How to Write an Essay Introduction
Published by at August 18th, 2021 , Revised On March 21, 2023
The introduction section aims to engage the readers and provide initial information later in the essay. Following are the main objectives guiding how to write an essay introduction:
- Attract the reader’s attention
- Provide background information
- Define the objective of the essay
- Proofread and brush up
Example of Essay Introduction
This essay introduction example provided here is extracted from the interactive essay example on Artificial Intelligence.
Step 1: Engage your Reader
The first sentence of your essay introduction section provides a plot for your whole essay. Make sure that you grasp the reader’s attention with a strong starting sentence.
Don’t use lengthy, vague content for your sentence; rather, try to develop something precise and attractive. Start your essay with clear, captivating sentences in a way that directly links to what is coming afterward.
You might consider including the following to engage your readers:
- A question
- A quote
- A brief tale
- A synopsis
- An astonishing statistic or information
Don’t use stereotypes:
- A question
- A quote
Don’t stress yourself about writing a hook that requires a lot of creativeness and enthusiasm. Your first sentence should direct your reader towards the problem or question you intend to address and provide an idea of what will be discussed ahead.
Also Read: How to Start an Essay
Example of How to Engage Readers in Essay Introduction
The below example shows how the first sentence starts the essay in a compact but powerful way:
This essay aims to understand the developments in machine learning and Artificial Intelligence (AI) and the understanding of facts and myths about artificial intelligence.
This sentence pays attention to the topic’s significance, providing a general idea on which the essay is going to revolve around without showing more information than required.
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Step 2: Provide Background Information in Essay Introduction
Provide background information that your readers need to know about the essay topic to understand the argument better. Here is what this section would typically include;
- Providing information about its history, geography, or social context
- Explanations of Jargons
- A precis of current scholarly articles and theories
This information needs to provide a broader context but should be relevant to the scope of your essay. Don’t overextend the topic that you won’t leave any information, especially evidence and interpretation for the main body.
Discuss the points which are related to the topic and don’t keep the introduction off the track.
You need to figure out how much space you will consume for the background while writing an essay introduction, depending on your essay’s word count requirement.
The example below has been taken from a length essay, and the writer used a couple of paragraphs to present the background information.
Example of Background Information in Essay Introduction
Step 3: Briefly Describe the Purpose and Statement
This section involves a thesis statement for the essay, which provides the crux of the whole discussion. This is the most vital part of the essay introduction section, which sets the boundaries for your essay, telling the reader what will be discussed next.
The thesis statement acts as the basis for writing an essay introduction and often transforms into an argument for and against a particular position. It is just like a nucleus around which the whole essay will be discussed.
Here is an example of how to establish a purpose and position in an essay:
Example of Purpose and Statement in Essay Introduction
Also, Read Useful essay words and phrases.
Step 4: Proofread and Brush Up
As you make your way towards more research on the topic, you might learn new facts and gain new insights. If you have found new information that could potentially change your work’s direction, you might want to include that in your essay introduction.
Therefore, most academicians and scholars agree with the idea that an essay introduction should be written at last.
It doesn’t matter whether you start your essay with an introduction or the main body. It is vitally important to check and revise the introduction section to ensure it is in context and relevant to the essay.
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