How to Write a Claim
In this guide you will find out:
- What is a claim in a thesis?
- Types of claim used in the thesis
- How to craft a great claim statement
- How to write your claim in a right way
Every argumentative thesis will have a thesis statement that clears the stand of that thesis by providing the main idea or argument, and thus it can be called a claim. This can be considered as a basic definition of claim.
It’s a starting point of a thesis and is very important as it gives readers the reason to think critically about it. Generally, an argumentative thesis claim should be debatable. Only then your readers will have an interest and a reason to read your thesis. If it is easily acceptable or agreeable, there will be no point in pursuing people for it. It will be non-debatable.
There may be many sub-arguments or claims in your essay, but your position can be strongly proved with the main claim.
What is a claim in a thesis?
A claim is a debatable argument that generally states a fact which is not just a personal opinion. It is specifically focused on an argument which defines your goal and the scope of the thesis. Its main purpose is to support and prove your main argument. It’s like a person arguing to prove his position which means he is making a claim.
If written effectively, a claim statement will keep your readers interested. It will create questions in their minds and they will possibly find the answers in your essay. The main idea is supported by a number of arguments, and hence the readers will find some of them acceptable while some not. But all of them will be surely fulfilling the expectations of some readers.
Claim statement can be of different types. If you don’t know the difference between the types, you may end up writing a confusing statement. Also, determining the type is confusing and complicated. To help you out with this problem, we have discussed some of the popular types of claim statements.
Types of claim used in the thesis
To write an effective claim statement, it is very important that you know about the types of claim. There are several types of claim, i.e. definitive claim, value claim, opposing claim, etc, but we will discuss the main and most relevant types here. You can choose the most suitable type depending on the subject and main idea of your thesis. The most frequently used claim types are;
Cause and effect
This type of claims is used when an effect is being discussed with the support of the arguments describing the cause of an issue. You have to write the main and strongest cause that had a certain effect. For example, you can discuss certain law or a decision that has affected the behavior of people or a certain class of the society significantly.
A good example of this type of claim is “Implementation of GST has played a big role in economic growth in India”
The claim of solutions or policies
This is a type of claim where you either support or oppose a solution or a policy. This is generally used in the essays on policies or mass level solutions. Your claim of policy or solution should be providing the strong reasons for opposing and should not be personal or biased. However, not all readers would be agreeing with your arguments.
A good example of this type of claim statement is “Instead of searching for more oil fields we should increase the use of renewable energy and reduce the oil consumption.”
Factual or definitive
When you present a fact or a definition along with a strong argument in a claim statement, it is called a claim of fact. This is used for the research essays where you establish or discover a fact and put forward a strong argument that the readers can’t ignore. This type of claim statement argues over some settled fact or a definition of something.
An example of the claim of fact is “Greenhouse gases are required for the presence of life on earth, but their over-emittance has increased the temperature of the earth’s surface which has caused global warming.”
Read also: Find research paper writers hire services to take care of your papers.
Claim of value
This type of claim argues over a value of something or how a certain thing should be valued. This is useful in the essays researching something that is being ignored generally. It can be anything from a policy to specific concerns related to the society or a class.
An example of a claim of value is “We should be concerned more about the forest areas which are being reduced instead of focusing only on the industrialization.”
How to craft a great claim statement
Your claim statement will define whether your reader will read further or not. It’s tricky and there are certain rules to be followed. We have discussed these rules below, and if you follow them, you will be pretty sure to have a strong and effective claim statement. So let’s have a look at them.
Choose and explore the topic of your interest
This is the first and most important point to be considered. If you are not given a topic, you should choose one for you, and that should be the one which you are interested in. Your efforts of writing your claim and arguments will be more fruitful if you are interested in the topic.
When you have selected a topic, you should explore one narrow subject so that you can make arguments on it. You can find many aspects of a subject and choose to write on one that can help you prove your claim. For example, if your topic is about global warming, you can take oil as a subject which you can present as a reason and prove that it is the main cause of the problem being discussed.
Set a question and answer it with your thesis
A thesis is basically a problem or a question. So regardless of the subject, you can write your thesis as an answer to that question or a problem. Think about that question and write down the best and the shortest possible answer. That will be an argument or a fact or a definition which will be the center point of your thesis.
