Introductions and Conclusions Revisited

The same two positions, with an argument behind you

• Unit 4 covered what an introduction and conclusion may do.
• By Unit 7 you have written several arguments, and the question changes.
• It is no longer what these paragraphs can do but which job this argument needs from them.

An introduction that worked for Essay A may greet Essay B as if it has mistaken the house.

Choosing the introduction's job

• If the reader will doubt you, use the opening to introduce the writer and earn standing.
• If the topic is unfamiliar, use it to establish context.
• If the reader knows the subject but not why it is urgent, establish the exigence.

Choosing the conclusion's job

• Present the thesis in its earned form when the argument has changed what the claim means.
• Explain its significance when the reader may accept the claim and not see why it matters.
• Situate it in a broader context when the argument belongs to a larger question.

Reading an ending closely

• Ask which of the three permitted jobs the conclusion actually chose.
• A conclusion that situates the argument more broadly is claiming the issue is bigger than the text.
• A conclusion that only restates has left the most memorable position unused.

Making the ending earn its place

• Write the last sentence you could not have written first.
• That test rules out summary automatically, because a summary is available before the essay is written.
• If your conclusion could have opened the essay, it has not been earned.

Write from a reader who misses the urgency

• The reader understands the topic and trusts the writer, but does not see why the decision is urgent.
• Say what job the introduction should do.