The first step in writing a thesis statement for any essay is to determine what will be the focus.  If your professor has given you a prompt, use it.  If the assignment was left open to you (as in, "Write a 2 page essay analyzing Updike's 'A&P'", you might find the following steps helpful in leading to a thesis statement.

First, you should brainstorm a long list of answers to the following questions:

The first step in writing a thesis statement for any essay is to determine what will be the focus.  If your professor has given you a prompt, use it.  If the assignment was left open to you (as in, "Write a 2 page essay analyzing Updike's 'A&P'", you might find the following steps helpful in leading to a thesis statement.

First, you should brainstorm a long list of answers to the following questions:

  • What theme(s) is(are) most prevalent in the short story?  (It is acceptable to choose only one, but at most, choose two that compliment each other.)
  • What literary or rhetorical methods does the author use to develop this theme?  (This is where you would analyze techniques such as setting, point-of-view, symbolism, irony, characterization, tone/mood, imagery, etc.  Brainstorm as many ideas as possible, including examples, then choose your strongest 3.)
  • Through 3 rhetorical techniques, what message is the author trying to send?  What point is he ultimately trying to make?  What is the overriding purpose of the short story?

    • Remember, when brainstorming, you want to get as many ideas out as possible so you have plenty of material to choose from.  Using your best theme idea with three of the strongest rhetorical techniques, you can then construct a thesis statement in this fashion:

    Using the three rhetorical techniques of _________, _________, and ________, John Updike is successful in portraying the message that ______________________ (theme statement).

    This sets you up for a well organized essay of almost any length, that focuses analysis in three categories which revolve around one main point.