Transitions & Topic Sentences
Sometimes topic sentences are actually two or even three sentences long. If the first makes a
claim, the second might reflect on that claim, explaining it further. Think of these sentences as
asking and answering two critical questions: How does the phenomenon you're discussing
operate? Why does it operate as it does?
1.)
Complex sentences. Topic sentences at the beginning of a paragraph frequently
combine with a transition from the previous paragraph. This might be done by writing a sentence
that contains both subordinate and independent clauses, as in the example below.
… Proponents of a more relaxed policy on PEDs will often point out that many banned
substances have legitimate therapeutic purposes. For example, the synthetic testosterone
(T) market is among the fastest-growing pharmaceutical sectors in the world, and many
doctors are now urging men in their forties to take T or even HGH to slow the ravages of
aging.
Although synthetic testosterone can have important therapeutic uses in nonathletes, the issue is far more complex in contact sports; in football, the strength, speed
and abilities of one participant can affect the health and safety of other players.
This sentence employs a useful principle of transitions: always move from old to new
information. The subordinate clause (from "although" to "task") recaps information from
previous paragraphs; the independent clauses (starting with "the image" and "the painter")
introduce the new information.
2.)
Questions. Questions, sometimes in pairs, also make good topic sentences (and
signposts). Consider the following: "Does the promise of stability justify this unchanging
hierarchy?" We may fairly assume that the paragraph or section that follows will answer the
question. Questions are by definition a form of inquiry, and thus demand an answer. Good essays
strive for this forward momentum.
Example: “Drugstore Athlete,” by Malcolm Gladwell
So what, exactly, is wrong with an athlete--someone who makes a living with their body-taking medication to speed their recovery from injury? Is it wrong to take ibruprofen? Is it wrong
to ice a sore elbow? For that matter, is it ethical or even legal for Major League Baseball--or
indeed any employee or governing body--to deny an employee access to a potentially beneficial
medical treatment?
(within the context of Gladwell’s essay, this is an example of a “signpost” as well)
The paragraphs that follow should answer the question. Questions are by definition a form of
inquiry, and thus demand an answer. Good essays strive for this forward momentum. Unanswered
rhetorical questions can annoy readers, and will come across as weak and uncertain writing.
3.)
Bridge sentences. Like questions, "bridge sentences" (the term is John Trimble's) make
an excellent substitute for more formal topic sentences. Bridge sentences indicate both what came
before and what comes next (they "bridge" paragraphs) without the formal trappings of multiple
clauses.
Example (from NY Times, “As Stadiums Vanish Their Debt Lives On”):
…In Houston, Kansas City, Mo., Memphis and Pittsburgh, residents are paying for “phantom facilities”
that were abandoned by the teams they were built for.
But Giants Stadium is the granddaddy of phantom facilities. …[the essay then goes on to talk
about the financing problems associated with Giants Stadium]
-Referencing back (phantom facilities) and forward (a discussion on the Giants); from the history that
frames the argument to the present tense.
4.)
Pivots. Topic sentences don't always appear at the beginning of a paragraph. When they
come in the middle, they indicate that the paragraph will change direction, or "pivot." This
strategy is particularly useful for dealing with counter-evidence: a paragraph starts out conceding
a point or stating a fact. After following up on an initial statement with evidence, it then reverses
direction and establishes a claim. The pivot always needs a signal, a word like "but," "yet," or
"however," or a longer phrase or sentence that indicates an about-face. It often needs more than
one sentence to make its point.
Example (from NY Times, “As Stadiums Vanish Their Debt Lives On”):
…As pro sports expanded into cities from coast to coast, politicians and business leaders pushed
for taxpayer-financed stadiums to lure teams. Politicians and business leaders in New Jersey
made sweeping claims [about the financial windfall from the stadium complex] when they created
the sports complex in the Meadowlands.
For its first decade, the complex was a success. But its fortunes faded as horse racing
declined, the Nets and the Devils left for Newark, and the Jets and the Giants built their own $1.6
billion stadium next door, which will host its first National Football League regular-season game
Sunday…
*In setting up your pivot, don’t concede too much. Give an honest set-up, but don’t argue so
forcefully that you can’t then make the turn.
5.)
Signposts.
Signposts operate as topic sentences for whole sections in an essay. (In longer essays, sections
often contain more than a single paragraph.) They inform a reader that the essay is taking a turn
in its argument: delving into a related topic such as a counter-argument, stepping up its claims
with a complication, or pausing to give essential historical or scholarly background. Because they
reveal the architecture of the essay itself, signposts remind readers of what the essay's stakes are:
what it's about, and why it's being written.
Signposting can be accomplished in a sentence or two at the beginning of a paragraph or in whole
paragraphs that serve as transitions between one part of the argument and the next.