This writing lesson focuses on pre-writing skills related to creating an essay outline.

While no one-size-fits-all model exists for organizing an essay, different prewriting activities can help to separate main points from examples and determine the best order in which to present written arguments. Mind maps, free-writing, t-charts, and formal outlines help writers to move toward a clear sense of order before they start writing your paper.

Organizing your Argument

One of the important goals of prewriting is to identify your major ideas and which examples you will use to support them. Central to this is the process of blocking your argument, which involves breaking your thesis down into smaller arguments that need to be developed.

Classic Five-Paragraph Essay Structure

Most high school or introductory academic courses teach only one way to block an argument: the 5 paragraph essay. One main argument is broken down into 3 clear examples which support that argument. The example below shows how a thesis might be organized into a 5-paragraph essay:

The Introductory Five-Paragraph Essay Model

Thesis: "During the 1990s, the internet was a forum for anonymous interaction between users. Since the advent of more sophisticated applications, online identities are becoming increasingly difficult to keep hidden. Very soon, there will be no way to maintain any anonymity online."

Paragraph 1: Introduction:

  1. Hook to get readers' attention
  2. Narrow the topic from general to specific
  3. Introduce an arguable thesis

Paragraph 2: Large companies seek out information about their users to help marketing strategy.

  1. Zappos
  2. Amazon
  3. ...

Paragraph 3: "Anti-terror" legislation has significantly reduced internet privacy.

  1. US "Patriot Act"
  2. Police routinely try to access internet service provider records to track unlawful behaviour
  3. ...

Paragraph 4: Social media sites insist that profiles refer to externally validated identities.

  1. Facebook restricts the use of pseudonyms
  2. New users required to include registered information (e.g. phone numbers)
  3. ....

Paragraph 5: Conclusion

    1. Restate thesis
    2. Restate the arguments by rephrasing each paragraph's topic sentence
    3. Concluding comment on the broader significance of the topic

The five paragraph essay was devised with the good intention of helping students write essays by offering a one-size-fits-all pattern or structure that students could follow. There is nothing wrong with the five-paragraph essay as a learning tool for writing short essays, but it doesn't work for a ten-page paper or prove a thesis that makes two arguments. A five-paragraph essay template in these (and most academic) cases usually results in a frustrating paper that contains overly long paragraphs and an unclear structure.

A More Flexible Model

University assignments often require organizational forms that incorporate more than 5 paragraphs and do more than simply list examples to develop a single point. For example, the thesis in the example above would be supported more effectively if it were organized into a different organizational scheme:

A Flexible, Academic Model for Organizing Arguments

Thesis: "During the 1990s, the internet was a forum for anonymous interaction between users. Since the advent of more sophisticated applications, online identities are becoming increasingly difficult to keep hidden. Very soon, there will be no way to maintain any anonymity online.

First Paragraph : Introduction

Argument 1 (could be more than 1 paragraph): In the 1990s, the internet introduced many opportunities for anonymous use.

  • supporting detail
  • supporting detail

Argument 2 (could be more than 1 paragraph): Economic and political factors have affected the degree to which users can maintain online privacy.

  • supporting detail
  • supporting detail

Argument 3 (could be more than 1 paragraph): Furthermore, the purpose or model of the internet has changed, such that it is no longer a constellation of sites organized around subject areas. Instead, the majority of time users spend online fits in a new, interpersonal model of the internet through social media, in which their personas tend to very closely reflect their personal identities.

  • supporting detail
  • supporting detail

Argument 4 (could be more than 1 paragraph): ...

Last Paragraph: Conclusion

In this example, the argument first describes the changes that occurred and then evaluates its impact. There are no limits on the number of paragraphs you can or should write. Instead, each section develops one part of the thesis in however many paragraphs are needed.

Click the link and follow the link to Trent University's Academic Skills Centre page to review pre-writing and creating an effective outline. After, complete the exercises in the lesson document.

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