How to Write Better Essays

A good introduction is successful because it allows readers to prepare

themselves mentally for the journey they will undergo as they follow your

argument through the paper. Like a travel guide, it enables them to rec-

ognize and understand the major points of interest in your argument as

they go by.^1

Remember, lose the examiners and you lose marks, it’s as simple as

that. Your introduction should point them in the right direction, giving

them a clear idea of what is to follow.

184 Writing

Practice exercise 15

Write an introduction

Take the advertising question we considered earlier:

‘Advertisers seek only to ensure that consumers make informed

choices.’Discuss.

Write an introduction that interprets the implications of the question and

then outlines the map of your answer. When you’ve finished, compare

your answer with the introduction below.

In this question our map might look something like the following:

Most advertising executives are willing to defend their profession by

arguing that all they are doing is informing the public and in doing

so protecting the democratic freedoms of individuals, in particular

their freedom of choice. To a certain extent, of course, this is true:

without advertising we would be less informed about new develop-

ments in technology, in fashion and in medical advances. Even gov-

ernment warnings about the dangers at work and in the home

depend upon advertisements. But the key to this is the claim that

this is the ‘only’ thing they do, when most of the public suspect their

paramount concern is to manipulate consumers into buying prod-

ucts that they may not want or need.

This indicates what the reader should expect as the structure in the

essay. One part will develop the view that advertisers are concerned

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