果冻影院

Writing Your Conclusion

Conclusions can often be the most difficult part of your paper. You鈥檝e said what you need to say, so it鈥檚 tempting to offer a simple summary. Unfortunately, this may leave your reader with little sense of closure or purpose, ultimately weakening your point and undermining the hard work you've put into the rest of your paper. To avoid this, try the following tips:

• Synthesize, don鈥檛 summarize. Concisely reiterate your main points and how they tie back to your thesis. Try to avoid mentioning minor points; after all, this is your best opportunity to leave a lasting impression on your reader. What elements of your paper do you want your readers to remember?
• Ask yourself 鈥渟o what?鈥� Why should your reader care about your topic? How does your main point matter to anyone? Remember: nothing that you write is 鈥渙bvious鈥� unless you intentionally make it so. It is always better to be too explicit in your writing than to assume that your readers will infer exactly what you want them to. Readers will be more energized by your paper if it concludes in a way that answers the question 鈥渟o what?鈥� You might briefly mention how your ideas will play out in the future, or perhaps warn your reader about what might happen if action isn鈥檛 taken. If you have proposed a solution to a problem or have conducted research, you can suggest the next step in the process. Try asking a thought-provoking question or taking a 鈥渂ig picture鈥� approach.
• Tie it back to your introduction. If you opened your paper with an anecdote, revisit it in your conclusion and reinforce its connection to the thesis. Any type of introduction can be connected to the conclusion by using similar language or reiterating key words (but don鈥檛 copy and paste complete phrases or sentences, as this may bore your reader). At the same time, try to avoid using wholly new analogies or information that hasn鈥檛 been previously mentioned; this may confuse readers and distract them from your main point.
• Avoid language that weakens your ideas. Avoid undermining your authority with phrases such as 鈥淚 think,鈥� 鈥淚 feel,鈥� and 鈥淚鈥檓 not an expert, but... 鈥� Your professors understand that you are not an expert, and they certainly know that the paper grows out of your own thoughts and ideas. Be assertive! Similarly, avoid clich茅 phrases such as 鈥渋n conclusion鈥� and 鈥渋n summary.鈥� Your readers know that this is your conclusion (they can see the end is near!), so including these phrases is almost always unnecessary.

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