How to Clarify Logic and

Help Readers Navigate Your Essay

The Human Event and History of Ideas

Modular Learning Project Module A
 Thesis & Roadmap
Contains the Following Sections

Forecasting a Textually-based, Insightful Argument

Providing a road map that Forecasts the Sequence of Ideas

Clarifying a Logical Sequence of Ideas: Specifying Relationships among

Main Ideas

Human Event
Modular Learning Project
 Forecast a textually-based, non-obvious argument

Articulate a specific thesis in the final draft; rewrite the

generalizations you may have used to get going on your
first draft

Construct a road map that forecasts the exact sequence of

ideas that will appear in the paper

Use your roadmap to clarify the logical relationship among

those ideas

Human Event
Modular Learning Project
 o Thesis statements should be arguable, not obvious
o Thesis statements should be neither trivial nor unrealistic
o Thesis statements should be textually based
o Thesis statements should be specific

Remember Writing Standard 1: A Human Event paper

contains a clear thesis statement.

The thesis statement makes a specific, text-

based claim, not a vague or broad observation.

Human Event
Modular Learning Project
 Wonder why its crucial to avoid obvious thesis statements? Because your target
audience has already read the text, so they already know the main points. Why
would they waste time reading proof of points theyve already understood?
Consider these examples:

The system of slavery alienates Frederick Douglass from his family and
community.

Sure it does. Do you need to read an essay to understand that

slavery creates alienation for slaves?

The proposer in A Modest Proposal clearly dehumanizes the poor when

he refers to them as animals.

Fine for Wikipedia, but no good for The Human Event or History
of ideas. The busy, college-educated audience seeking to learn
something new just abandoned your essay.

Human Event
Modular Learning Project
 Highlight the non-obvious nature of the thesis by articulating specific ideas.
Usually, the more specific the claim, the more meaningful; the more general,
the more . . . well, read the following examples and decide for yourself:

While Antigone and Oedipus are different, they are also similar.

Whos going to argue with that? Are you?

Now consider this revision:

While the foundation of Antigones pride is her devotion to tradition, and
Oedipus stems from an ambitious intellect that challenges even divine
authority, they are both motivated by an unstated and seemingly
unconscious drive to fulfill the oracles prophecies.

Here, specifying the differences creates arguability.

Human Event
Modular Learning Project
 For audience-centered writing, its important to understand what your readers
are hoping to get from your essay.

In the presentation on Introductions, we explained that Human Event and

History of Ideas essay readers want to learn something meaningful about the
text youre analyzing. With that in mind, aim for a thesis that forecasts
significant critical insight.

Sometimes students interpret the arguable and non-

obvious criteria as an invitation to create a fantastic as in
non-credible -- thesis, one that they dont really believe and
that they can support only by ignoring basic principles of logic
and physics. Dont do that. Use the Human Event/History of
Ideas essay as an opportunity to practice persuading people
by communicating your critical insight, not your aptitude for
writing science fiction.

Human Event
Modular Learning Project
 Overly general claims are difficult or impossible to
prove, and as weve said, ultimately meaningless.
For Example:

The unequal distribution of power between men and women causes

characters of each gender to create facades that then lead to both positive
and negative consequences.

To Revise for Specificity

Go back to your paragraphs and make sure your key critical

insight is in each topic sentence, then bring that specificity
back to your revised thesis that will allow you to specify which
positive and negative consequences.

Human Event
Modular Learning Project
 Forecast the sequence of key ideas your essay will
develop to support your thesis.

Establish the Themes you will use (see handout on

Themes and Key Terms)

Indicate your justification for the sequence of ideas by

creating a logical bridge between ideas -- that is,
forecast how the main ideas relate to each more
specifically than and.

Human Event
Modular Learning Project
 A well-written roadmap also indicates the among the main
ideas in your essay.
In high school, students often learn to a five paragraph format in which the
roadmap lists the essays general ideas in a list-like format e.g., Achilles is
heroic because he is strong, disciplined, and self-sacrificing.
While that roadmap accomplishes its navigational goal, in that readers know
to expect a paragraph on Achilles strength, then one on his discipline, then
one on the sacrifices he is prepared to make, we get no indication of how
each of these ideas relates to the next, nor why the author chose this order.
But when the writer articulates the relationships and indicates the rationale
for the order, she compels herself to deliver the answers to those questions
first to herself, and then to her readers. Forecasting these logical
relationships is a great way to make your thesis and subsequent argument
more insightful and critical insight is a true gift to your reader.

Human Event
Modular Learning Project
 Take a close look at the road map:
does it indicate specific textual
points that the paper will bring up
to support the thesis?

If not, either revise the essay to

match the roadmap, or revise the
roadmap as necessary to forecast
the argument your essay goes on
to make.

Human Event
Modular Learning Project
 Do the topic sentences detail the key points discussed in the
paragraph?
Is the sequence of topic sentences in the essay the same as the order

set by the road map?

Do the topic sentences highlight critical ideas and their relation to the

thesis?

Human Event
Modular Learning Project
 This site is a work in progress;
Please give any constructive feedback
to your instructor. Thank you!

Human Event & History of Ideas

Modular Learning Project