The Types of Introductions

A good introduction establishes certain clear expectations with the reader—specifically the topic and genre of the piece, and your credibility or qualifications as the author. When the reader finishes the introduction (which may or may not be one paragraph) s/he should be clear just what the paper will be about, what kind of paper it will be (e.g., a policy proposal, a history, a literary interpretation, a comparison of various theories), and your qualifications (well-read, fair-minded, closed-minded, sloppy, careful, dishonest).

Some teachers insist that you have your thesis in your introduction as one way to ensure that the topic, genre, and credibility are clearly established. However, revealing the thesis early on is ineffective for most kinds of writing outside of school (in which putting your thesis in the introduction is a serious misstep. It makes you seem like you are closed-minded on the subject—you're announcing the answer to a question that's only barely been posed.  Also, once you've revealed your main point, why would the reader be motivated to continue reading?  For this class, it is fine if you want to continue with the traditional method of putting the thesis in the introduction, but if you feel like you're ready to try something new, take this as an opportunity to experiment with using the introduction to set up the problem, the body to build your argument, and the conclusion to finally present that argument.   It's your call.

And that raises what is really the best way to think about an introduction. The introduction should persuade your reader that there is a real question that the reader should want answered, and that you are the person to answer it.

I generally recommend that you write the introduction after you have a good draft--that is, the introduction that will really be the first paragraph or three of the paper--but some very effective writers swear by writing a perfect introduction first. They say the rest of the paper then zips along. Try both ways, and see what works for you.

Despite what you have probably been told, there are many different kinds of introductions. The most common for student purposes are: summary, funnel, focusing incident, thesis, history of controversy, some say (prolepsis).  For this essay, I want you to try to use a focusing incident, history of the controversy, or some say.