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Hello. Our focus this week is on creating effective introductions for essay write-ups. In a future column, we will focus on writing introductions and conclusions for non-academic writings such as memos, emails, business reports and technical documents.
Every essay you write has an introductory paragraph, which tells your reader what the write-up is about. Your intention for writing an introduction is to capture your reader’s attention and get them hooked until they read the last word of your essay.
How can you go about creating an effective introduction that helps you achieve this feat, seeing that many people are busy or have short attention span? There are several strategies that you could deploy to make your introduction stand out. Try dividing your introduction into three major parts: beginning, middle, and end. The beginning of your introduction details the broad topic to be discussed (this is not your title). This is the point where you can get your reader hooked. Try telling a short story in your introduction (if this works for your write-up) and see how that makes your reader want to know how the story ended – we all love stories!
Another way to get your reader hooked is to share powerful quotes by respectable people – your reader would likely want to know how that connects with the point of discourse. Additionally, you could share a shocking fact that people may not have considered before, and it would likely grab their attention for sure. Adding statistics to your introduction is a no-brainer because it shows you are credible and knowledgeable – ensure your numbers are accurate and factual. Other ways to start off your introduction include asking questions – not yes/no kind of questions but informational questions that get people thinking about the answers and make them willing to read on until they get your answers. You could also take your readers on a mental excursion by asking them to imagine scenarios. And as you paint such mental pictures and get them to ride with you, you very likely will succeed in getting them hooked to your writing.
After getting your readers hooked, you want to proceed to share some background information with them. This helps you narrow down that generalised topic that you hinted at in the beginning part of your introduction. The background information serves to help you project your key ideas, which you would be discussing throughout the essay; it helps you give adequate context to your essay. Think about attending to the middle part of your introduction by listing information related to the 5 W’s and 1 H – that is, why, when, what, where, who, and how. This gives relevance to your introduction and sets its tone, as your reader is prepared for what is to come.
Finally, the concluding part of your introductory paragraph should contain your thesis statement. Your thesis statement is that one statement in your introduction that highlights the specific argument of your essay – your point of view on the general topic under consideration. You should aim to have it stated concisely and accurately, devoid of errors of generalisation. The body paragraphs will speak to the thesis statement by breaking it further down and giving it support.
Let’s now illustrate how using the three-part strategy of hooking your readers, narrowing down the information you share with them and stating your thesis statement works in writing an effective introduction for your essay. We will begin with choosing a title for our essay, say, “The High Cost of Living in Nigeria.” The beginning part of our introduction can be in the form of an anecdote, a quote, a shocking fact, statistics, an imagined scenario, etcetera:
An anecdote: Growing up in the early ’80s, I remember how great life was and how my father would give my mother just five naira to buy what she needed to make soup and buy garri for the swallow. My mother would not only make a big pot of soup but also have some coins as balance from the five naira. Fast-forward to 30 years later, living in Nigeria is a totally different experience filled with hardships and a devaluing of the naira …
A shocking fact: The naira has further depreciated in value when compared against the dollar. It is now a whopping 750 naira to one dollar! Businesses are on the rampage with increments on their products, given the presumed inability to restock as a result of the further drop in naira value…
Statistics: Recent studies have revealed that whereas 23% of Nigerians live above the average income level, the remaining 77% struggle to put food on their table on a daily basis, and this gap between the rich and the poor continues to widen at an alarming rate…
An imagined scenario: Picture yourself in a Nigeria where basic amenities are in full supply; food and drinks are available in abundant supply and are easily affordable; electric power supply is ever present; corruption among the leaders is practically non-existent; schooling is free for all students, and teachers are paid their salaries in full; and roads are well built, warranting no traffic hold-ups…
The above illustrations highlight how you can use any of the strategies to create an interest-arousing introduction. After arousing the interest of your reader, be sure to quickly create the background required by showing why the write-up is relevant for their use and then go on to precisely state your take/argument on the issue – in one sentence (your thesis statement). To further illustrate this, consider the middle and end part of the introductory paragraph that follows from the anecdote:
Middle (background information): People are groaning over the hardships occasioned by the upward rise in the cost of living in Nigeria. As a result of this, a large number of people consider leaving the country for greener pastures as the only way out.
End (thesis statement): This essay buttresses the point that several factors combine to make Nigeria a difficult place to live in, but it also shows what Nigerians can do to improve their lot in life despite the difficulties.
The complete introduction thus:
Growing up in the early ’80s, I remember how great life was and how my father would give my mother just five naira to buy what she needed to make soup and buy garri for the swallow. My mother would not only make a big pot of soup but also have some coins as balance from the five naira. Fast-forward to 30 years later, living in Nigeria is a totally different experience filled with hardships and a devaluing of the naira. People are groaning over the hardships occasioned by the upward rise in the cost of living in Nigeria. As a result of this, a large number of people consider leaving the country for greener pastures as the only way out. This essay buttresses the point that several factors combine to make Nigeria a difficult place to live in, but it also shows what Nigerians can do to improve their lot in life despite the difficulties.
Yay! What do you think of our introduction so beautifully written out, using all of the strategies we have highlighted in this article? Does the introduction have the potential to get a reader hooked and get them reading to the end? Your guess is as good as mine!
So begin to practice with varied introduction styles and see your writing achieve its goals for you.
• Feel free to share your thoughts and ask your questions. Dr. Ruth K.B. Oji
