Abstracts
Based on the presentation of dr. Jeffrey Verhey, Humboldt University Berlin


2
1.Mini-texts – summary of the article.
2.Screening devices – help readers decide whether they wish to invite you to the conference (/if a
conference abstract) or read the whole article (if a journal article).
3.Used, with title, for electronic search engines
4.Previews – offering a roadmap

Possible answers:

Brown’s Eight Questions
•Who are your intended readers?
•What did you do?
•Why did you do it?
•What happened
•What do the results mean in theory?
•What do the results mean in practice?
•What is the key benefit for your readers?
•What remains unresolved?

Make sure that your conference abstract shows your
•1) big picture
•2) gap in the literature
•3) how your project fills that the gap
•4) the specific material (or methodology) that you use to answer that question (gap)
•5) your argument.
•6) a strong conclusion.
http://theprofessorisin.com/2011/07/12/how-today-how-to-write-a-paper-abstract/

•Each contained in a single sentence.
•1.Big picture
•=topic that is being intensively debated in your field/fields, possibly with reference to scholars
•“The question of xxx has been widely debated in xxx field, with scholars such as xxx and xx
arguing  xxx]”.
•2.  Gap in the literature on this topic.
•the key sentence of the abstract
•“However, these works/articles/ arguments/perspectives have not adequately addressed the issue of
xxxx.”.
•
http://theprofessorisin.com/2011/07/12/how-today-how-to-write-a-paper-abstract/

o3:  Your project fills this gap
•“My paper addresses the issue of xx with special attention to xxx”.
•
o4: (length here depends on your total word allowance, and more sentences may be possible):
•The specific material that you are examining–your data, your texts, etc.
•“Specifically, in my project, I will be looking at xxx and xxx, in order to show xxxx.  I will
discuss xx and xx, and juxtapose them against xx and xx, in order to reveal the previously
misunderstood connections between xx and xx.”
•
o5:  Your main argument and contribution, concisely and clearly stated.
•“I argue that…”
•
o6:  Strong Conclusion!
•“In conclusion, this project, by closely examining xxxxx, sheds new light on the neglected/little
recognized/rarely acknowledged issue of xxxxx. “.
http://theprofessorisin.com/2011/07/12/how-today-how-to-write-a-paper-abstract/

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