Funnel Introductory
The Funnel-Approach Introduction and Conclusion
The Introduction
The introduction and conclusion should only be written once the body of the essay is essentially done. While an introduction may be the first thing a reader sees in an essay, it should be the last or second to last thing you write when you work on your draft. They are the icing on the cake
There are several ways to write an introductory paragraph. One particular structure that is useful in various disciplines is the funnel-approach introduction. It is called the funnel-approach because it begins with a broad or general statement about your essay’s topic then proceeds to elaborate on that topic, becoming more and more specific, or narrow in focus, as it proceeds. By the time you have reached the end of the paragraph, your points are their most specific, stating that a particular topic is evident in a particular text. (See figure 1 below).
All parts of the introduction should fit together to create a unified whole: The connection between each sentence should be clear and the paragraph should fluidly move from one point to the next. After all, a funnel is one piece. If it were made of different disconnected sections, whatever one poured through it would fall out, making a mess. This means one must be careful to grab the reader’s attention with a poignant comment that has everything to do with your topic.
Let’s look at the elements of the funnel introduction:
1. The attention-getter (AG).
This is a sentence that grabs your reader’s attention and interest, pulling her into the essay. Try to avoid writing clichés, or overly general statements. In other words, try to avoid beginning with such sweeping phrases as, “Since the beginning of time” or “Man has always”. Instead, a relevant and pithy (i.e., brief but well-expressed and meaningful) quotation or proverb, or a thought-provoking point that relates to your thesis in an original way can help pull the reader into the essay.
2. Elaboration
The Introduction
The introduction and conclusion should only be written once the body of the essay is essentially done. While an introduction may be the first thing a reader sees in an essay, it should be the last or second to last thing you write when you work on your draft. They are the icing on the cake
There are several ways to write an introductory paragraph. One particular structure that is useful in various disciplines is the funnel-approach introduction. It is called the funnel-approach because it begins with a broad or general statement about your essay’s topic then proceeds to elaborate on that topic, becoming more and more specific, or narrow in focus, as it proceeds. By the time you have reached the end of the paragraph, your points are their most specific, stating that a particular topic is evident in a particular text. (See figure 1 below).
All parts of the introduction should fit together to create a unified whole: The connection between each sentence should be clear and the paragraph should fluidly move from one point to the next. After all, a funnel is one piece. If it were made of different disconnected sections, whatever one poured through it would fall out, making a mess. This means one must be careful to grab the reader’s attention with a poignant comment that has everything to do with your topic.
Let’s look at the elements of the funnel introduction:
1. The attention-getter (AG).
This is a sentence that grabs your reader’s attention and interest, pulling her into the essay. Try to avoid writing clichés, or overly general statements. In other words, try to avoid beginning with such sweeping phrases as, “Since the beginning of time” or “Man has always”. Instead, a relevant and pithy (i.e., brief but well-expressed and meaningful) quotation or proverb, or a thought-provoking point that relates to your thesis in an original way can help pull the reader into the essay.
2. Elaboration