All You Need to Know About a Synthesis Essay
Everyone knows what an essay is and how it is composed. But, when your professor asks you to write a Synthesis essay, you get pretty confused. Sure, you are pretty good at writing the regular academic and personal essay where you are supposed to write a thesis statement and prove it with the right evidence. But when it comes to synthesis essay, things get a bit complicated.
What exactly is the synthesis essay? How is it composed? How are you supposed to write a synthesis essay? If you are searching for the answers too, you are in the right place. In this post, we'll discuss the meaning of the synthesis essay and how to craft it. Let's start with the meaning of the synthesis essay.
What is the Synthesis Essay?
A synthesis essay is somewhat similar to an argumentative essay. However, in these types of write-ups, the professors give you the sources you can use to prove the argument. As you get all the sources that can be used in the essay, it might seem a bit easier to craft a synthesis essay. But it isn’t that easy how it seems.
You cannot just write the main points, add the given reference, and summarize your essay. Most of the sources have both the supporting and opposing points. It is, therefore, necessary to check them properly and only use it to prove your argument. Let’s have a look at the two main types of synthesis essay.
- The Explanatory Synthesis
As the name suggests, the explanatory essay focuses on explaining the particular topic to your target readers. It is divided into certain parts, which are presented in a proper sequence to help your readers understand the topic thoroughly.
The explanation can be about places, events, persons, objects, and the state of affairs. Though you still have to present it in an argumentative format, the essay must be written in a clear and comprehensible format.
- The Argument Synthesis
The only purpose of an argument synthesis essay is to present all your opinions on the given topic backed by proper evidence and the relevant statements. Usually, the instructors provide students with all the sources they have to mention in the essay. But, you can also find the relevant sources from the Internet and books.
Tips to Write Synthesis Essay
While the format of this essay is quite similar to regular academic essays, the content structure is different. The main focus of the essay is to prove your argument. How your points are valid? How perfectly you prove your side of the argument? Let's see how to craft a perfect synthesis essay.
1. Choose a Topic For Synthesis Essay
Basically, the topic of the synthesis essay has to be debatable. It is important to note that the synthesis essay is more of an advanced form of write-up. While crafting this piece, make sure that the topic you choose shouldn’t be very casual. For example, you cannot pick a topic like “green vegetables are good for human health”. Everyone knows that green veggies can improve your health and there are multiple sources available on the internet to prove it.
The topic you choose must be clear and uncommon. Furthermore, you must not choose a topic that has many reference sources that prove only a particular side. For example, for a topic like "veggies are good for health", you will come across several sources that prove the health benefits of veggies. But, there might be little to no evidence regarding the bad-effects of veggies. The examples of the good synthesis essay topics are as follows:
- Is smartphone good for young children?
- Do video games support violence?
- Do kids benefit more from the traditional ways of learning or online courses?
Make sure that you put all the points to prove your argument side.
2. Pick a Thesis Statement
Once you are done choosing a topic for the essay, the next step is to think about a thesis statement. The thesis acts as the central theme of your essay. It is the thesis statement where you are supposed to mention your point of view on the specific topic i.e. whether you want to support the argument or oppose it.
According to your preference, you can either introduce a statement at the beginning or in the last lines of the intro paragraph. Once you have chosen the thesis, it is time to read the sources carefully and figure what statistics, facts, and statements can be used to prove the argument. Make sure that the thesis is the most important part of your essay. Try to get as creative with the thesis as possible. The readers must be able to find out what your topic is about and which areas you have explored in the essay.
3. Prepare the Outline
As it is a synthesis essay, you must stick to the point. Everything you write should be engaging enough to catch the reader's attention. However, you must write the essay in a professional and engaging tone.
Take a rough paper and list all the sources that prove your argument. You don't have to fill the entire essay with sources and evidence. But, listing all the available sources in a rough sheet can help you narrow down the options to the most suitable evidence. The stronger the evidence you list, the better your essay gets. You must also outline the necessary points that you could mention in the essay.
4. Writing the Essay
Just like any other essay, the synthesis paper has a specific format that includes an intro, body, and conclusion. You have to introduce the thesis statement in the intro itself. According to the outline, you can write the essay in proper order. While writing, make sure that you use active voice. No matter which type of essay it is, you must write 80% of the essay in active voice and the rest 20% in passive. An active voice is easy to interpret and looks professional.
Besides
, make sure that you don’t use jargon. Abbreviations and jargon complicate your essay. Keep it as simple s possible.
Author: Frank Taylor