The following example is from an essay that on the whole was full of strong verbs and good, strong writing. In the early 1990s a newly independent Ukraine, seeking to revive and reform its troubled economy, embarked on a major privatization effort. The effort largely failed. This paper analyzes Ukraine's privatization effort and the reasons for its large-scale failure. A thesis, by contrast, is an argument, generally reduced down to one sentence.
Many students think that all they have to do to get an essay off the ground is state the topic.
But that is not enough. 2 A key issue in America today is wealth and poverty. Despite the immense differences between how the wealthiest and poorest Americans live, American culture is not marked by rigid, long-standing class divisions. Through hard work, millions of Americans who were born poor have been able to achieve prosperity for themselves and their families. America today is the most economically mobile country in the world.