By Russell Sutton
The last paragraph in an essay is your final opportunity to make your case and persuade your reader to adopt your way of thinking.
It calls for vivid verbs and specific words that express your argument and its supporting evidence.
Close with a thought-provoking summary of your argument.
Take this essay question as an example:
Young people are not ‘real citizens’ (Lindström, 2010). Discuss.
Read the concluding paragraph of this essay.
Citizenship entails certain legal, social and moral rights and responsibilities. Young people do not have all the citizenship rights of adults, and are consequently seldom considered ‘real citizens’ (Lindström, 2010). That said, citizenship is about more than rights and responsibilities: it involves working together to improve society. Whilst unable to vote or serve on a jury, young people nevertheless play an important and active role in the communities by voicing their opinions and campaigning for change. In this respect, they become citizens by exercising their fundamental rights (Benedicto and Morán, 2007) to shape society for the better.
Consider:
- Are you waffling? For example, ‘is about more than rights and responsibilities’ could be reduced to ‘is multifaceted’. This avoids repetition (‘rights and responsibilities’) and conveys the desired meaning.
- Can you use one word instead of two? For example, ‘however’ could be used instead of ‘that said’.
A revised version might look like this:
Citizenship entails certain legal, social and moral rights and responsibilities. Young people do not have all the citizenship rights of adults, and are consequently seldom considered ‘real citizens’ (Lindström, 2010). However, citizenship is multifaceted: it also involves working collaboratively to improve society. Whilst unable to vote or serve on a jury, young people nevertheless play an important and active role in the communities by voicing their opinions and campaigning for change. In this respect, they become citizens by exercising their fundamental rights (Benedicto and Morán, 2007) to shape society for the better.
The last paragraph in an essay is your final opportunity to make your case and persuade your reader to adopt your way of thinking. It calls for vivid verbs and specific words that express your argument and its supporting evidence. Close with a thought-provoking summary of your argument.
Take this essay question as an example:
Young people are not ‘real citizens’ (Lindström, 2010). Discuss.
Read the concluding paragraph of this essay:
Citizenship entails certain legal, social and moral rights and responsibilities. Young people do not have all the citizenship rights of adults, and are consequently seldom considered ‘real citizens’ (Lindström, 2010). That said, citizenship is about more than rights and responsibilities: it involves working together to improve society. Whilst unable to vote or serve on a jury, young people nevertheless play an important and active role in the communities by voicing their opinions and campaigning for change. In this respect, they become citizens by exercising their fundamental rights (Benedicto and Morán, 2007) to shape society for the better.
Consider:
- Are you waffling? For example, ‘is about more than rights and responsibilities’ could be reduced to ‘is multifaceted’. This avoids repetition (‘rights and responsibilities’) and conveys the desired meaning.
- Can you use one word instead of two? For example, ‘however’ could be used instead of ‘that said’.
A revised version might look like this:
Citizenship entails certain legal, social and moral rights and responsibilities. Young people do not have all the citizenship rights of adults, and are consequently seldom considered ‘real citizens’ (Lindström, 2010). However, citizenship is multifaceted: it also involves working collaboratively to improve society. Whilst unable to vote or serve on a jury, young people nevertheless play an important and active role in the communities by voicing their opinions and campaigning for change. In this respect, they become citizens by exercising their fundamental rights (Benedicto and Morán, 2007) to shape society for the better.