history essay introduction

history essay introduction

The Importance of a Strong Introduction in History Essays

1. I. Introduction to the Significance of the Introduction

What a witty quote, and yet so strangely accurate. From personal experience, a history essay introduction is your first time to shine and do so in a very unique and entertaining way. It is where the captivation begins and where you meet your reader with the promise of providing them a fun, interesting, and thought-provoking essay that they should not only read, but will be rewarded by reading. What’s the point of having someone accelerate through an essay? Great essays manage to slow their readers down and make them believe in the points they set forth. The introduction, for history essays, is the only way an author can do this and emphasize to their reader just how excited they are that they get to support it.

Nobody likes to read an essay that drags on and on and doesn’t have a great or uplifting conclusion. Yet too many of us ignore the nature of history essays and gloss over introductions, eager to get to the “real body” of the essay. What people forget is that the essay’s introduction and conclusion allows one to explore the significance of the issue in question, analyze its implications, and evaluate different perspectives and solutions. The introduction of a history essay usually dictates whether or not a reader will give an essay any time and effort, which is why everything that you write there has to be thought out, precise, and simple to understand. As a former tutor of mine once said, “You never know who’s going to mark your essay, but more often than not – it will be a drunk Ivey professor at 4 a.m.”

2. II. Elements of an Effective Introduction in History Essays

Specific topics in history are recognized when several sources suggest them. The student gathers information about a topic from sources on the assigned subject, with instruction from the teacher. The student can read materials on the agreed topics and add information to the graphic organizer within the scope of the research. The essay is developed for a reader who has no particular interest or previous knowledge in the question. It is your job to help the reader understand your research. In doing so, you detail your research and support each point you make. At the end of the essay, we finish where we started with a bridge sentence.

History is a discipline based on interpretation and analysis, and as such, the introduction to your papers provides a context for the evidence you present. It is also a way to demonstrate how your paper has developed. History papers are not mystery novels. The reader should know from the very beginning what he or she will learn. If words are wasted, it is the beginning of the worst form of starvation. Therefore, the beginning of the essay must be as effective as possible.

3. III. Techniques for Capturing the Reader’s Attention

Opening with a generalized point in a broader context might work, after which you could drive to a specific thesis or argument. If you have just finished writing a 20-page paper for your graduate work, you wouldn’t dream of writing the conclusion on the second page. As an undergrad, you spent the remaining time of your undergraduate career warming up to the concluding conclusion. These two requirements are of greater importance when it comes to the immediate requirements of a graduate course or term paper. These titles shall be omitted, and yet they can survive. In addition, a philosophy grade demands a first-rate introduction. Only a few, but they do exist. The plan of history, a fate desperately sought and evaded simultaneously. Its meaning can be found in history, ideas, and facts but never admitted to.

The importance of a strong introduction in history essays doesn’t need to be stated. It is essential because it is the opening with your reader, the first impression you will make on exhaustive research, close analysis, and good writing. In the introduction paragraph, you are trying to accomplish three things: to grab your reader, to orient, and to deliver a thesis or argument. To grab your reader, there are several different types of attention-getting techniques you can use. The first five are the most common. However, there are many more possibilities beyond this short list. With all of these attention-getting techniques, you should be aiming for a sense of continuity.

4. IV. Common Pitfalls to Avoid in History Essay Introductions

Finally, never be afraid to rewrite your introduction a few times to better reflect your purposes. While an introduction is not what makes or breaks a good essay, a history essay is only as strong as its introduction, and a bad introduction is arguably the most surefire way to lose the audience’s interest before the reader has even started to figure out what the paper is about.

The introduction is the first thing your reader will encounter in your historical essay, and your goal is to familiarize your reader with your topic, reason for writing the essay, and the heart of the essay thesis at the very least. Your introduction can range from 1-3 paragraphs long when it comes to shorter essays, or even longer for lengthier papers. As a general rule of thumb, always ask yourself whether your introduction beats the test of being able to stand alone as an essay even without the rest of the essay.

5. V. Conclusion and Final Tips for Crafting a Compelling Introduction

The aim is to begin with a statement that targets the question. This statement orients the reader and marks out the ground for exploration. Having set the stage, state the principal line of argument. The analysis should follow the line constructing the opposing viewpoint and then showing how this is overcome, dismantled, and discredited. Finally, reformulate the thesis, adding historical value to a current issue, utility value, and international relations implications. A short summary restates the theme, demonstrates the interrelationship between the integral components of the US effort, and explains how the work contributes to understanding these components. High-scoring essays tend to incorporate these components in some combination or sequence. Low-scoring essays either lack these elements, present these components but do not fulfill them, or do not place these core elements in a cohesive or coherent style and tone.

History essays are often the primary tool through which scholars determine the quality of a student’s knowledge of a period. Yet, a good history essay is far more than the sum of its references, arguments, and examples. It is the framework that holds these things together. The framework in the case of history essays is the introduction. It is the designer of this framework and its skill in constructing it that distinguishes a good writer from a bad one. We have identified the key components of an effective history introduction and using those core elements and the examples from our corpus, we have painted a vivid picture of two introductions that illustrate both the components of effective and ineffective essays. In brief, we found that introductions that achieved the highest marks often held the following core elements.