 As-Salaam-Alaikum students, welcome to virtual university and welcome to your English class. In the last lesson, if you will recall, we briefly looked at the structure of the essay, which is a long composition. And if you remember, it was said that an essay has three parts. First, the introduction, second, the main body and third, the conclusion. We shall now look at the introductory paragraph, the first part, which will include the thesis statement and the third part, the concluding paragraph in greater detail. Last time, we just touched on them, but today's lesson will concentrate on these two. The first and the last. The first, the introductory paragraph, which will include the thesis statement. And we are going to look at them in greater detail. Now, the introductory paragraph. Students often complain that they have difficulty in getting started. A lot of time is spent in thinking the first sentence. Now, if you know what is the purpose of an introduction, you would not have so much difficulty. An introduction has four purposes. Number one, the first purpose is to introduce the topic of the essay. The second purpose is to give a general background, a background of the topic. And the third is to give an overall plan of the essay. And the fourth is to arouse the reader's interest in the topic. Now, mind you, there are four words that you have to concentrate on. Introduce, introduce, number two, background, number three, a plan and number four, the interest. And if you remember, we said that the introductory paragraph has two parts. The first part has general statements and the second part is the thesis statement. Now, we shall look at an introductory paragraph and I would like you to notice the different parts of the introductory paragraph. The paragraph has three sentences and if you look carefully while I am reading, notice that I have marked each sentence. They are numbered. The introductory paragraph has three sentences. Just look at them and see what type of sentences they are. What is it that they are saying? Number one, anyone born in the 20th century will have seen a lot of changes take place in nearly every aspect of human life. While some found these changes fascinating, others found them discomforting and they want to return to the simpler, less mechanical way of lifestyle of the past. On the one hand, the 20th century brought about a higher standard of living. On the other, it brought about pollution, the weakening of human relationships and the diminishing of spiritual and moral values. Now, you will have noticed that the first sentence in this paragraph is a very general comment about the subject. The subject is the 20th century and its purpose is to attract the attention of the reader and introduce the topic of the essay. The next sentence number two is more specific. It tells you how different people have reacted. Some are nostalgic about the past, the others are all for the new challenges. This is a more specific sentence than the first sentence. And the third sentence, if you look at it carefully, is the thesis statement and it is the most important sentence in the introduction. In the whole introduction, it is the thesis statement which is important. Why? Because it states the specific topic. The specific topic is changes in the 20th century and it lists the major subtopics that will be addressed in the main body of the essay. And the subtopics are the high standard of living, pollution and values. Now, this should make it very clear to you that in your introductory paragraph, you have a number of general statements and you have one clear thesis statement in which not only is the topic specified clearly, but it also lists the subtopics, the subtopics that you will address in the main body of the essay. Now, an introductory paragraph may even indicate the method of organization of the essay such as chronological order, order of importance, comparison and contrast or cause and effect. Now, in short briefly, the thesis statement number one states the main topic, lists the subdivisions of the topic. It may indicate the method of organization of the essay and is usually the last sentence of the introductory paragraph. So, the thesis statement, there are four things that you have to keep in mind about a thesis statement. Number one, that it states the main topic, it lists the subdivisions of the topic. It may include the method of organization of the essay and it is usually, usually the last sentence of the introductory paragraph. Now, we shall have some practice and you will see a number of introductory paragraphs and the sentences in each are not in the correct order. These paragraphs are jumbled, you have to rearrange these sentences. You begin with the most general statement and until the introduction becomes more specific and the thesis statement should come last. Let us look at the first one, paragraph A. It consists of four sentences and they are all in the wrong order. You have to number them. Which one would you say should be number one, a general statement, then more specific and finally, your last sentence should be the thesis statement, right? I will read it out for you. Lahore's heavy traffic problems can be solved by building under and overhead passes along the canal roads by improving the public transport system within the city and by building rapid transit systems from the rural areas to the city. Traffic congestion is caused by the thousands of cars, vans and buses that come into the city from the neighboring small towns as well as from the thousands of cars that come from within the city limits. One of the most serious problems that Lahore faces is traffic congestion. This huge problem must be solved before it gets worse. Now, if you look at the paragraph, four sentences and the correct order would be from general to specific and finally, the thesis statement. It would be sentence number three should be the first sentence, very general. One of the most serious problems that Lahore faces with is traffic congestion. Then the next sentence, it should be followed by sentence number two, which says that traffic congestion is caused by the thousands of cars, vans and buses. This sentence is more specific. It tells you what are the causes and that should be followed by sentence number four. This huge problem must be solved before it gets worse. And the thesis sentence which spells out the topics as well is sentence number one. So the correct order is three, two, four, one. Now let us look at another paragraph. Again jumbled you have to move from the general to the specific. Again the paragraph consists of five sentences. This