History 398.01 (Research and Writing Skills) Fall 1999
M. Hickey OSH 130 x4161
Office Hours: M, W, F, 10-11:45
Here. . . we shall preserve the broadest interpretation of the word 'history.' The word places no a priori prohibitions in the path of inquiry, which may turn at will toward either the individual or the social, toward momentary convulsions or the most lasting developments. It comprises no credo; it commits us, according to its original meaning, to nothing other than 'inquiry.'
Marc Bloch, The Historian's Craft
What is history? . . . a continuous process of interaction between the historian and his facts, an unending dialogue between the present and the past.
E. H. Carr, What is History?
Course Description: This semester we shall concentrate on the process of researching and writing history. That statement conceals many tasks: we must discuss the nature and functions of historical inquiry; the topics open to historical examination; the pursuit of sources; the types of questions that historians ask of their sources, themselves, and other historians; the manner in which schools of historical thought develop and shape our inquiries; the construction of coherent historical arguments; forms of logical organization in support of historical arguments; and the norms of contemporary historical writing. To facilitate these tasks, our seminar this semester will have a common theme, and each of our research topics will in some way relate to that theme.
Common Theme of This Semester's Research: The theme that will provide a common point of focus for our discussions of historical method and historiography, and that will frame each of your research topics, is Historical Memory/Historical Myth. We will each pursue research this semester that in some way relates this theme.
History, as we all know, has many different faces and many different functions. The popular or public faces and functions of history are often very different from the history that academics study. Consider, for instance, the difference between the kind of history presented on "The History Channel" and the kinds of history presented in your college courses. One of the important public (or popular) functions that history fills is the creation and sustenance of a society’s myths—or what we might call our shared (or sometimes official) historical memory. Think, for instance, about the way that the "story" of the Pilgrims serves as part of our "foundation myth" in the US. Historians often spend a good deal of their time explaining the difference between the history that we "remember" on the one hand and the history that can be extracted and interpreted from source evidence on the other. In the last decade or so, historians have become very interested in how and why we make (or construct) historical myths and historical memory. This semester we all will conduct research projects related to the general problem of how and why historical memory or historical myths are made.
I want each of you to design research projects in which you do one of the following: A) examine an historical myth, trace its creation and propagation, and seek through analysis of source material to explain its function(s) at particular historical junctures; B) examine the process by which a historical development or event was perceived, understood, and passed into memory over time; C) examine the process by which a dominant academic historical interpretation emerged (or was dethroned). An example of (A) would be, for instance, the idea that FDR knew about the bombing of Pearl Harbor in advance but deliberately did nothing. An example of (B) would be, for instance, a study Civil War memorials erected in PA towns and their function in creating a "shared memory" of the war. An example of (C) would be, for instance, the rise (or fall) of Turner’s "Frontier Thesis" explaining American political and social life.
One of the advantages of this thematic approach is that it (potentially) allows you to ask and answer big research questions in a one-semester course. This semester you may conduct research on any approved research question related to the theme Historical Memory/Historical Myths. To answer this question, you will conduct extensive research in primary (as well as secondary) sources and prepare several reports on your research as it develops. The final product of your research will be an original historical essay that poses a well-defined historical question, analyzes primary source evidence, and presents a thesis that answers your question and places your answer in the context of other historical inquiries.
Approval of Topics: You will formulate your own research question, but I must approve your topic at several stages of the research and writing process. I urge you to think of your historical inquiry as covering a great number of possible topics and approaches. Within the rubric of Historical Memory/Historical Myth, you can address questions of biography, political history, cultural and intellectual history, economic history, business history, labor history, agrarian history, military or social history (including issues of gender, race, ethnicity, and class). You can focus your investigation on PA, the US, or any locality in the world. You can concentrate your inquiry on any historical period except the period from 1992-1999.
In thinking about your topic, remember that:
a) you must have a clearly articulated research question;
b) you must be able to frame your inquiry in terms of its historiographical importance (how does it fit into larger questions that historians are asking);
c) you must be able to locate and use a significant body of source materials directly related to your question;
d) your topic must focus on a period before 1992.
Required Texts (in the bookstore):
Marius, Richard. A Short Guide to Writing About History. New York: Longman, 1999.
