Writing the introduction, essay writing introduction.

Legend: Background / Context

Setting the parameters of the essay is important. You can’t possibly cover everything on a topic - and you are not expected to - so you need to tell your reader how you have chosen to narrow the focus of your essay.

State your position on the topic (also referred to as your main argument, or contention, or thesis statement). Make sure that you are directly answering the question (and the whole essay question if there is more than one part!).

An essay is not like a mystery novel which keeps the reader in suspense

Sample introduction

Don’t be tempted to start your essay with a grand generalisation, for instance: ‘War has always been a problem for humanity….’, or ‘Since the beginning of time…’. Instead, make sure that your initial sentence relates directly to the problem, question or issue highlighted by the essay topic.

This might also be an appropriate place to introduce the reader to key terms and provide definitions, if required.

"Stating your position" can be a single sentence answer to the essay question but will often include 2-3 sentences explaining the answer in more detail.

B usiness leadership has been described as the ‘ability to influence, motivate and enable others to contribute to the effectiveness and success of the organisations of which they are members’ (House, Hanges, Javidan, Dorfman, & Gupta, 2004, p. 63). Whether this ability is something a person is born with, or whether it is something that a person can learn, has been the subject of considerable debate. Kambil (2010) has outlined two categories of leadership attributes that help to frame the discussion: 'traits' (mostly innate) and 'skills' which can be developed through experience or training. This essay will draw on the trait theory of leadership to argue that that leaders are first born, but then must be made. While good business leaders share certain traits that are essential to success, including ‘curiosity, courage, perseverance, personal ethics and confidence’ (Kambil, 2010, p.43), they also need learnable skills, such as communication, negotiation and conflict resolution, that are only developed through practice. A potential leader should develop their natural traits as well as learn and practise skills which will help them to persuade, equip and inspire others to realise their vision.

One of the best pieces of tragedy written by the greatest playwright ever, William Shakespeare, was Macbeth. Concerning a war hero, whose ascend to the throne was predicted by the witches he had met by chance and his journey towards his demise is what Macbeth is all about. An equal important character is Lady Macbeth, his wife, whose dilemma is unravelled throughout the play which brings to light her debatable character. Macbeth is best read in original by Shakespeare as abridged versions distort the actual essence of the drama.

“The best things in life are free, but the second best are very expensive" - Coco Chanel

• A good essay introduction should not begin with a dictionary meaning or the like. It's a cliché and does not impress the reader. Beginning an introduction with a famous quote or an anecdote or a small story which is witty as well as pertaining to the subject of the essay is always welcome by the readers. It makes the introduction interesting which immediately adds flair to the essay.
• The introduction should introduce the essay in few lines and explain any keywords which are essential to know about. This is usually done so words are not wasted in the body of the essay.
• Essay introductions should not include any thorough discussion of the topic. Only in the end of the introductory paragraph, the author should start off the essay.
• If it is an argumentative essay, the introduction should not begin with the author's opinion on the subject of the essay. Instead, he should present the issue and then talk about the different opinions, finally presenting his own. It is only in the body where he should substantiate his views with adequate proof, citing examples and statistics.
• Introduction examples for essays can be: a line from any novel, a line from a poem, a famous saying of an author/ poet, an example, an anecdote which can be real-life or taken from any source.
• The introduction should first address the basics of the subject such as "what", "why", "how". Making the reader familiar with these answers helps them to evaluate the essay better.

Examples of introduction for essays can be found all over the internet as well as in many guide books widely available in the market. Below is one of sample essay introductions for the convenience of students:

ESSAY INTRODUCTION EXAMPLES

The introduction for an essay should be captivating as well as informative so as to put in the picture of the issue discussed in the essay. Below are some tips for writing an introduction to essay:

Introduction to essays can be generated by essay introduction generator, usually online services, which provide an introduction for an essay for a charge. However, it is always to the credit of the author if the introduction is written by the author himself. Any good essay written for a thesis is checked for plagiarism which can be penalized if the work is not original. To be on the safe side, one should attempt writing a good introduction for his essay

In school life, when a student is given to write as essay, it usually intimidates him because writing an essay is considered one of the toughest things of any language. An essay can be on a number of topics such as oneself, one's family, pets, a season, the country, a festival, a tour. These essays are assigned to students in their formative years. Ever since then, the first thing they are taught is how to write a good introduction. Many grammar and language books provide with the introduction essay examples. These essay introduction samples are of much help to students who are learning how to write an essay. The teachers also tutor them on the subject. However, no teacher or book is more important than individual writing practise. The more one practises writing and reads more books, the more expert can he be in the field of writing essays. This habit comes in very handy in later years when one is pursuing his master degree or a PhD where thesis writing is the main area of getting marked and a thesis with an exceptional introduction is viewed more favourably than the others. Thus, writing an essay introduction is probably one of the most important things in an essay because it is the first thing which the reader goes through. A catchy essay introduction will attract the reader and capture his attention for the rest of the piece. The introduction to an essay should be in proportion to the length of the essay. This piece will explain the meaning, construction of introductions to essays as well as provide some examples of essay introductions.

