Funnel Opener

• Establishes context for the essay

• Begins general then narrows your focus

Sample Introductory Funnel Paragraph

Only a few politicians have taken a craftsman’s pride in self-expression, and fewer still--Caesar, Lord Clarendon, Winston Churchill, De Gaulle—have been equally successful in politics and authorship. Of these, Churchill may be the most interesting, for he was not only among the most voluminous of writers, but also commented freely on the art of writing. He was, in fact, a writer becoming a politician.

An Introductory Funnel Paragraph

Those politician who took pride in self expression

Those who were equally successful

in politics and authorship

The most interesting of

these: Churchill

Churchill as

writer