ASK YOURSELF TWO QUESTIONS:

• Does it bring the discussion to a logical close?
• Does it strategically engage readers and make the material presented seem more memorable?

TRY ONE OF THESE STRATEGIES:

• Use a transitional phrase which summarizes the main points or restates the thesis of your essay. For example: "As we have seen, poverty can create the kind of frustration, despair, desperation, and drug use that contributes to crime; therefore, working to alleviate poverty may be one of the most effective ways to prevent crime." This is called a "summary statement." Avoid the cliché phrases, "In summary," or "In closing," or "In conclusion," etc. These work better in speeches; in writing they come across as wooden and trite.
• Use any of the strategies you used in your introduction to help you get the reader's attention and motivate him/her to keep thinking about your topic.
• Create a satisfying sense of closure by referring back in some creative way to your introductory anecdote or scenario. Resume and then end the story, so to speak.
• Draw a conclusion! (That is, present the generalized idea that logically follows from your discussion. You're attempting to clarify consequences, results, or implications.)
• Elaborate on a vision of the future that logically follows from your discussion.
• Call for action. Invite your readers to undertake specific actions which seem necessary according to your discussion.