the primary questions or objectives your research aims to address.
• Outline the study's structure : Give a brief overview of how the subsequent sections of your work will unfold, guiding your readers through the journey ahead.

The introduction should captivate your readers, making them eager to delve deeper into your research journey.

Literature review section

Your study correlates with existing research. Therefore, in the literature review section, you'll engage in a dialogue with existing knowledge, highlighting relevant studies, theories, and findings.

It's here that you identify gaps in the current knowledge, positioning your research as a bridge to new insights.

To streamline this process, consider leveraging AI tools. For example, the SciSpace literature review tool enables you to efficiently explore and delve into research papers, simplifying your literature review journey.

Methodology

In the research methodology section, you’ll detail the tools, techniques, and processes you employed to gather and analyze data. This section will inform the readers about how you approached your research questions and ensures the reproducibility of your study.

Here's a breakdown of what it should encompass:

• Research Design : Describe the overall structure and approach of your research. Are you conducting a qualitative study with in-depth interviews? Or is it a quantitative study using statistical analysis? Perhaps it's a mixed-methods approach?
• Data Collection : Detail the methods you used to gather data. This could include surveys, experiments, observations, interviews, archival research, etc. Mention where you sourced your data, the duration of data collection, and any tools or instruments used.
• Sampling : If applicable, explain how you selected participants or data sources for your study. Discuss the size of your sample and the rationale behind choosing it.
• Data Analysis : Describe the techniques and tools you used to process and analyze the data. This could range from statistical tests in quantitative research to thematic analysis in qualitative research.
• Validity and Reliability : Address the steps you took to ensure the validity and reliability of your findings to ensure that your results are both accurate and consistent.
• Ethical Considerations : Highlight any ethical issues related to your research and the measures you took to address them, including — informed consent, confidentiality, and data storage and protection measures.

Moreover, different research questions necessitate different types of methodologies. For instance:

• Experimental methodology : Often used in sciences, this involves a controlled experiment to discern causality.
• Qualitative methodology : Employed when exploring patterns or phenomena without numerical data. Methods can include interviews, focus groups, or content analysis.
• Quantitative methodology : Concerned with measurable data and often involves statistical analysis. Surveys and structured observations are common tools here.
• Mixed methods : As the name implies, this combines both qualitative and quantitative methodologies.

The Methodology section isn’t just about detailing the methods but also justifying why they were chosen. The appropriateness of the methods in addressing your research question can significantly impact the credibility of your findings.

Results (or Findings)

This section presents the outcomes of your research. It's crucial to note that the nature of your results may vary; they could be quantitative, qualitative, or a mix of both.

Quantitative results often present statistical data, showcasing measurable outcomes, and they benefit from tables, graphs, and figures to depict these data points.

Qualitative results , on the other hand, might delve into patterns, themes, or narratives derived from non-numerical data, such as interviews or observations.

Regardless of the nature of your results, clarity is essential. This section is purely about presenting the data without offering interpretations — that comes later in the discussion.

In the discussion section, the raw data transforms into valuable insights.

Start by revisiting your research question and contrast it with the findings. How do your results expand, constrict, or challenge current academic conversations?

Dive into the intricacies of the data, guiding the reader through its implications. Detail potential limitations transparently, signaling your awareness of the research's boundaries. This is where your academic voice should be resonant and confident.

Practical implications (Recommendation) section

Based on the insights derived from your research, this section provides actionable suggestions or proposed solutions.

Whether aimed at industry professionals or the general public, recommendations translate your academic findings into potential real-world actions. They help readers understand the practical implications of your work and how it can be applied to effect change or improvement in a given field.

When crafting recommendations, it's essential to ensure they're feasible and rooted in the evidence provided by your research. They shouldn't merely be aspirational but should offer a clear path forward, grounded in your findings.

The conclusion provides closure to your research narrative.

It's not merely a recap but a synthesis of your main findings and their broader implications. Reconnect with the research questions or hypotheses posited at the beginning, offering clear answers based on your findings.

Reflect on the broader contributions of your study, considering its impact on the academic community and potential real-world applications.

Lastly, the conclusion should leave your readers with a clear understanding of the value and impact of your study.

References (or Bibliography)

Every theory you've expounded upon, every data point you've cited, and every methodological precedent you've followed finds its acknowledgment here.