The above essay introduction sample is informative about the author, the subject of the drama and the main elements of the play. By this, the reader already has a brief idea about the play and knows what to expect in the forthcoming essay. It is neither too long nor too short for an essay of approximate 1000 words, which is the normal word-length for school or college level essays. Providing too much information will also make the reader skip parts of the essay. Thus, the introduction should be concise but precise, introducing the topic but leaving a question in the mind of the reader to induce him to read the rest of the essay with interest. Given below is another introduction essay example.

Some of the key questions to answer in this part of your introduction are:

When it comes to writing an academic essay, students face four key types of papers most often. These include narrative, analytical, persuasive, and personal essays. Since the purpose of each essay type is different, it is implied that different content should appear within these introductory paragraphs. Here is a complete guide for different paper types with good essay introduction examples:

• Cliches
• Dictionary definitions
• Generalizations
• Sweeping statements that include words like “everywhere”, “always”, etc.

Your main goal is to gradually move from general information about your subject matter to something more specific (i.e. your thesis statement). To make this process more simple, think of your introduction as of an upside-down triangle. In this triangle, the attention grabber (read hook) is at the top, followed by a broader explanation of the topic, and ending with a very specific claim. Here is a simple tip for how to write an essay introduction following this “upside-down triangle” strategy:

Narrative Introduction

A powerful introductory paragraph should meet all of these requirements:

Apart from the strategies mentioned above, there are even more types of hooks that can be used:

Now, let’s answer the question “how to make an interesting hook?” There are several different strategies you can use to create a powerful hook:

Without a doubt, your paper’s thesis is the most important part. It has to be included in the introductory clause of your paper—as your entire essay revolves around this statement. In a nutshell, a thesis statement provides your audience with a brief summary of the paper’s key claim. Your key claim is what you are going to be revealing or arguing about in the body section of your paper. As a rule, a good thesis statement is very concise (disclosed in one sentence), accurate, specific, clear, and focused. Your thesis should typically appear at the end of your introductory paragraph/section.

Your briefing must be clear, logical, and concise. You need to pay your time and effort to perform a great opening since it triggers the audience’s attention. You need to motivate your readers to keep reading a paper. Your main argument overview is also included in an introductory part. Make sure to choose a relevant hook sentence. Be very attentive to transition sentences and phrases you use in your written piece.

A conclusion is the closing part of an article. You should make it short and concise. There is no need to bring new arguments and relevant evidence in this part of your research paper. Summarize your arguments and findings in order to provide a final message. Avoid reminding the same information from the body part. You should bring all central points to a logical ending in conclusions.

You can use various quotes, anecdotes, interesting facts, or controversial sayings in order to start your essay effectively. Use any available persuasive tools to support your point of view. Do not hesitate to write down your unparalleled ideas even if they look too provocative. Follow the writing requirements when completing an essay. Be very attentive to details and make sure to check an essay a few times before submitting it.

An essay typically contains from 3 to 5 supporting paragraphs. You need to note down the main arguments and evidence into supporting paragraphs. Write every new argument in a separate paragraph. You should state arguments, important facts, evidence, and additional information in the body part. This is the biggest part of an essay. It contains all the calculations, results of analyses, findings, concepts’ revelation, and full argumentation.

How to Write an Engaging Introduction to a Persuasive Essay

The opening part of an essay must be attention-grabbing and engaging. You need to announce your topic, provide background information, and a strong thesis statement. Place a central statement in the last sentence of your introductory part. Make it brief and concise. The thesis statement is one of the most significant parts of an essay and remains a central argument of an entire research paper. You need to pay enough attention to prepare a strong key statement.

You can use various writing tips and guides. The most important is to provide your readers with strong central arguments and relevant up-to-date evidence. You should sound very convincing. Moreover, stay confident with the information you reveal. It will help you to convince your audience that your point of view is the only right one. Be ready to prove all your arguments with strong, relevant, and understandable evidence.

An introduction is one of the central elements of an essay. With a strong and appealing opening part, you can assure your essay’s success. A strong intro is aimed at gathering the reader’s attention and making people read an entire essay. It can be problematic to perform an excellent opening part. Still, there are a few useful writing tips you can use.

When you need to perform a perfect persuasive essay, be ready to pay a lot of your time and effort. It can be difficult to write an essay at first. Moreover, you need to pay your attention to every aspect of your paper. In fact, you need to share your point of view where making strong points, use strong words, and convincing conclusions. An attention-grabbing introduction is necessary. It assures the fact that your readers will read the entire essay eventually.

Your thesis statement will give your argumentative essay structure and direction as the rest of the paper will be devoted to presenting the stand you’re taking and justifying it.

However, if your essay is 1,000 words, don’t spend more than four or five paragraphs on the introduction.

Students often get swayed while writing introductions without realizing that the main portion of the essay is yet to come.

An argumentative essay involves investigating a topic, doing comprehensive research, collating evidence and presenting your argument. The first step is writing the introduction.

Here’s an interesting video by Erica Towe on how to write the background information in the introduction

Merely introducing the topic is not enough. You need to tell readers why it’s important, the purpose behind choosing and most importantly, why should they bother reading it?

Writing a shabby introduction or making silly mistakes while writing the introductory paragraph is a huge blow. It creates a poor impression and unless you really improve your game by the conclusion paragraph, there’s no way you can get the scores you want.

Regardless of how confident you are, when you create a plan and establish the structure of the introduction, you’re likely to do a better job.