time it consists of five sentences and you have to put them in the correct order. sentence number one, a paragraph B. However in others the nuclear family that is only parents and the dependent children living in one household is the rule. People in different cultures have different systems for family life. In many cultures people live in extended families in which three generations share the same house. In all parts of the world the family system is undergoing great changes. In Pakistan too the traditional family system, the extended family is rapidly giving way to the nuclear family and this could have enormous effects on our society. Five sentences, which one is the most general? I think it is sentence number two. People in different cultures have different systems for family life. After this general statement you move on to a statement that is more specific and that would be sentence number three, which says in many cultures people live in extended families in which three generations share the same house. So it would be number two, number three, number one, number four and sentence number five is the thesis statement. It says in Pakistan too the traditional family system, the extended family is rapidly giving way to the nuclear family and this could have enormous effects on our society. Another example, another paragraph four practice sake and paragraph C it has four sentences you have to follow the same pattern from general to more specific to the final thesis statement. Paragraph C from observing animal behavior to measuring radio signals from celestial objects from celestial objects in space. Scientists have tried different methods to predict earthquakes but have so far been unsuccessful. Earthquakes are the most catastrophic of natural disasters in terms of loss to human life and property. Despite advancements in scientific knowledge and technology, scientists are still not able to predict earthquakes. This paper will examine the history of the science of earthquake prediction, then discuss each of the methods in more detail and finally present data indicating the success, success failure ratios of each method. Very simple, now you should have no problems which is the most general of the statements and that is number two, sentence number two. Earthquakes are the most catastrophic of natural disasters in terms of loss to human life and property. Then you move on to a more specific sentence and that would be sentence number three which would be followed by sentence number one and it is sentence number four. This paper will examine that is the thesis statement of this introductory paragraph. Now that was practice for you. Let us look at thesis statements and by looking at the statements you should be able to tell which method of organization does it indicate. Does the thesis statement indicate a chronological order is going to be followed in the main body or does it tell you that it is going to compare and contrast. Look at the thesis statement number A. Beginning from the pre-independence period and continuing through the period immediately after independence the status of women in Pakistan has changed remarkably. Now that is a thesis statement of an introductory paragraph. There is something in that statement that tells you how the rest of the essay is going to be organized and it is a chronological order. The organization is going to follow the chronological pattern. Why? First it talks about pre-independence, then it talks about independence and then it talks about after independence. Let us look at the next one, thesis statement number B. Despite the setbacks in the Zia period the status of women in Pakistan has improved considerably but it is still very low when compared to the status of women in the West. There is something over there that tells you in that thesis statement that the organization of the essay is going to follow a particular pattern and that pattern is of comparison and contrast because we are told that when compared to the status of women in the West. So you have realized that your thesis statement includes may include hints about how the main body of the essay is going to be organized, what is the pattern that is going to be followed. Now some more practice and again you have thesis statements in which both the method of organization and the major subdivisions of the topic are indicated. Mind you I am taking you gradually from one thing to the other. First we just looked at thesis statements, then we looked at hints in the thesis statement telling you the method of organization and now we are going to look at the subdivisions which are indicated in the thesis statement itself. And each subdivision will be a topic of a paragraph in the main body of the essay. Now what is it that you are required to do? You read the statement and say to yourself what will be the topics of each paragraph and how many paragraphs will each will the essay probably contain right and I will give you the answer and you just check with yourself if your guess was right. Take paragraph A the status of women in Pakistan has changed notably in the past decade due to increased educational opportunities and economic independence. Now in that thesis statement you are told there is a hint at the number of paragraphs and you are even told the subtopics. In that thesis statement the subtopics are education will be there will be a paragraph on educational opportunities and there will be a paragraph on economic independence. So it could be two it could be four paragraphs you could spend two paragraphs on educational opportunities and one paragraph on economic independence I mean this is just a guess but the subtopics are definitely two educational opportunities and economic independence. Let us look at the next paragraph paragraph B again look for the subtopics and you can make a wild guess how many paragraphs it might take. The role of women in Pakistani society has undergone great changes especially in the areas of political participation, economic self-reliance and job opportunities. How many subtopics are mentioned over there three number one political participation economic self-reliance and job opportunities. So that was practice for you to look at the thesis statement and learn to write thesis statements right. Another practice session you look at the following thesis statements the main topic is underlined and the subtopics are in brackets you have to indicate the words or the punctuation marks that are used to introduce the subtopics. Let me make it clear you will see before you on the screen a number of thesis statements and you will notice