Topic Sentences

A good paragraph should develop and support a single idea or main point. In the paragraph model best suited to the undergraduate essay, that idea should be clearly expressed at the beginning of the paragraph in a topic sentence.

A good topic sentence should relate back to the essay's thesis argument and look ahead to the supporting point the writer is making in the paragraph at hand. In effect, the topic sentence is like a thesis statement: it presents the big idea that will be developed and supported in the individual paragraph. [See The Paragraph as an Essay in Miniature.] Before biting into a paragraph, the reader wants to know what is being served. In deference to the reader, the topic sentence is usually the first sentence in a paragraph. The topic sentence in the illustrative paragraph below is italicized:

One major reason the warrior image is so appealing, among civilians as well as military members, is that Western society today has ambiguous and conflicting notions of masculinity. Today's society offers no simple, absolute, and unimpeachable model of manhood such as warrior societies offered. Indeed, says University of Alberta philosopher Leon Craig, the images of manliness are now myriad—everything from "the muscle-bound caricature and bluster of macho man to the fumbling wimp and the supersensitive househusband who has overcome his patriarchal prejudices."

The discussion in this paragraph expands on the topic sentence idea of "ambiguous and conflicting notions of masculinity."

An essay paragraph may sometimes require a transitional statement that links it with the discussion in a preceding paragraph. In such paragraphs, the topic sentence may be positioned as the second or third sentence in the paragraph. In the illustrative paragraph below, the topic sentence (in italic) has been delayed to allow for a transitional statement which picks up on the idea that concludes the preceding paragraph (underlined):

. . . The drive to seek higher virtues through the personal experience of combat—in short, to be a warrior—remains as potent as ever.

Consciously or unconsciously, the Canadian and American forces work to exploit this drive, primarily among their army personnel. Both promote the warrior image among all members, but actually confer a recognized warrior status on their most dedicated ‘elites.' In Canada's military, these are the paratroopers and such offshoots as Joint Task Force 2, while in the US Army they are the Green Berets of the Special Forces. . . .

The topic sentence for a paragraph, like an item on an à la carte menu, informs the reader about the next dish to be served from the smorgasbord of your ideas on an essay's thesis subject. Your readers are not well served when they are unsure of how the paragraph fits with the menu and they have to take potluck.

Occasionally, however, a paragraph may not need a specific topic sentence. This is so if the paragraph simply continues discussing an idea introduced in the preceding paragraph, or if the purpose of the paragraph is to provide a narrative or description of something. [See Paragraph Purpose].