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1、BeginningtheAcademicEssayThewriteroftheacademicessayaimstopersuadereadersofanideabasedonevidence.Thebeginningoftheessayisacrucialfirststepinthisprocess.Inordertoengagereadersandestablishyourauthority,thebeginningofyouressayhastoaccomplishcertainbusiness.Yourbeginningshouldintroducetheessay,focusi
2、t,andorientreaders.IntroducetheEssay. Thebeginningletsyourreadersknowwhattheessayisabout,the topic.Theessay'stopicdoesnotexistinavacuum,however;partoflettingreadersknowwhatyouressayisaboutmeansestablishingtheessay's context,theframewithinwhichyouwillapproachyourtopic.Forinstance,inanessayaboutthe
3、FirstAmendmentguaranteeoffreedomofspeech,thecontextmaybeaparticularlegaltheoryaboutthespeechright;itmaybehistoricalinformationconcerningthewritingoftheamendment;itmaybeacontemporarydisputeoverflagburning;oritmaybeaquestionraisedbythetextitself.Thepointhereisthat,inestablishingtheessay'scontext,yo
4、uarealsolimitingyourtopic.Thatis,youareframinganapproachtoyourtopicthatnecessarilyeliminatesotherapproaches.Thus,whenyoudetermineyourcontext,yousimultaneouslynarrowyourtopicandtakeabigsteptowardfocusingyouressay.Here'sanexample.WhenKateChopin'snovel TheAwakening waspublishedin1899,criticscondemne
5、dthebookasimmoral.Onetypicalcritic,writinginthe ProvidenceJournal,fearedthatthenovelmight"fallintothehandsofyouth,leadingthemtodwellonthingsthatonlymaturedpersonscanunderstand,andpromotingunholyimaginationsanduncleandesires"(150).Areviewerinthe St.LouisPost-Dispatch wrotethat"thereismuchthatisver
6、yimproperinit,nottosaypositivelyunseemly."Theparagraphgoeson.Butasyoucansee,Chopin'snovel(thetopic)isintroducedinthecontextofthecriticalandmoralcontroversyitspublicationengendered.FocustheEssay. Beyondintroducingyourtopic,yourbeginningmustalsoletreadersknowwhatthecentralissueis.Whatquestionorprob
7、lemwillyoubethinkingabout?Youcanposeaquestionthatwillleadtoyouridea(inwhichcase,yourideawillbetheanswertoyourquestion),oryoucanmakeathesisstatement.Oryoucandoboth:youcanaskaquestionandimmediatelysuggesttheanswerthatyou
