The essay should be 5 pages long (at least, 1,250 words). Make sure that you double-space your lines, and use perfect grammar. Write complete sentences. Write about something that you believe in and matters to you. You get to choose your thesis statement. You get to choose! You get to express YOUR thoughts. Whatever it is that you decide to write about, make sure that you state your thesis statement clearly and defend it with 3 reasons. For example, you may want to write about ghosts. So, your thesis statement could be “Ghosts Exist.” If so, then give me 3 reasons for your claim, e.g., (a) Mr. Johnson has photographic evidence of ghostly apparitions, (b) you have seen a ghost, and (c) there is video of inanimate objects flying around in Mr. Ford’s house. These would be your reasons, and, in your paper, you would expand on them. But you may want to write about something else; maybe, you want to defend the thesis statement that Pluto is a planet. If so, then give 3 reasons for why Pluto is a planet. Maybe you think that Pluto is a dwarf planet. If so, give 3 reasons for this. Perhaps, you think that women should get paid just as much as men do. If this is your topic, then give 3 reasons. Maybe, you want to defend the idea that there was a big-bang when the universe emerged. If so, give 3 reasons in support of the Big-Bang Theory, and be clear. If you are Haitian, Cuban, or from some other place, you can write about your homeland. Maybe you want to defend a Haitian politician or political movement back in your home country. You are free to choose your thesis statement. Now, there are some rules. (a) Your thesis statement should be something interesting, e.g., China will Invade Taiwan, Bigfoot Exists, There is a Natural Cure for Cancer, etc. The following theses are not interesting: Water is Good for You; Canada is a Country; Lizards are Reptiles. Make sure that you do not defend the obvious. (b) In your first paragraph, state your thesis statement clearly by writing “in this paper I aim to show that…” and then your thesis statement, for example “in this paper I aim to show that the U.S. should adopt the Metric System,” or “in this paper, I aim to show that obesity does not cause heart disease,” etc. (c) Write your three reasons in your first paragraph. Make sure that each reason is different from the others. (d) Only 3 quotes are allowed for the entire paper, and each one should be no longer than 2 lines. (e) Do not run your reasons together. If, on page 2, you are defending your thesis with your first reason, do not write about the second reason until you are done with the first. Focus on one reason at a time. (f) Make sure that each one of your reasons independently supports your thesis. (g) The grammar must be perfect. (h) Your reasons must be widely accepted. In other words, your reasons must be accepted by all. “Joe Biden is a great man” or “Donald Trump is a great man” are bad reasons; lots of people disagree with these claims. “Abortion is a woman’s right” is a bad reason; conservatives will not agree. “Abortion is immoral” is a bad reason; liberals won’t agree. Again, your reasons must be accepted by all. Here are a few examples of theses that are backed up by widely acceptable reasons: Title: The Candidacy of George H. W. Bush Thesis Statement: George H.W. Bush was the most qualified candidate for President ever. Bush was Vice-President for 8 years. Bush was the Director of the CIA. Bush was the US ambassador to the United Nations. Notice that the 3 reasons are objective facts. Title: Colonizing Mars Thesis Statement: We Should Colonize Mars. If an asteroid heads toward the Earth, then we would have somewhere to go. If climate change becomes unbearable, then we would have somewhere to go. Satellite images suggest that there are minerals and precious metals there. Notice that these reasons can be accepted by just about anybody. So, take a few days and think of something that is important to you, and then, with 3 reasons to back your thesis statement, write the paper. Make sure that your reasons are widely acceptable.
