They can be dramatic, factual, and emotional, but all essays must have a beginning and an end. A good essay will have a clear thesis statement and conclusion to guide the reader through your work. And if you don’t meet these criteria, it’s possible that you might not achieve what you set out to do in the first place.
Besides, the beginning and end of an essay can play a significant role in its development. If you’re looking for tips on how to start or end your essay, then you’ve come to the right place! Here’s a list of some tips on how to begin and conclude an essay:
How to Begin Your Essay
The first paragraph should introduce your topic properly. Keep in mind that the first paragraph is about the basic “who, what, where, when.” You should have a thesis statement in this paragraph. It will give you a guide to move forward with your essay.
Your essay’s introduction should also grab the reader’s attention right away. Either begin with an interesting quotation, statistic, or anecdote or start with an arresting statement that will make your subject and purpose clear and definite.
Use humor to start your essay. It’s very important because the reader must know that he is receiving a meaningful message from you. If you choose funny anecdotes, quotes, or statistics, you make your writing even more interesting and clever.
Your essay’s tone should be friendly and casual on the first page because it will be followed by many pages full of discussion. If you choose an aggressive or formal tone, the reader might get lost or feel that your essay is boring.
How to End Your Essay
In the last paragraph, you should offer a summary of your perspective and offer a conclusion. You don’t necessarily need to use all the words you used in the introduction. If you leave some out, it can still adequately convey your message. But if you don’t use any new words, then the reader might get confused or question if there is anything to conclude.
But just like the beginning of your essay, keep the last paragraph interesting as well. Try to end your essay on a serious or somber note. It is not a time for jokes or laughter. Here, you want to make sure that the reader has grasped your point of view and that he leaves with an impression as strong as when he began reading your essay.
Besides, you should use a good transition sentence. You can use anything from “in conclusion,” “thus,” or “must be…”
What else? Even though you should avoid comparisons in your introduction, it isn’t a bad idea to end with a comparison. It will let the reader know that you understand where he is coming from and that you have an answer to his questions.
If you include thoughts on what the future might hold for your subject here, it will leave a lasting impression on the reader.
You should end your essay with a resounding thought. Make sure that you use a concluding statement that leaves the reader thinking, “Yes, he’s right!”
End with the beginning. If your essay introduction was fascinating, you could end with the same element you used, to begin with. It will help tie up all loose ends and make sure that your essay has a complete feeling.
End in the middle. If your essay doesn’t show a complete feeling, you can end in the middle, before the climax. It will still create suspense for the reader and keep him interested until you end with a good ending.
Conclude with a summary. If your essay doesn’t have a complete or strong ending, you can end your essay with a summary. It will help to keep the reader focused on what you are trying to bring across.
End with a joke or witty statement. It keeps the reader from thinking about anything negative and leaves him remembering the positive things about your essay.
We hope that these tips help you in writing a good essay. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us.