How to Do an Expository Essay on the History of Tattoos

Gather your materials to start writing your essay.

When writing an expository essay, a student should start out with a fairly specific topic, and several informative resources for information and evidence. It is the writer's main task to clearly state, in the introduction of the paper, what the thesis statement is, and then to use that statement to present the gathered information for the body and conclusion paragraphs. For an expository essay on the history of tattoos, it might be necessary to narrow your focus to one era of history, or one type of tattoo throughout history in order to best inform your reader.

Things You'll Need

• Pen/pencil
• Paper
• Computer
• Periodicals or written resources

Instructions

Constructing Your Paper

1. Choose your topic. A complete history of tattoos is likely too broad, so try to find one issue, argument, or theme to discuss in your paper. A topic for an expository essay on the history of tattoos might be on early practices of tattooing, different types of ink used through history, or the changing meaning of a certain tattoo over a particular time period.

2. Write your thesis statement to guide the rest of your paper. The thesis should ideally be one sentence that fully expresses the argument you are trying to make in the entire essay. If you are writing your paper on the meaning of tribal tattoos for example, your thesis might address whether or not the tattoos ever had any meaning, or if that meaning has ever changed.

3. Your thesis statement will appear in your introduction paragraph. The introduction should also include information that is important to understanding your topic, or information that you think your reader should absolutely know about tattoos or tattooing.

4. Write at least three body paragraphs for your essay. In each paragraph, include a topic sentence to introduce the specific idea you will address. The paragraphs must have some form of evidence to support your claim or idea. This information can be pulled from book sources, periodicals, or Web sites. Explain what the information means, and how it might support your claim or uphold your thesis statement.

5. The conclusion should use the information you have presented in your body paragraphs to finally reinforce your thesis statement. Do not paraphrase or repeat your thesis statement in the conclusion. Do not introduce any new ideas into the paper at this point. Only address the topics you wrote about in your body paragraphs.

6. Edit your essay upon completion. Check grammar, spelling and sentence structure. Check your sources once more to make sure what you have written is accurate information.

References

• Purdue OWL: Essay Writing; Jack Baker and Allen Brizee; 2010