essay structure

[mdeehan]

What are the 5 Structures required to write a good essay?

[Mariner]

Personally, I'm not aware of a "5 structures" rule, if someone is, he/she can enlighten us...

But generally speaking, an essay could be "broken" into 3 parts: introduction, development of your arguments, epilogue. Regarding the introduction, it should include a thesis. Bare in mind that a thesis is a different thing than a controlling idea, in the sense that a thesis must include your personal view on the matter.

If, for example, you're writing an essay about urban overgrowth:

Controlling idea statement:
"In our times, the three most important problems affecting the quality of life are urban overgrowth, environmental pollution and unemployment"

Thesis statement:
"From all the problems of our time, the most important one is urban overgrowth."