For an example, you can ask “Why should we use online shopping for our daily needs? Your thesis or claim statement to this question can be “Online shopping sites makes shopping easy and less time consuming allowing us to focus on more productive tasks.”
Read also: A reliable thesis statement maker will help you create a perfect thesis.
Define a goal of your paper
Which type of claim statement you are going to write depends on the goal of your paper. If your paper is argumentative, you will be writing something that will try to change the opinion of your readers. For example, you can say that “Without determined and well-calculated decisions of the president, the United States would never have come out of the economic crisis started in the early 2000’s”.
This way you are setting up an opinion, for example, the overcoming the difficult economic situations, and claiming it with the supporting point, for example, the determined and well-calculated decisions taken by the president of the United States.
Take a stand for a single issue
When you are writing an argumentative thesis or a definition literature, you should take a stand for one main idea or one main issue. Though you will be discussing multiple issues or multiple aspects of a point, you should be addressing a single issue with more attention. That is the point around which your entire paper will be evolving. You will be following that single issue throughout the paper.
To understand with an example, we can write a claim statement like “The world war was fought by two groups of the world, i.e. axis and allies, but the allies fought to save the humanity and freedom while axis powers fought to rule the world.”
In this example, you either will be supporting the stand of allies or will be proving the axis powers responsible for the most destructive war of the century.
Take a different approach to the topic
To make your claim sustainable and interesting, your arguments should be made with a different approach. Use a fresh way to convey our opinions, facts, and definitions. A thesis written with a distinct argument will be able to attract the readers and keep them interested throughout your essay.
For example, “Though nuclear weapons have indirectly played a role in keeping world powers away from war, they must be destroyed to ensure the world peace.”
Write your claim in a right way
Knowing what is a claim in an essay, the types of claim and what to include in it is not enough. To write a perfect claim, you need to consider some important factors as given below.
Choose what you can prove
Instead of writing an ambiguous claim that you find difficult to prove later, you should choose the one which you can prove. Better to get prepared before you make a claim rather than making it first and getting prepared for it later.
Your thesis statement is a final point. So you should write your claim with strong evidence and arguments in mind. They should be true and capable enough to support your claim in your essay. So make sure to be prepared and only write a claim statement which you can prove.
You should avoid claiming who is write and who is wrong. You should not provide a judgement about a person without actually meeting him or her. Another word for claim is to assert, that also with a strong argument. So write only that claim which you can support strongly. Also, avoid writing on a complex theory about which you have little or no knowledge.
The readers may have some questions while they read your claim and essay, so you have to answer them in your essay. This is possible only when you are very clear about your claim and know how to prove it.
Write your claim in a correct way
Your claim statement will be conveying your point with a strong support that you want to show in your essay. The readers will know what your essay is about and if they need to read ahead or not depending on how have you written your statement.
Ideally, your claim should tell the reader what your essay is about and how are you going to prove it. Remember that your statement is not a final fact. In fact, in your factual claim, you will be arguing in the essay to support your claim. You just have to take a strong stand for the main idea that you will be supporting with effective arguments.
Use a definitive yet firm tone
When your reader reads a claim statement, it should be identifiable as an authors claim. To do this, you have to take care of the tone, words and the phrases you use to write it. Using some words like “Though” or “Because” makes your statement definitive and firm.
A good example to observe this can be “Because of India’s diversified yet unified culture, the country has been able to sustain the invasions for thousands of years and have achieved a steady growth despite the huge problems after the independence.”
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Place your claim in a proper place
A claim statement plays a very important role and therefore it has to be placed where your readers will expect to see it, i.e. in the beginning. But this doesn’t mean you have to place it in the very beginning. Ideally, you should place it in the first paragraph, at its end. It can also be placed in the introduction.
The placement of claim in writing of an essay or research paper may also depend on how lengthy it is or how long your paper is. But it is good to place where your readers get it without reading to much. So placing it at the end of the first paragraph is more expected.
Remember to keep your claim statement short, ideally of about two lines. Your readers should get your point without facing any confusion. So it is recommended that you avoid too long and complex sentences. Make it easy and interesting for your reader. Your statement is successful only if the reader reads further after reading it.
A claim statement helps you strengthen your standpoint and therefore it’s an important part of an essay or a paper. In this article, we have discussed all possible tips and steps along with some examples, so that we can help you write an effective and strong claim statement. Hope it will be helpful to you.
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