In references, it's crucial to ensure meticulous consistency in formatting, mirroring the specific guidelines of the chosen citation style .

Proper referencing helps to avoid plagiarism , gives credit to original ideas, and allows readers to explore topics of interest. Moreover, it situates your work within the continuum of academic knowledge.

To properly cite the sources used in the study, you can rely on online citation generator tools  to generate accurate citations!

Here’s more on how you can cite your sources.

Often, the depth of research produces a wealth of material that, while crucial, can make the core content of the thesis cumbersome. The appendix is where you mention extra information that supports your research but isn't central to the main text.

Whether it's raw datasets, detailed procedural methodologies, extended case studies, or any other ancillary material, the appendices ensure that these elements are archived for reference without breaking the main narrative's flow.

For thorough researchers and readers keen on meticulous details, the appendices provide a treasure trove of insights.

Glossary (optional)

In academics, specialized terminologies, and jargon are inevitable. However, not every reader is versed in every term.

The glossary, while optional, is a critical tool for accessibility. It's a bridge ensuring that even readers from outside the discipline can access, understand, and appreciate your work.

By defining complex terms and providing context, you're inviting a wider audience to engage with your research, enhancing its reach and impact.

Remember, while these components provide a structured framework, the essence of your thesis lies in the originality of your ideas, the rigor of your research, and the clarity of your presentation.

As you craft each section, keep your readers in mind, ensuring that your passion and dedication shine through every page.

Thesis examples

To further elucidate the concept of a thesis, here are illustrative examples from various fields:

Example 1 (History): Abolition, Africans, and Abstraction: the Influence of the ‘Noble Savage’ on British and French Antislavery Thought, 1787-1807 by Suchait Kahlon.

Example 2 (Climate Dynamics): Influence of external forcings on abrupt millennial-scale climate changes: a statistical modelling study by Takahito Mitsui · Michel Crucifix

Checklist for your thesis evaluation

Evaluating your thesis ensures that your research meets the standards of academia. Here's an elaborate checklist to guide you through this critical process.

Content and structure

• Is the thesis statement clear, concise, and debatable?
• Does the introduction provide sufficient background and context?
• Is the literature review comprehensive, relevant, and well-organized?
• Does the methodology section clearly describe and justify the research methods?
• Are the results/findings presented clearly and logically?
• Does the discussion interpret the results in light of the research question and existing literature?
• Is the conclusion summarizing the research and suggesting future directions or implications?

Clarity and coherence

• Is the writing clear and free of jargon?
• Are ideas and sections logically connected and flowing?
• Is there a clear narrative or argument throughout the thesis?

Research quality

• Is the research question significant and relevant?
• Are the research methods appropriate for the question?
• Is the sample size (if applicable) adequate?
• Are the data analysis techniques appropriate and correctly applied?
• Are potential biases or limitations addressed?

Originality and significance

• Does the thesis contribute new knowledge or insights to the field?
• Is the research grounded in existing literature while offering fresh perspectives?

Formatting and presentation

• Is the thesis formatted according to institutional guidelines?
• Are figures, tables, and charts clear, labeled, and referenced in the text?
• Is the bibliography or reference list complete and consistently formatted?
• Are appendices relevant and appropriately referenced in the main text?

Grammar and language

• Is the thesis free of grammatical and spelling errors?
• Is the language professional, consistent, and appropriate for an academic audience?
• Are quotations and paraphrased material correctly cited?

Feedback and revision

• Have you sought feedback from peers, advisors, or experts in the field?
• Have you addressed the feedback and made the necessary revisions?

Overall assessment

• Does the thesis as a whole feel cohesive and comprehensive?
• Would the thesis be understandable and valuable to someone in your field?

Ensure to use this checklist to leave no ground for doubt or missed information in your thesis.

After writing your thesis, the next step is to discuss and defend your findings verbally in front of a knowledgeable panel. You’ve to be well prepared as your professors may grade your presentation abilities.

Preparing your thesis defense

A thesis defense, also known as "defending the thesis," is the culmination of a scholar's research journey. It's the final frontier, where you’ll present their findings and face scrutiny from a panel of experts.

