Your thesis is your argument or your point of view. This is where you take a stance, and spend the rest of the essay supporting your thesis. Maybe you are writing a commentary on Great Expectations. Your thesis could be, “Not only is Dickens’ tale engaging, it is also an insightful commentary on the differences between social classes in industrial Britain. ” Basis your thesis off of strong evidence. In this type of essay, your evidence will be the quotes/dialogue you pick. [2] X Expert Source Richard PerkinsWriting Coach & Academic English Coordinator Expert Interview. 1 September 2021.
You might write at the top of your outline, “Important Themes in Great Expectations”. You could then make bullet points such as “Setting”, “Ambition”, “Class”, etc. Spend at least five minutes planning before you start writing. [3] X Expert Source Richard PerkinsWriting Coach & Academic English Coordinator Expert Interview. 1 September 2021.
You might start by saying, “Great Expectations is full of imagery that makes the reader feel as if they are in 19th century England with Pip. Dickens’ novel about class, ambition, and love sheds important light on the social divides of the time. ” You could then list the themes that you will discuss in the body of your commentary.
An excellent specific example to illustrate this theme is pointing out that the character remains in her wedding dress, despite being jilted decades before.
You might write something like, “Miss Havisham is an example of the theme that love can sometimes go terribly wrong. This is also an important theme when examining the relationship between Pip and Estella. ” Make sure to use smooth transitions. When you move to a new example, use a good transition word or phrase. Some examples are “similarly”, “conversely”, and “again”.
In your commentary on Great Expectations, you would want to make sure that you emphasize your summary again: this is a good example of class divisions and how ambition is not always the best quality. You might also choose to compare it to another book from the same period to illustrate why the work by Dickens is significant. However, you generally shouldn’t introduce new information in your conclusion.
You might also be asked by your boss or teacher to write a data commentary. Make sure to ask about their expectations, such as length.
For example, if the research is about the graduation rate in the Chicago Public Schools, you need to explain the numbers and illustrate why the results are important.
You might say something like, “As shown in Figure 1. 2, the costs of healthcare have risen at a steady rate since 2000. ”
As in the rest of your data commentary, your conclusion should refer to specific pieces of data.
You should include a specific section for resources at the end of your data commentary. Any time you cite numbers or a quote, make sure to provide a reference.
