Introductions

The introduction guides the readers' attention to the idea you are trying to present. It usually begins with a general statement and then becomes more specific as it progresses. It can also begin with a story that demonstrates the point you want to make. The introduction paragraph should:

• appeal to readers
• announce the subject of the essay
• provide necessary background information
• help readers to anticipate the tone and substance of the essay
• give the readers a sense of what is to come
• provide readers with a framework so they can efficiently reconstruct the means you intend
• make a commitment that the rest of the essay delivers on
• state the problem of purpose for writing
• end with your thesis sentence

The introduction can contain:

• a startling statistic or unusual fact
• a vivid example
• a description
• a paradoxical statement
• a hypothetical situation
• a definition of terms
• a quotation
• a question
• an analogy
• a joke or an anecdote

The introduction should NOT

• apologize
• begin with gross overstatements
• begin with clichés
• include a signpost ("In this essay, I will...")

Conclusions

Even as the introductory paragraph funneled the reader into the ideas you are presenting, the concluding paragraph is meant to release them into the world again. It can:

• restate or summarize the point you are making
• end with an image, example, metaphor, pithy saying, or stylistically dramatic sentence which captures the essence of the main point
• motivate the reader to do something
• explore the implications of your main idea
• pose a question for further study
• offer advice
• convey a sense of completion
• revisit the story you began with

A conclusion should NOT:

• introduce new ideas
• apologize for what you have said
• end too quickly
• contradict your thesis
• get off track