that the main topic is underlined and the subtopics are given you in brackets. You have to indicate the word or it may be a punctuation mark that is used to introduce the subtopics and some it will be a word in others you might have and a punctuation mark. Let us take the first one capital punishment should be abolished not only because it deprives a human being of life but also because it does not stop crime. The topic is capital punishment and the subtopic is deprives human being of life that is one subtopic and the other is that it does not stop crime and what are the words that introduce the subtopic it is the words not only and but also there are two phrases that introduce the subtopics. So you have to be very alert even when you are writing you have to indicate right now shall we look at the next one number two women are likely to live longer than men for two reasons they lead less stressful lives and they look after their health the topic quite simple in that thesis statement is that women live longer than men and the subtopics are two subtopics lead less stressful lives and the other is that they look after their health. Now what is the signal that introduces the subtopics over here in this thesis statement there are no words but it is a punctuation mark that tells you that the writer is going to talk about the subtopics and it is the colon mark those two full stops one on top of the other right. Let us look at the third one we protect domestic animals because they are valuable to us materially and emotionally in that thesis statement the topic is clearly spelled out and the topic is the protection of domestic animals there are two subtopics the first one is that these animals these domestic animals are valuable materially and the second one is that they are valuable emotionally and the introductory word that introduces the subtopics is because now we will have some more practice and this time you are asked to complete the thesis statement by adding a topic to them right and if you are using words like both not only but also you make sure that your structures are parallel to what is being said at the beginning of the sentence take the first sentence this life expectancy of the average person is increasing because of and you have to add something to complete the thesis statement you have to add the topics the subtopics you could have this life expectancy of the average person is increasing because of availability of good food proper medical care and better living conditions number two take the openings in opening words of the thesis statement technology is changing our lives in three important areas colon and you have to add the three areas that should be simple because it says three and the colon is given so all you have to do is come up with three nouns you could have the word transportation you could have the word communication and you could have the word entertainment so you your sentence would be technology is changing our lives in three important areas transportation communication and entertainment take another sentence foreign learners of English have problems with three sounds colon you know the topic is it's the learning of English and it is problems so what three problems you just have to add three subtopics which can later develop into three paragraphs you can have the word short vowels diphthongs and certain fricatives foreign learners of English have problems with three sounds short vowels diphthongs and certain fricatives take the next sentence thesis statement nobody likes watching television commercials and you have to complete the statement you have to give reasons nobody likes watching television commercials why you can say as they are not only dull and boring but they are also repetitive you could just say nobody likes watching television commercials because they are dull and repetitive right you have clearly stated the reasons the subtopics take the next one a good teacher must have the following qualities you are required to fill in the qualities which will form the subtopics of the essay this is the thesis statement of an essay you could say a good teacher must have the following qualities a variety of teaching procedures to use in the class good knowledge good knowledge and skill of the subject and concern for her students right so that was practice in writing thesis statements now we will move on to writing the concluding paragraph and I will just talk about it and then later on at the end of the lesson we shall give you some more practice now the concluding paragraph is the final paragraph and it is an important part of the essay here you tell the reader that you have completed the essay and this is done by writing a summary of the main points that you have discussed in the main body of the essay or you rewrite the thesis statement in different words right and after that you add your final comment or comments on the topic of the subject right as it is going to be your last opportunity to make your point you should write a strong effective message that will be remembered now let me summarize the points of the concluding paragraph for you the concluding paragraph consists of three points number one a summary of the main points or you give a restatement of your thesis statement in different words right or you add your final comment on the topic of your essay so just keep these three points in mind now we look at model essays and you look at the introduction and the conclusion of the following model essays the essay is on the advantages and disadvantages of living in the 20th century we have had this essay before but I want you to notice look at the introduction and then look at the conclusion it is a model essay anyone born in the 20th century will have seen a lot of changes take place in nearly every aspect of human life while some find these changes fascinating others find them discomforting and they want to return to the simpler less mechanical lifestyle of the past while on the one hand the 20th century brought about a high standard of living on the other it brought along pollution the weakening of human relationships and the diminishing of moral of spiritual and moral values now this is the introduction and then you have the main body of the essay you know the subtopics have been indicated in the thesis statement and the thesis statement was the last statement while on the one hand right and it talked about pollution weakening human relationships and it talked about diminishing spiritual values now you notice the conclusion that was written to this introduction now the last concluding paragraph was in conclusion although