3.6: Outlining- Structuring Your Ideas

Why create an outline for your paper? It can help you see how your ideas progress. It can also show where you have too much or not enough information, where you need to add in some research to support your ideas, and how well your paper is matching up with your thesis statement.

There are two types of formal outlines: the topic outline and the sentence outline. You format both types of formal outlines in the same way.

• Place your introduction and thesis statement at the beginning, under roman numeral I.
• Use roman numerals (II, III, IV, V, etc.) to identify main points that develop the thesis statement.
• Use capital letters (A, B, C, D, etc.) to divide your main points into parts.
• Use Arabic numerals (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, etc.) if you need to subdivide any As, Bs, or Cs into smaller parts.
• End with the final roman numeral expressing your idea for your conclusion.

Here is what the skeleton of a traditional formal outline looks like with a few common features.

I. Introduction

A. Introduction to Subject/Topic

B. Context/History of your Topic (if needed)

C. Thesis

II. Main Point 1

A. Subpoint 1

B. Subpoint 2

1. Supporting Detail 1

2. Supporting Detail 2

III. Main Point 2

A. Subpoint 1

B. Subpoint 2

IV. Main Point 3

A. Subpoint 1

B. Subpoint 3

1. Supporting Detail 1

2. Supporting Detail 2

V. Conclusion

A. Recap Main Points

B. Restate/Revise Thesis with your main points in mind

C. Concluding Statement

Pro-Tip: In an outline, any supporting detail can be developed with subpoints and subpoints under that. It all depends on the level of detail and explanation you need to fully convey your topic. This is also a good way to expand a relatively “simple” essay into a longer, more developed work.

Pro-Tip: Formal outlines are often quite rigid in their organization. As many instructors will specify, you cannot subdivide one point if it is only one part. For example, for every roman numeral I, there must be a II. For every A, there must be a B. For every Arabic numeral 1, there must be a 2. See for yourself on the sample outlines that follow.

Constructing Topic Outlines

A topic outline is the same as a sentence outline except you use words or phrases instead of complete sentences. Words and phrases keep the outline short and easier to comprehend. Notice, however, that this author has still taken the time to think through some of their potential analysis and transitions to help themselves move past using just summary in their paragraphs. The following outline corresponds to the example essay beginning on page 38.

I. Intro

A. Hook: Personal Story about experience with dysmorphia

B. Background: Medical definition and explanation of effects

C. Thesis: For adolescents in particular, the effects of BDD can be exacerbated by peer pressure, social media exposure, and lack of representation in the media.

II. Point 1: Peer Pressure

A. Example: Mean Girls scene

B. Analysis: Illustrates normalization of negative attitudes and basic characteristics of BDD

C. Transition: Mirrored stats about 8 hours of fixation for BDD/8 hours of online time for teens

III. Point 2: Social Media Exposure

A. Examples

1. Snapchat dysmorphia

2. Tolentino description of Insta face

3. Plastic surgery stats

B. Analysis: Social media tools magnify existing dysmorphic thoughts/feelings

C. Transition: Even if a teen knows they have a problem, it may be hard to seek help because of representation issues

IV. Point 3: Lack of Representation

A. Examples

1. BDD representation compared to other body image disorders

2. Singh and Vaile's point on cultural presentation

B. Analysis: Insufficient representation of BDD can make it hard for teens, especially minority teens, to identify their problem and seek help

C. Transition: More representation is needed to help more teens

V. Conclusion

A. Consider implications: Social and emotional costs of BDD

B. Reiterate thesis/call to action: In addition to therapy, teens struggling with BDD should stay aware of the factors that can make it worse

C. Closing thought: Overcoming BDD means that imperfection isn’t the end of the world

Checklist: Writing an Effective Topic Outline

This checklist can help you write an effective topic outline for your assignment. It will also help you discover where you may need to do additional reading or prewriting.

• Do I have a controlling idea that guides the development of the entire piece of writing?
• Do I have three or more main points that I want to make in this piece of writing? Does each main point connect to my controlling idea?
• Is my outline in the best order—chronological order, spatial order, or order of importance—for me to present my main points? Will this order help me get my main point across?
• Do I have supporting details that will help me inform, explain, or prove my main points?
• Do I need to add more support? If so, where?
• Do I need to make any adjustments in my working thesis statement before I consider it the final version?

See this video from UNC Chapel Hill for more help with writing outlines.

Writing at Work

Word processing programs generally have an automatic numbering feature that can be used to prepare outlines. This feature automatically sets indents and lets you use the tab key to arrange information just as you would in an outline. Although in business this style might be acceptable, in college your instructor might have different requirements. Teach yourself how to customize the levels of outline numbering in your word-processing program to fit your instructor’s preferences.

Constructing Sentence Outlines

A sentence outline is the same as a topic outline except you use complete sentences instead of words or phrases. Complete sentences create clarity and can advance you one step closer to a draft in the writing process.

Here is the sentence outline that Chase constructed for the essay he is developing over "The Danger of a Single Story." As you can see, outlines are especially helpful planning tools when you work with sources because you can select the specific evidence you want to use as you think through the structure of the paper. Then, you don't have to interrupt your writing process to look back and get the exact wording or page for a quote.

I. Begin by introducing the source: In her TedTalk “The Danger of a Single Story,” Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie discusses the negative effects of oversimplifying a person or group of people. (Then add more details to fill the reader in)

A. Thesis Statement: It is clear that having a narrow view of the world can be particularly harmful to children, but these stories can also lead adults to develop stereotypes that have serious effects on the world around them. Adichie’s first shows the danger of sharing narrow views of the world with children.

II. Adichie’s first shows the danger of sharing narrow views of the world with children.

A. Growing up in Nigeria, Adichie loved to read, but all of her books were about white children in England.

B. As Adichie got older, she began reading books by African women.

C. . “I realized that people like me, girls with skin the color of chocolate, whose kinky hair could not form ponytails, could also exist in literature. I started to write about things I recognized” (par. 4).

III. My experience was different from Adichie’s because I grew up as a white male in America.

A. It was not until I read Adichie that I realized this is what people mean when they use the word “privilege.”

B. When I read Adichie’s story, I thought back to myself as a child: my favorite character was Batman.

C. The message this sends to white kids like myself is this: you are worthy; you belong.

IV. A negative story about a person or group of people does not seem like a big deal at first, but Adichie shows the deep effects of these narrow stories.

A. “Power is the ability not just to tell the story of another person, but to make it the definitive story of that person” (par. 16).

B. Adichie shares an example of encountering a single story as an adult that illustrates the power of a single story.

C. Looking at current events, we can see how a single story has been used to fuel the war against Ukraine by Russia.

V. Conclusion

A. What we can do to counter the single story: tell and read lots of perspectives

Pro-Tip: The information compiled under each roman numeral will become a paragraph in your final paper. In the previous example, the outline follows the standard five-paragraph essay arrangement, but longer essays will require more paragraphs and thus more roman numerals. If you think that a paragraph might become too long or stringy, add an additional paragraph to your outline, renumbering the main points appropriately.

Writing at Work

PowerPoint presentations, used both in schools and in the workplace, are organized in a way very similar to formal outlines. PowerPoint presentations often contain information in the form of talking points that the presenter develops with more details and examples than are contained on the PowerPoint slide.