How to Write a Thematic Essay: A Comprehensive Guide on Writing
visibility 1

If you wonder how to write a thematic essay, please consider that it is a piece of writing that focuses on a certain theme or issue. When writing a thematic analysis essay, a writer is expected to demonstrate the connection between different questions or facts and then come to a logical conclusion regarding the topic. The main idea of thematic essay writing is to evaluate the comprehension and understanding of some issues related to social studies or history. As such, if you still have not understood how to write a thematic essay, be sure that you need to master you analytical and critical skills in order to be able to critically evaluate the given topic and provide a succinct and smooth description of it. This is exactly the point where students encounter difficulties with thematic essay writing. The main benefit is that there is a specific structure of the thematic essay that enables one to learn it and then use it as a template and spend less time on writing the essays.

What Is a Thematic Essay? How to Write a Thematic Essay?

A thematic essay refers to any type of writing, where the writer develops the major theme by using specific literary devices, such as imagery, foreshadowing, personification, epithets, metaphors, etc. With the help of these literary devices, a writer can convey the main idea or message in a comprehensible manner that is easy to understand.

If you want to know how to write a good thematic essay, be sure that you need to learn how to use literary devices in an efficient manner. It is needed to present the central subject and then express the general importance of the topic with the help of certain devices that are also combined with reliable evidence. When focusing on the main subject, it is essential to choose the one that will be most interesting and appealing not only for the writer but also for the target audience. In such a case, it will serve more meaning and be more appealing to read.

Every writer has his/ her own writing style and manner of writing and the same concerns the reader. Each reader has his/ her own preferences and interests. Besides, different readers interpret different ideas in various ways. Therefore, it is so essential to come up with the topic that both you and your readers are passionate about.

Our Process

How to Find the Main Theme?

For many students, it can be rather difficult to understand at once, what the central theme of the essay will be. Therefore, it is recommended to read the essay prompt carefully and pay attention to the keywords. The following tips and strategies will be helpful if you have the assignment to write a thematic essay:

  1. Provide a summary of the consulted literature sources. As a rule, with the help of the articles and books you read, you will help to come up with the central theme for your paper.
  2. Choose the main subject for discussing. Please take into account the main theme and the main subject are not one and the same aspect. When it comes to the main theme, it is usually the narrowed version of the central subject that pinpoints to its specific details.
  3. Learn how to read between the lines. If you want to get more ideas and examples that are connected to your sources, you should study each source in detail and think what other information can be useful when you need to answer the question from your essay prompt.

Provide an Analysis of Your Paper Prompt

Many students say that the hardest part is writing however it often happens that it is not the very writing process but the way how you interpret the essay prompt. Particularly, the difficulty may be related to how you understand what is required from you in the paper. Therefore, often it is recommended for students to read the prompt for a few times in order to find out what the main question is and what you are required to write about.

As such, depending on the prompt, the writing might be:

  1. Descriptive. In this case, you will have to illustrate the main topic of the essay and place specific emphasis on details.
  2. Explanatory (expository). In this case, you are required to explain the ideas in a smooth and logical way as well as provide connections in terms of causes and effects.
  3. Discussion. In this thematic essay structure, you need to use statistics, facts, and arguments when you discuss specific questions or concepts.
  4. Showing. In this essay type, you need to pinpoint to the main point you are trying to convey and provide sufficient evidence from the source.

Our Benefits

Some examples of thematic essay topics:

  • How has philosophy developed in Europe?
  • Main problems behind single parenting.
  • Personal development within the realm of social norms.
  • The issue of the death penalty.
  • The influence of Buddhism philosophy

The question of how to write a thematic essay may be particularly burning for a novice writer. Still, once you have learned the main principles of thematic essay writing, you will not face any difficulties with it. In any case, if you have found the essay prompt confusing, do not be shy and ask your professor for clarifications. Proper communication with your teacher or supervisor will help you avoid challenges on your way. Also one of the best tips for writing a thematic essay is to use expert evidence and supporting and illustrative factors.

How to Write a Thematic Essay: Steps for Proper Preparation

Any process of writing requires specific steps needed to make the paper well organized and structured. The same concerns thematic essays. You need to have a plan and manage your time if you want to get a successful paper. Check out the following steps on how to write a thematic essay:

  1. Research the topic. It may only sound easy “to analyze the literary piece” you are working on. In essence, you need to have specific strategies aimed at critical writing. First of all, you need to read the assigned paperwork in depth and make sure you understand it properly. You need to investigate how literary work relates to your essay topic and what points are worth consideration. Ask yourself the following questions, “What points will I have to prove/ critically analyze? What for and against arguments can I get from the text? How does the author of the literary work convey his/ her point/ message across?” After you have found answers to these questions, be sure to outsource, i.e. browse the books, testimonials, documents, etc. that will provide you with examples of real events and occurrences. To organize them, draw a table or make a mind map.
  2. Compose an outline. This is the essence of the plan since the outline is a so-called backbone of any piece of writing. Here you will draft the introduction, formulate the thesis statement, as well as decide on the number of body paragraphs you will have and will formulate topic sentences.

Thematic Essay Sample Structure

  1. Introduction. Be sure to introduce the essay subject in an appealing and captivating way. Thus, provide a hook in your introduction. If you have successfully written the introduction, it will definitely attract the attention of your audience and so your essay will be more likely to be read from the beginning to end. After you have provided the main essay hook, it is now time to check whether there is sufficient background information on the topic. Your topic should be well understood by the readers. Only after you have provided sufficient background information, it is high time to formulate a thesis statement.
  2. The main body. Decide on the number of body paragraphs you will have. Keep in mind that one body paragraph should be devoted to a single idea. In the body paragraphs, you have to develop the ideas you have touched upon in the thesis statement. Depending on the paper length, the minimum number of body paragraphs should be three. Each of them should provide a new argument relating to the topic. Moreover, you need to ensure there are proper logical transitions between the ideas and paragraphs. Once you have presented an argument in the topic sentence, be sure that you will have to support it by providing ample evidence and relevant examples. As such, you are free to use citations or quotations (but make sure they are properly formatted).
  3. Conclusion. In the conclusive paragraph, you have to summarize all arguments that have been provided in the paper. It is recommended to highlight the main paper findings. Remember that you should not present any new information in the conclusion. You should just reiterate the thesis and sum up the core findings.

After you finished writing the conclusion, it is necessary to edit and proofread the paper before submission. You need to make sure the paper is free from mistakes and petty flaws.

It is essential to always proofread your essay, as you need to provide a good impression on your professor. Remember that grammatical, punctuation, and spelling mistakes may distract the attention of your readers from the essence of your paper. So, make sure your paper is free from typos and errors. Spend sufficient time on the proper revision of your paper. If you need professional assistance, do not hesitate and ask professional writers or editors for help. If you want to earn excellent grades, be sure to go through all pre-writing, writing and post-writing stages properly.