Introduction

We will be discussing more complex essay introductions in Part II when we learn about writing essays about our own arguments, but for a close reading, your thesis should be as compact and clear as possible. When drafting your introduction, the key thing to remember is that you do not need to examine every aspect of the author’s whole argument right away. Your introduction will be comprised of your thesis that is specific and gives your reader the basic signposts of audience, genre, evidence (first storey) and complex argument (second storey) and your proposed unique reading of the article (third storey). While a close reading introduction should include your full three-storey thesis this does not mean the validity of your argument is a given or that your argument is concluded before it even begins. Your analytical argument must be supported by logically unpacking all its components in a thoughtful process. This will force you to walk your reader through the components of your claim and the supporting evidence until it culminates in your conclusion with your final interpretive statement on the author’s complex argument.