Typically, the defense involves a public presentation where you’ll have to outline your study, followed by a question-and-answer session with a committee of experts. This committee assesses the validity, originality, and significance of the research.

The defense serves as a rite of passage for scholars. It's an opportunity to showcase expertise, address criticisms, and refine arguments. A successful defense not only validates the research but also establishes your authority as a researcher in your field.

Here’s how you can effectively prepare for your thesis defense .

Now, having touched upon the process of defending a thesis, it's worth noting that scholarly work can take various forms, depending on academic and regional practices.

One such form, often paralleled with the thesis, is the 'dissertation.' But what differentiates the two?

Dissertation vs. Thesis

Often used interchangeably in casual discourse, they refer to distinct research projects undertaken at different levels of higher education.

To the uninitiated, understanding their meaning might be elusive. So, let's demystify these terms and delve into their core differences.

Here's a table differentiating between the two.

Wrapping up

From understanding the foundational concept of a thesis to navigating its various components, differentiating it from a dissertation, and recognizing the importance of proper citation — this guide covers it all.

As scholars and readers, understanding these nuances not only aids in academic pursuits but also fosters a deeper appreciation for the relentless quest for knowledge that drives academia.

It’s important to remember that every thesis is a testament to curiosity, dedication, and the indomitable spirit of discovery.

Good luck with your thesis writing!

Frequently Asked Questions

A thesis typically ranges between 40-80 pages, but its length can vary based on the research topic, institution guidelines, and level of study.

A PhD thesis usually spans 200-300 pages, though this can vary based on the discipline, complexity of the research, and institutional requirements.

To identify a thesis topic, consider current trends in your field, gaps in existing literature, personal interests, and discussions with advisors or mentors. Additionally, reviewing related journals and conference proceedings can provide insights into potential areas of exploration.

The conceptual framework is often situated in the literature review or theoretical framework section of a thesis. It helps set the stage by providing the context, defining key concepts, and explaining the relationships between variables.

A thesis statement should be concise, clear, and specific. It should state the main argument or point of your research. Start by pinpointing the central question or issue your research addresses, then condense that into a single statement, ensuring it reflects the essence of your paper.

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What is a thesis statement.

A thesis statement is a sentence that states the main idea of your paper. It is not just a statement of fact, but a statement of position. What argument are you making about your topic? Your thesis should answer that question.

How long should my thesis statement be?

Thesis statements are often just one sentence. Keep thesis statements concise, without extra words or information. If you are having trouble keeping your thesis statement to one sentence, consider the following:

• Is your thesis is specific enough?
• Does your thesis directly supports your paper?
• Does your thesis accurately describes your purpose or argue your claim?

Can I see some example thesis statements?

The following websites have examples of thesis statements:

• Thesis Statements This link opens in a new window (UNC)
• Tips and Examples for Writing Thesis Statements This link opens in a new window (OWL at Purdue)
• Writing an Effective Thesis Statement This link opens in a new window (Indiana River State College)

These web resources may be helpful if you are looking for examples. However, be sure to evaluate any sources you use! The Shapiro Library cannot vouch for the accuracy of information provided on external websites.

Where can I find more information?

Video tutorials.

• The Persuasive Thesis: How to Write an Argument This link opens in a new window (SNHU Academic Support)
• Research and Citation Playlist This link opens in a new window (SNHU Academic Support)
• Planning a Paper series: Drafting a Thesis Statement This link opens in a new window ( Infobase Learning Cloud - SNHU Login Required)

More Information

• Build a Critical Analysis Thesis This link opens in a new window (SNHU Academic Support)
• Build a Compare & Contrast Thesis This link opens in a new window  (SNHU Academic Support)
• Build a History Thesis This link opens in a new window  (SNHU Academic Support)
• Build a Persuasive Thesis This link opens in a new window  (SNHU Academic Support)

Further Help

This information is intended to be a guideline, not expert advice. Please speak to your instructor about the appropriate way to craft thesis statements for your class assignments and projects.

Campus Students

To access Academic Support, visit your Brightspace course and select “Tutoring and Mentoring” from the Academic Support pulldown menu.

Online Students

To access help with citations and more, visit the Academic Support via modules in Brightspace:

• Academic Support Overview: Getting Help with your Schoolwork This link opens in a new window

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