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The 5-Paragraph Essay

The 5-Paragraph Essay is the most basic form of academic essay, its structure being capable of being adapted to accommodate a wide variety of topics. It consists of:

• The introduction (one paragraph)

• The main body (three paragraphs)

• The conclusion (one paragraph).

In addition, you will need to provide a bibliography and/or reference list to accompany your work. (Do not leave this to the last minute, allow it to evolve as your reading/research does and ensure you adhere to the required referencing style.)

The Introduction

The introduction to the 5-Paragraph Essay should be succinct, like most introductions in academic work, and should include the ‘thesis statement’ i.e. the writer’s response to the question or thesis posed; an introduction should not normally contain quotations. When you are given a question to address, you need to isolate the ‘key words’ - such as ‘describe’, ‘compare’, ‘contrast’ etc. - these will give you the key to what the essay is asking you to do and enable you to formulate a thesis statement, upon which your essay is to be based. You should also briefly describe the methodology you intend to adopt and provide a link at the end of the introduction to enable you to lead into the first paragraph of the main body.

The Main Body

The main body of a 5-Paragraph Essay is usually divided into three paragraphs, though this can be varied if the topic suggests a different number. The first paragraph should introduce the main idea that you intend to develop and pick up the ‘hook’ from the introduction so that the central theme is established smoothly. This introductory paragraph should concentrate on establishing the thesis statement and methodology and begin to introduce evidentiary support which will be used to support points made throughout (remember this must be referenced in the style required by your academic institution). The second paragraph should continue and extend the central theme, developing the argument by means of balanced evidence and further evidentiary support, either to challenge the argument or to agree with it. Again, a hook should be picked up from the end of the first paragraph of the main body and a further hook provided at the end to link into the final paragraph of the main body which needs to begin to conclude the argument.

The Conclusion

The conclusion of the 5-Paragraph Essay should provide both a summation of the argument developed in the main body of the essay and also a synthesis of the thoughts expressed on the topic. It is also a good idea to indicate possible future areas of study in the conclusion which might have been precluded in this essay for reasons of time and space; acknowledging these makes your essay appear more rounded, as you are showing the reader that you understand the limitations of your 5-Paragraph Essay. However, it is not a good idea to introduce new evidence in the conclusion as there is insufficient space to develop it here.