DRAFTING YOUR THESIS STATEMENT
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Once you have determined your specific purpose, create your thesis statement—a single sentence that captures the overall message you want to convey in your speech. This statement conveys the “bottom line” of your speech—the ultimate message that all the points in your speech support. As long as your audience members can remember your thesis statement, they should be able to recall the essence of your speech.
In this book, we use the term thesis to mean the main position of any type of speech. Some speech instructors may prefer using the term thesis statement when a speaker is advocating a position in a persuasive speech and the term topic statement when a speaker intends to inform or mark a special occasion. Your instructor will let you know if he or she prefers this alternative usage.
Here are some examples of thesis statements:
- “The Hmong New Year includes many culturally distinctive features.”
- “Our college makes significant accommodations for students who are called into military service.”
- “A weeklong meatless diet can show you the path to a healthier lifestyle.”
- “You should sign up for a service-learning course.”
- “Today we honor the Missouri Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital’s greyhound blood-donor program.”
Here are some guidelines for ensuring that your thesis statement conveys your purpose and topic to the audience efficiently and accurately:
- Keep it to one sentence. Make sure that your thesis consists of a single sentence that states the bottom line of your speech.
- Express your intentions. Ensure that your thesis clearly conveys what you hope your audience will know, do, or feel after listening to your speech. Listeners can better follow your message if they know what to expect.
- Be consistent with your specific purpose. Since your specific purpose guides how you research and prepare your speech, make sure your thesis communicates the same idea as your specific purpose. That way, you’ll avoid the all-too-common problem of presenting a thesis in your speech introduction that differs from the content of the body of your speech.
Click the "Next" button to try Video Activity 6.3, “Thesis Statement” and “Thesis Statement: Needs Focus (Needs Improvement).”