Writing a College-Level Thesis

When writing an English paper, it’s sometimes difficult not to confuse yourself with a book critic. It's tempting to either praise or criticize a work with statements like “Crime and Punishment is an amazing exploration of the human psyche…” or “In this book, the author falls short of convincing the reader of his theme…” Instead, try to answer a question with your own specific argument that shows you’ve read the book closely and thoughtfully.
Here are some pointers for generating a powerful thesis statement:
1) Don’t be afraid to make a claim that others might disagree with – in fact, a strong thesis is generally always debatable. Your job, after introducing your claim, will be to defend it, so be sure to pick an idea that you can engage and marshal evidence for throughout the text.
2) Don’t be afraid to change your thesis, or leave it fuzzy until a large portion of your paper has been written. Allow yourself to learn and come up with new ideas as you research, reread your text and explore the evidence. You’ll most likely want to alter your argument along the way, as you realize what you really want to say or find most compelling about what you’ve read.
3) If you’re at a loss as to how to structure your thesis, or what it should look like, you might want to use the following formula: introduce a subject and present the specific angle or attitude this book takes toward that subject. Or, identify an apparent inconsistency and explore what the author might have meant by making that choice.
4) End strong! Now that you’ve discussed an important issue in your opening paragraphs, you don’t want to let your paper fizzle out before you’ve concluded your topic. One good way to ensure that the quality of your paper remains consistent throughout is to bring up a new observation or insight, adding a new dimension to your initial idea, towards the end of your paper. This will help you avoid repetition!
Coming up with a thesis can be frustrating, but remember: once you've clarified the focus of your paper, you may actually find the exploration process, which will make up the rest of your paper, quite enjoyable! It can be very rewarding to find evidence for your claim and to play with what the author was actually trying to say. So enjoy the freedom you have to interpret and analyze, and don't be afraid to dig deep. Happy writing!