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Beginnings to Avoid
There are many good ways to begin an essay. Even an academic essay can
begin in an interesting way, with suitable panache to grab the attention
of a tired and overworked professor. [See Some
Good Ways to Begin an Essay.] But there are some classic bad opening
tactics for an essay that all writers need to be aware of. Here are five
ineffective and cliché beginning tactics that savvy student writers
avoid:
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The Concise
Oxford Dictionary defines Fascism loosely as "any system
of extreme right-wing or authoritarian views." It notes, however,
that the use of Fascism in this sense is considered unacceptable by
"some people." . . .
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A dictionary definition is the most cliché
of all essay openers. Perhaps because the dictionary is one of the
early authorities we refer to in the process of our education, it
holds a special place. Generations of students have started essays
by first citing a dictionary definition of a key term used in the
discussion. Instructors groan when they see an essay that begins
this way.
While the dictionary is an essential tool for the writer, it is
not the place to go for any term that would occasion an exploration
of its meaning in an essay. Indeed, if your term is a complex political
concept like Fascism or Democracy or Socialism, you should not be
heading to a desk dictionary at all. Rather, you should be turning
to the works of political theorists for your definitions. Likewise,
in a paper discussing a work of English or French literature, deriving
a definition of a literary critical term from a dictionary is a
faux pas. There are plenty of well-known glossaries of
literary terms in which a given term will be more suitably and amply
defined. Nix the dictionary opener. It should never be used in a
formal essay. |
- A Vague Declaration about History
Ever since the dawn of time,
males have been anxious about hair loss. Back in Eden, Eve noticed
that Adam was developing a bald spot, as shiny as an apple, and remarked
one day . . . |
Student writers are aware that an essay often moves from a general
truth to a specific instance of that truth. One of the standard ways
of appealing to a time-honoured truth is an opening phrase such as
"Throughout recorded history . . ." or "Ever since
the dawn of time . . ." Do not use this tactic. It makes readers
cringe. It is not necessary to reach back into all of recorded history
to substantiate the general truthfulness of a claim you are making.
And there is good reason to doubt such claims as well, since they
are often impossible to verify, records in antiquity not being well
kept on some matters. Essays that start with the vague appeal to history
usually come closer to their focus in paragraph two, where the essay
often more fitly begins. |
- A Broad General Truth about Life or
Art
Many people have trouble
making decisions. They are paralyzed by the prospect of having to
take action. But failure to make the right decision at the right time
can lead to missed opportunities and possible dire consequences. .
. . [8 sentences later] . . . Hamlet is a victim of his own failure
to make a decision and to take decisive action. |
In this example, ten sentences are expended to move from the broad
idea that many people have problems with decision making to a particular
instance of this human trait in Shakespeare's indecisive Dane, Prince
Hamlet. The problem with the broad general truth opener is that it
is invariably too broad. It aims at making universal what indeed might
be quite particular. You may well be found guilty of overgeneralization—a
fallacy of argument in which you make a disputable universal statement,
such as "All red-heads are hot-tempered."
Choose a small funnel to lead into your thesis idea. Avoid making
a broad claim that includes almost everyone and everything. How can
you know? |
- A Justification of the Topic
While many historians
have offered explanations of what happened, it is important to consider
once again the social and political events that led to the success
of the Bolshevik Revolution in November 1917. Why was the Bolshevik
Revolution a significant turning point in Russian history? Scholars
have noted that . . . |
Many student writers feel the need to explain to their readers why
the topic they are writing about deserves their attention. Perhaps
this is more of a self-fulfilling activity, expressing the student's
need to understand the importance of the topic. You do not need to
defend your choice of topic. If the topic were not worth writing about,
a) likely the professor would not have assigned it, and b) you would
not find much if any published research to assist you. Pursue your
topic without apology, without justifying why it is important enough
to write about. |
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In this essay
I am going to discuss the decision-making process. I will highlight
the importance of defining a problem and identifying objectives. I
will then discuss the need to identify decision alternatives and note
how to analyse these alternatives. Next, I will stress how people's
attitudes toward risk affect their decision-making. . . . |
In some disciplines, students are instructed to describe the
contents of their essay in the opening paragraph. This is a rather
uninspired way to begin. Imagine you are in a movie theatre, and
before the main feature starts you are shown a clip of all the good
scenes. There is a flash of action: a daring helicopter rescue off
the roof of a skyscraper, a high-speed car chase, a clever heist
conducted with commando precision. The whole plot of the movie is
summarized in the opening minutes. As the movie begins to roll,
you paw through your popcorn unhappily for a few minutes, and soon
decide to leave your seat and ask for your money back.
An essay, like a good movie or story, needs to be as engaging as
possible. It is best outfitted at the beginning with some matter
of interest, or intellectual drama, to get the essay rolling. The
blueprint beginning is dull and uninviting. Do not use it—unless
you have been instructed to do so. |
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