2.8 The Start of an Outline for the Argument

All right, let's put all the above material together into the form of an outline. The initial preparations for the argument (which may take considerable time to develop) should result in something written down under the following headings:

General Subject:
Focus 1:
Focus 2:
(Focus 3, if necessary):
Thesis.

Here are some examples of the start of an essay outline:

General Subject A: Aboriginal Rights
Focus 1: Aboriginal Land Claims in BC
Focus 2: The Nishga'a Treaty

Thesis: (In this essay I am going to argue the single opinion that) Ratifying the Nishga'a treaty is essential for the political stability and political prosperity in British Columbia. While the proposed treaty may not satisfy everyone (or even a majority), we simply cannot afford not to proceed in good faith with what has been proposed.

General Subject B: The Ministry of Health and Welfare
Focus 1: The welfare system in BC
Focus 2: The distribution of welfare in BC
Focus 3: The distribution of welfare in BC: problems with the present system.

Thesis: (In this essay I am going to argue the single opinion that) Our system of distributing welfare in BC is gravely inadequate. It is creating a great many serious problems and failing properly to address those concerns it is meant to alleviate.

General Subject C: Warfare and Technology
Focus 1: The machine gun
Focus 2: The machine gun: its impact on forms of combat

Thesis: No modern weapon has had such a revolutionary impact on the conduct of warfare as the machine gun. It has transformed not only nature of combat but the way we think about battle.

General Subject D: The short story "The Chrysanthemums"
Focus 1: The main character, Elisa.
Focus 2: Elisa's dissatisfaction with life
Focus 3: Elisa's dissatisfaction with life: the causes

Thesis: The central point of this story is Elisa's inability to deal with what is frustrating her because of her lack of self-confidence and courage.

Such outlines look easy enough, but you may have to take time with them. And the time is worth spending, because if you do not clearly sort out for yourself and the reader just what you are arguing about (the subject, focus, and thesis), then it is not going to matter very much what you do in the argument itself. If the opening does not define the argument properly, then there is usually no recovery.

Every five minutes you devote to making this initial outline defining the essay will save you at least an hour when you come to write the introduction out in full.