How to Create a Strong Thesis on Marriage

Creating a strong thesis on marriage requires strategic preparation.

Your thesis statement is the central focus and main argument of an essay or paper, and it is ideally an organic development from your observations and research, as states the University of Texas. Your thesis should lucidly indicate to the reader how you are going to approach the topic, similar to a map or blueprint. It should be debatable, specific and very narrow. For example, if you are writing a paper or article on the subject of marriage, approaching the task of creating a solid thesis strategically is crucial; as with a subject that is as commonly understood as marriage, it would be easy to fall into the trap of creating a thesis that is not truly arguable.

Write down issues and concerns that directly relate to marriage and that you feel strongly passionate about. The more passionate you are about your thesis, the easier it will be to write the paper.

Examine your list. Circle the issues that interest you most of all. Research these issues thoroughly, try to make connections, and look for patterns so that you can create a strong and interesting thesis. For example, if you are researching the background of spouses who get divorces, an interesting fact to examine might be the history of marriage and divorce of the parents of each spouse.

Write your thesis in simple English, based on your findings. A thesis based on the research you have done will be inherently strong, as you will be able to support it. For example, if you discover that divorce is higher in couples where one person has divorced parents, you could state that couples who have had divorced parents have a higher likelihood of separating.

Revise your thesis. Revising is key to creating a strong thesis. Choose more descriptive words and use a declarative tone. For example, you could revise the thesis in step 3 to: Adults who have experienced the divorce of their own parents during childhood have a higher likelihood of terminating their marriage.

Add one adverb to your thesis to give it more of a punch. For example, to the thesis written above, you could write: "Adults who have experienced the divorce of their own parents during childhood have a drastically/dramatically/radically/severely higher likelihood of terminating their marriage."

Lane Cummings is originally from New York City. She attended the High School of Performing Arts in dance before receiving her Bachelor of Arts in literature and her Master of Arts in Russian literature at the University of Chicago. She has lived in St. Petersburg, Russia, where she lectured and studied Russian. She began writing professionally in 2004 for the "St. Petersburg Times."

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