6
Endings
[In the Epilogue] you must make the audience well-disposed
towards yourself . . .
Aristotle
Unlike introductions, there are no widely practised styles
of conclusion in the humanities and social sciences as a
whole. But it is possible to tease out certain tendencies to
which you can become alert. This chapter tells you what
they are and how to handle them, concluding with a set of
illustrative variations:
r recapitulating the main outlines of your argument
r changing the mood of your writing from the vigorous
argument of the introduction and middle to one of a more
modest suggesting, an acknowledgement that you are
taking part in an ongoing conversation about the subject
matter of your essay
r reflecting on what you think your treatment of the topic
has achieved and what implications might flow from
your treatment.
1
Recapitulation
If we present our conclusions at the beginning of the essay, how do
we ‘conclude’ it?
Endings
[In the Epilogue] you must make the audience well-disposed
towards yourself . . .
Aristotle
Unlike introductions, there are no widely practised styles
of conclusion in the humanities and social sciences as a
whole. But it is possible to tease out certain tendencies to
which you can become alert. This chapter tells you what
they are and how to handle them, concluding with a set of
illustrative variations:
r recapitulating the main outlines of your argument
r changing the mood of your writing from the vigorous
argument of the introduction and middle to one of a more
modest suggesting, an acknowledgement that you are
taking part in an ongoing conversation about the subject
matter of your essay
r reflecting on what you think your treatment of the topic
has achieved and what implications might flow from
your treatment.
1
Recapitulation
If we present our conclusions at the beginning of the essay, how do
we ‘conclude’ it?