What Makes a Good Essay Introduction?

You could say that writing an essay is like writing a book and therefore, the opening is of utmost importance. The opening of a good book grabs the reader's attention, hooks them and makes them want to continue reading the story. The introduction to an essay should have the same effect! The introduction should be of a high quality and outline to reader what the essay is about in a succinct and concise manner.

There are many things you can do to enhance the introduction to an essay and things you can include that will make it stronger. The central theme of the essay should always be included in the introduction so that it is clear to the reader what the essay is about. Try not to make this too long, generally one or two sentences is sufficient to get the message across.

Some people like to include a story that is personal; this can often grab the reader's attention and can be very effective. Try to make this story as vivid as possible so that you convey the message and give the reader a clear picture.

Asking a provocative question that perhaps challenges commonly held beliefs can often be a good thing to include in the introduction. This sets your stall out to the reader and lets them know that your essay is not going to be just the same old arguments churned out, but that you are willing to challenge beliefs and put forward arguments to support this.

It is often useful in the introduction to define a key term in relation to the topic. Again, this assists the reader in formulating an idea of the overall essay and gives them a better understanding of what the essay is about.

Once you have completed your research into the topic you are writing about, you could include an observation you have made in relation to the research. This could be something like stating that although all research in relation to the use of wind turbines for generating energy state that this is a cost effective method, interestingly one study held the opposite view and this study was the largest and most recent, therefore, potentially the most reliable. This may entice the reader to continue so they can understand this statement better and gain more information.

It is important to get the introduction to your essay right, not only to hold the reader's attention but to give you every opportunity to gain higher grades overall, although the rest of the essay needs to be of high quality too!

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