How to write an Introductory paragraph

Step-by-step from the thesis statement

This is your thesis:

The cathedral is a symbol of the man’s connection with the blind man.

It should end your introductory paragraph

IntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroduction

IntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroduction IntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroduction Introduction ntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroduction IntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroduction IntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroduction IntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroduction IntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroduction IntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroduction

The cathedral is a symbol of the man’s connection with the blind man.

So, what do you put in place of all those words?

IntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroduction IntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroduction IntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroduction Introduction ntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroduction IntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroduction IntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroduction IntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroduction IntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroduction IntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroduction

The cathedral is a symbol of the man’s connection with the blind man.

Work backwards to the other components of the Introduction

IntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroduction IntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroduction IntroductionIntro GRAB ATTENTION Introd uctionIntroductionIntroduction Introduction ntroduction IntroductionIntroductionIntroduction IntroductionIntroduction IntroductionIntroductionIntroduction IntroductionIntroduction Introduction Intro GIVE BACKGROUND Introduction IntroductionIntroductionntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroduction IntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroduction

The cathedral is a symbol of the man’s connection with the blind man.

WORK BACKWARDS

I GRAB ATTENTION

GIVE BACKGROUND

The cathedral is a symbol of the man’s connection with the blind man.

What do we need to know to understand this thesis?

GRAB ATTENTION

GIVE BACKGROUND

The cathedral is a symbol of the man’s connection with the blind man.

When does this happen?

Who

is this?

Who is this?

What do we need to know to understand this thesis?

The cathedral is a symbol of the man’s connection with the blind man. To understand this thesis, we need to know that these are

characters in a story, who wrote the story, what it is called, and what a cathedral has to do with it all.

Without that information, the blind man may be your neighbor, and the cathedral may be an actual place! We need to put it in literary context.

So, your revised introduction may look like this:

IntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntr In Raymond Carver’s “The Cathedral,” the narrator is a middle-aged man who meets his wife’s friend for the first time. The friend, Robert, is blind. The man and the blind man have a difficult time connecting throughout the story, until they decide to draw a picture of a cathedral together. The cathedral is a symbol of the man’s connection with the blind man.

But, you still have to start the paragraph by grabbing the attention of your reader

GRAB ATTENTION

In Raymond Carver’s “The Cathedral,” the narrator is a middle-aged man who meets his wife’s friend for the first time. The friend, Robert, is blind. The man and the blind man have a difficult time connecting throughout the story, until they decide to draw a picture of a cathedral together. The cathedral is a symbol of the man’s connection with the blind man.

How do you make it interesting?

Begin with a quote, a creative description, an intriguing question, or a mini-discussion

The topic of the attention grabber should relate to the concept of your thesis, but not necessarily in a literary sense.

What concepts are in my thesis?

GRAB ATTENTION

In Raymond Carver’s “The Cathedral,” the narrator is a middle-aged man who meets his wife’s friend for the first time. The friend, Robert, is blind. The man and the blind man have a difficult time connecting throughout the story, until they decide to draw a picture of a cathedral together. The cathedral is a symbol of the man’s connection with the blind man.

The idea of people

connecting

The idea of

symbolism

The idea of

being blind

What concepts are in my thesis?

The cathedral is a symbol of the man’s connection with the blind man. The broader concepts may relate to symbolism in

general, to the idea of people connecting with one another or feeling alone, to the concept of blindness, or stereotypes that surround blindness.

We need to intrigue the reader by discussing something they can relate to, but not getting too off topic.

Some ideas to begin: connection

We have all experienced a feeling of loneliness. Sometimes it creeps up on us, cold and hollow, even if we are in a room full of people. It generates, not from our surroundings, but from our inability to connect with others—to feel as though they understand us. At times, we are helpless against this isolation, but other times, it is our own fault.

Some ideas to begin: symbolism

The objects around us are inanimate—just things, sitting there, alone and unfeeling. But, we are all able to put more meaning into an object than it actually holds on its own: a teddy bear may represent youth, a crinkled paper as dreams of poetry, or a half-burned candle the day of a wedding. When authors endow objects in this sense, they are considered symbols, and their analysis can lead a reader to the larger concepts at hand.

Some ideas to begin: blindness

Do blind people see when they dream? Or, is it just a mixture of sounds, smells, and touch? The question has pondered scientists for decades and continues to intrigue even the casual observer. Why? Because we all want to know about things that are unusual, or different from us, and blindness is one of those concepts that can generate both fear and curiosity. At times, our fear makes us distant and stereotypical in our perspective of blindness, but other times our curiosity takes hold, and we delve to make a connection with the blind.

Once you have your parts:

Grab Attention Background

Thesis

YOU NEED TO STRING THEM TOGETHER WITH TRANSITIONS!

Example 1: connection

We have all experienced a feeling of loneliness. Sometimes it creeps up on us, cold and hollow, even if we are in a room full of people. It generates, not from our surroundings, but from our inability to connect with others—to feel as though they understand us. At times, we are helpless against this isolation, but other times, it is our own fault. In Raymond Carver’s “The Cathedral,” the narrator emerges as one of those people who isolates himself from others due to his inability to connect. He is a middle-aged man who meets his wife’s friend for the first time. The friend, Robert, is blind. The man and the blind man have a difficult time connecting throughout the story, until they decide to draw a picture of a cathedral together. Through this activity, the narrator learns a valuable lesson about connecting with others. The cathedral is a symbol of the man’s connection with the blind man.

Example 2: symbolism

The objects around us are inanimate—just things, sitting there, alone and unfeeling. But, we are all able to put more meaning into an object than it actually holds on its own: a teddy bear may represent youth, a crinkled paper as dreams of poetry, or a half-burned candle the day of a wedding. When authors endow objects in this sense, they are considered symbols, and their analysis can lead a reader to the larger concepts at hand. In Raymond Carver’s “The Cathedral,” the object signified by the title of the story becomes a symbolic object. In the story, the narrator is a middle-aged man who meets his wife’s friend for the first time. The friend, Robert, is blind. The man and the blind man have a difficult time connecting until they decide to draw a picture of a cathedral together. Aside from the physical purpose it serves, the cathedral is a symbol of the man’s connection with the blind man.

Example 3: blindnessDo blind people see when they dream? Or, is it just a

mixture of sounds, smells, and touch? The question has pondered scientists for decades and continues to intrigue even the casual observer. Why? Because we all want to know about things that are unusual, or different from us, and blindness is one of those concepts that can generate both fear and curiosity. At times, our fear makes us distant and stereotypical in our perspective of blindness, but other times our curiosity takes hold, and we delve to make a connection with the blind. In Raymond Carver’s “The Cathedral,” the narrator is a middle-aged man who meets his wife’s friend for the first time. The friend, Robert, is blind, and the narrator is forced to confront both his fear of this unusual guest and his curiosity. The man and the blind man have a difficult time connecting throughout the story, until they decide to draw a picture of a cathedral together. This event and the object it entails are significant, as the cathedral is a symbol of the man’s connection with the blind man.

How do I Choose?

Do not mislead your reader… What is the most important concept to

highlight in your thesis? Is your essay more about the idea of

connection, more about a symbol analysis, or more of an analysis of stereotypes?

Remember

The larger concept in your introduction may be a good thing to return to at the close of your essay. Keep it in mind for your conclusion—has it changed, developed, or grown?