From Inquiry to Academic Writing: Chapter Five

    In Chapter Five, Formulating to Developing a Thesis, of From Inquiry to Academic Writing, the main purpose of the chapter is explaining what a thesis is and what it provides for your paper. A thesis is "an assertion that academic writers make at the beginning of what they write and then support with evidence throughout their essay"(83). The thesis can be compared to a shish kebab as it must pierce through every statement and paragraph, allowing each idea to be held together. The thesis statement is usually placed near the beginning of the paper and makes an argument about a certain conversation that is clear and supported. It is used as the basis of every paragraph that follows and conveys a perspective on the issue while taking other controversial sides into account.

    When writing a paper the first crucial step is forming a working thesis. The working thesis provides an idea or basis for your final thesis. The working thesis is there to promote more more reading and writing of your paper. It will allow you to further your analysis and come up with more questions. It is very important to understand the this first working thesis should never be your final thesis. The working thesis is there to further elaborate and change in order to come up with your final thesis.
    When writing a working thesis there are many ways to approach your argument. There are three specific ways in order to state the thesis. The first is the Correcting-Misinterpretation Model where you "correct writers who arguments you believe have misconstrued one or more important aspects of an issue"(85). The second is the Filling-The-Gap Model where a "claim of value" is usually stated. It points to what other writers have not included in their works and a closer look of the issue reveals something alternative. The last model is the Modifying-What-Others-Have-Said Model where you take your understanding of another work and modify it to make a suggestion.
   I have learned a couple of good things from this chapter. It will definitely help when revising my paper. I can use some these techniques and advice to strengthen my paper and make it clearer. One thing I liked was the use of context as a background into your issue. It's important to introduce the topic and have an understanding of it in order to create some credibility to your argument and to also create more clarification for your audience.