the 20th century has indeed given us a lot of advantages by making us more moneyed healthier and freer to enjoy our lives it has in my opinion not made us any more sensible and happier the 20th century has also made the earth dirtier the people less humane and our spiritual lives miserable we should continue to enjoy the benefits of modern technology because they release us from the drudgeries of manual work and allow us the freedom to pursue our interests and objectives however we must make collective efforts to preserve the earth's natural environment for future generations also we should try to build relationships with other fellow beings in a world which is increasingly becoming more and more impersonal and mechanized now notice that this concluding paragraph it began with the transitional signal in conclusion and after that the writer restated the thesis statement in different words it is the same thing being said in a different way here he talks about the earth being dirtier he never uses the word pollution he said and then he says that people are less humane it is the same thesis statement statement being rewritten in different words and after that the writer goes on to give his own opinion right and then he goes and summarize he gives his own opinion and he makes recommendations he said we must make collective efforts to preserve the earth and then he said we should also try to build relationships and then look at the last statement in a world which is increasingly becoming more and more impersonal and mechanized we should try to build relationship right that is his personal comment now if you remember the three points that I emphasized about the concluding paragraph in this model essay you found all those over there now we shall have some practice in writing concluding paragraphs you will be given introductions and you have to either summarize the main points or paraphrase the thesis statement or you may add your own final comment as a final message to the reader you have the introduction in front of you and you have to write a concluding paragraph introduction number one modern life is creating health problems stress affects nearly everyone from the highly pressurized administrator to the busy housewife or student it can cause a variety of physical disorders ranging from headaches to stomach ulcers stress is not something that can be cured through self-medication like the common cold however it can be controlled one can learn to control stress by enjoying a good laugh and or going for long walks and by maintaining warm relationships with friends family and colleagues now think of a concluding paragraph and remember that you must have a phrase or words that signal to the reader that you are concluding and you can use the words in the end or in conclusion well we will use the the phrase in the end you can say in the end in the end we can say that all those stress a feature of modern life causes many physical disorders in the human body it can be controlled by enjoying a good laugh going for long walks and by maintaining warm relationships with friends family and colleagues in my opinion to control stress we need to cultivate cheerfulness for our own sake now notice in this concluding paragraph there is the trans a transitional signal in the end and then you find that the writer restates the main points and in the end he gives his own final comment and that is in my opinion to control stress we need to cultivate cheerfulness for our own sake and that is a good final comment so that was practice for you on how to write a good concluding sentence a good concluding paragraph let us look at another example of a good introductory paragraph I shall read the paragraph for you and then notice the concluding paragraph for this introductory paragraph introduction number 2 television is the most popular form of entertainment in Pakistan people of all ages from all walks of life enjoy watching television it has been estimated that the average Pakistani watches television for an average of 4 hours daily thus television has had a tremendous influence on its viewers especially children doctors are now of the view that children are adversely affected by constantly watching television this is due to the fact that they do not take part in physical activities spend less time reading and are constantly exposed to a world of violence that that can affect their immature personalities not that was an introductory paragraph a right it moved from general to the specific now for such a paragraph for such an introductory paragraph if you were asked to write a concluding paragraph remember that it should be written keeping those points in mind now look at the conclusion that has been the concluding paragraph that has been written for this sample model introductory paragraph it says to sum up it can be said that effects of television especially on children are not beneficial doctors think that being glued to the mini screen for many hours at a stretch watching violence has adverse effects it will not only affect their physical health and eyesight but also their personalities now notice in this paragraph the concluding paragraph the transitional signal was to sum up and the writer is summing up what has been said earlier about the effects of children of television and then you will notice that over here the writer has paraphrased without giving any personal comment which is all right so in today's lesson we looked at the introductory paragraph and the thesis statement and we and we had practice in writing introductory paragraphs and thesis statements in which the subtopics were indicated and we also looked at topics in being indicated in the thesis statement and finally we looked at the concluding paragraph and we had practice in writing concluding paragraphs with final comments so in today's lesson we looked at writing introductory paragraphs at the thesis statement how the thesis statement indicates the subtopics that are going to be handled later on in the main body of the essay and we had practice in writing the thesis statement with the subtopics and then we looked at the concluding paragraph how to conclude a paragraph and we looked at model essays model introductory paragraphs and model concluding paragraphs now this is all part of your lessons on essay writing later on we are going to move on to how to show you how to write a how to write an essay and next time we will look at outlining how to outline an essay this is all part of your writing course and with that we come to the end of today's lesson wish you all the best hope to see you next time Allah Hafiz.