French Revolution Essay Outline Your draft is due Dec.

20

Please follow the instructions as closely as possible when completing this outline. The purpose of this
organizer is to help you establish an effective structure for your essay, organize your evidence into relevant
sections/body paragraphs, use that evidence to develop topic sentences, and develop a thesis that aligns with
the evidence you have gathered.

You should complete each of the following sections in order. Each section of the outline is labeled with the
corresponding section from the rubric. This should help you better understand the rubric. ​Your essay will be
6 paragraphs in total when you are finished!

Introduction and Thesis (1 paragraph) - ​This is the most important part of your paper since it contains the
main point and introduces the key ideas that will help guide your reader through the remainder of your essay.
In the introduction to your essay, you should make a clearly stated argument, or thesis, and outline the main
points you intend to prove and to defend in the essay.​ ​Without a sufficient introduction, your whole essay will
not hold together because here you establish your main argument, or thesis, and show how you intend to
prove it. I​ t is in essence, the signpost for the rest of your paper. The idea is to take your readers, who you must
presume know very little about your thesis subject, and teach them the basics of what they need to know in
order to understand and follow your research question.
1. In ​one sentence​ briefly introduce the period and geographical location of your study. In ​the next ​one-two
sentences, provide background/history of the French Revolution. In ​the following ​one-two sentences discuss
the importance of the French Revolution ​(3-5 sentences total​):

2. Introduce your thesis question (ask the question): (“ What were the most important causes of the French
Revolution?”

3. ​Answer​ your research question by using the following sentence starter (THIS IS YOUR THESIS):
“Although many historians have argued that ______ was the most important cause of the French Revolution,
closer examination shows that in fact ______, ______, and ______ were the leading causes of the
Revolution.”

(“Although many historians have argued that…”)

Body (3 paragraphs) - ​The body of your essay provides ​the substantive​ support of your thesis. It is a
step-by-step process in which you ​comprehensively​ prove your thesis using supporting material from your
primary and secondary sources.

Body paragraph 1:
Introduce and explain Claim 1 ​(​Topic Sentence 1​ - This is an argument)
(Example: “The​ Enlightenment​ philosophy desacralized the authority of the monarchy and the​ Catholic
Church​, and promoted a new society based on​ reason​ instead of​ traditions​ which eventually led the French
people to revolt.”)

Present and Explain the 1st piece of evidence for Claim 1

Present and Explain the 2nd piece of evidence for Claim 1​ (if needed)

Present and Explain the 3rd piece of evidence for Claim 1 ​(if needed)

Wrap up and transition to next cause (paragraph 2) (“This was not the only cause”… “the French citizens
were also concerned with” … etc)

Body paragraph 2:

Introduce and explain Claim 2 ​(Topic Sentence 2-This is an argument)

Present and Explain the 1st piece of evidence for Claim 2

Present and Explain the 2nd piece of evidence for Claim 2​ (if needed)

Present and Explain the 3rd piece of evidence for Claim 2 ​(if needed)

Wrap up and transition to next cause (paragraph 3) (“This was not the only cause”… the French citizens
were also concerned with … etc)

Body paragraph 3:

Introduce and explain Claim 3 ​(Topic Sentence 3-This is an argument)

Present and Explain the 1st piece of evidence for Claim 3

Present and Explain the 2nd piece of evidence for Claim 3​ (if needed)

Present and Explain the 3rd piece of evidence for Claim 3 ​(if needed)

Counter Argument (1 paragraph) - What do other historians/authors argue? Only one cause needed.

Introduce and explain a ​Counterclaim​ ​(make sure to use the sentence starter below to launch your
argument)
“While​ most historians agree that the above causes were the most important, some make the argument
that…. “
 Present and Explain the 1st piece of evidence for the Counterclaim

Present and Explain the 2nd piece of evidence for the Counterclaim​ (if needed)

Present and Explain the 3rd piece of evidence for the Counterclaim​ ​ ​(if needed)

Conclusion (1 paragraph) - ​The conclusion summarizes what you have proved. You should reinforce, and
restate your thesis statement and show its significance (Why are you right?).

Transition sentence from the counterclaim into your conclusion​ (begin your rebuttal of the counterclaim)​.
“While it is clear that _________ was an important cause, it was not among the most consequential.”

Copy & paste (then revise) Topic Sentence 1

Copy & paste (then revise) Topic Sentence 2

Copy & paste (then revise) Topic Sentence 3

Once again discuss why the French Revolution is important to study/ Questions for further research