A well-organized paragraph supports or develops a single controlling idea, which is expressed in what is referred to as a “topic sentence”. A topic sentence has several important functions: it substantiates or supports an essay’s thesis statement; it unifies the content of a paragraph and directs the order of the sentences; and it advises the reader of the subject and how the paragraph will discuss that subject.
The best way to understand the role of the topic sentence in paragraph development is to imagine that any given paragraph is a miniature essay that has its own thesis, support, and conclusion. The parts of a paragraph easily correspond to the parts of an essay.
Essay level:
- Thesis statment
- Body paragraphs
- Conclusion
Paragraph level:
- Topic sentence
- Supporting details, explanation and analysis
- Wrap-up sentence(s)
Just as an effective essay starts off with an introduction that presents the paper's thesis and indicates the specific claim or argument that the essay will develop, each paragraph should begin with a topic sentence that indicates the focus of that paragraph, alerting the reader to the particular subtopic that the paragraph will provide evidence to support.
A strong topic sentence should be placed at or near the beginning of a paragraph. In addition, this sentence should focus on a specific issue, avoid the use of direct quotations, and leave room for support and analysis within the body of the paragraph.
The topic sentence does not have to be the first sentence in the paragraph; however, it should come early in the paragraph in order to orient the reader to the paragraph's focus right away. Occasionally a writer may place a transition sentence before the topic sentence, to create continuity between topics.
Topic sentence to begin paragraph: In the novel Sula, Morrison uses the physical bonds of female friendship to propel her characters into self-awareness.
Transition sentence and topic sentence to begin paragraph: However, Morrison does not only use the emotional and spiritual bonds between her female characters to initiate their coming-of-age. In addition, Morrison uses the physical bonds of female friendship to propel her adolescent protagonists into self-awareness.
If you are finding it challenging to create effective topic sentences, consider outlining before beginning to write a paper. The points and subpoints of an outline can then become the topic sentences for the paper's paragraphs. If you have already written a draft, creating a reverse outline of that draft can help identify paragraph focus and possible topic sentences for those paragraphs.