Assignments: You will complete a series of assignments designed to guide you through the process of writing a formal paper based upon original research. Every assignment must be completed to complete the course. Failure to complete any assignment will result in failure for the entire course. Attendance of all class sessions is required. If you miss a scheduled session, you can not complete that day’s assignment, and you will therefore fail the course. (I will make exceptions only in cases of emergencies and documented illness, etc.)
Reading Assignment: For 31 August, read Marius, introduction and chapter 1. We will discuss this reading, and your participation in discussion is considered a mandatory assignment.
Reading Assigment: For 2 September, read Marius, chapters 2 and 3. We will discuss this reading, and your participation in discussion is considered a mandatory assignment.
Article Precis: From any historical journal in our library, select an article that is somehow related to the topic you are considering. By historical journal, I mean a scholarly journal, such as The American Historical Review, The Journal of American History, or The Journal of Social History, that publishes the original research of historians (not a magazine). By article, I mean a research essay (not a book review). I must approve your choice. Write a one-page precis that explains the author's thesis. This assignment will account for 5 percent of your grade. I will grade your paper on the basis of its accuracy, logic, and clarity. Due 7 September, and you will report on your article on that same day.
Book Precis: Chose a monograph by a historian on a topic related to your research topic. Get my approval, then read the book. Write a 1-2 page precis of this book. Explain the book's thesis without quoting. This assignment will account for 5 percent of your grade. I will grade your paper on the basis of its accuracy, logic, and clarity. Due 9 September, and you will report on your book on that same day.
Source Analysis 1: I will present you with a handout containing primary source material. Based upon this material, write a paper (1-3 pp.) that presents a thesis to explain the evidence and explains your reasoning in constructing this thesis. You must bring your paper and two photocopies of your paper to class. You will trade papers with two people in class, and you will read and comment (in handwriting as well as orally) on each other’s papers. You will turn in your paper and the two photocopies with comments (signed by the reader) at the end of class. We will discuss your interpretations of the evidence in class. Due 14 September. Completing this assignment and participating in the discussion will account for 5 percent of your grade.
Source Analysis Two: I will present you with a handout containing several different sources on the same event. Based upon this evidence, you will write a paper that presents: a) a 1-2 page narrative of the event; b) a one paragraph statement of the thesis of your narrative; c) a 1 page explanation of why you stressed particular sources over other sources, and how you decided upon the value/strength of the evidence in each source. . You must bring your paper and two photocopies of your paper to class. You will trade papers with two people in class, and you will read and comment (in handwriting as well as orally) on each other’s papers. You will turn in your paper and the two photocopies with comments (signed by the reader) at the end of class. We will discuss your interpretations of the evidence in class. Due 16 September. Completing this assignment and participating in the discussion will account for 5 percent of your grade.
Topics Conference: You must schedule an appointment with me for the week of 13-17 September. At this conference, we will discuss the topic of your research paper. You must come to this conference with the following:
1. A clearly formulated research question on a specific historical topic that is in some way related to the theme Historical Memory/Historical Myth.
2. A list of secondary sources that you have read/are in the process of reading that are related to your topic and/or provide you with methodological models for your research.
3. A list of primary sources that you plan on consulting in the course of your research.
If you are properly prepared and I approve your topic, then you may proceed with your research. If you are not prepared and/or I do not approve your topic, then you will have to meet with me again. We will repeat this process until I have approved your topic.
Topic approval is a prerequisite to all further graded activities in this class. If I do not approve your topic, you will receive no grade for any further activities. NOTE also that if you make an appointment with me for this or any other conference and then do not attend without prior notice, there will be no opportunity to "make up" the meeting.
Reading Assignment: For 21 September, read and be prepared to discuss Marius, chapter 4.
In-Class Proposal Presentation: You will explain your research proposal to the class in 10 minutes or less and answer questions. This is a mandatory presentation. You will make your presentations on 21, 23, 28, and 30 September.
Formal written research proposal: You must prepare a proposal (5-7 pages) that explains the following:
Your proposal must be on the topic we discussed at your conference. Your proposal will account for 10 percent of your grade. I will grade your proposal on its logic, clarity, and coverage of the issues detailed above. Due 30 September. Your grade will fall 10 percent for every late day.
Bibliography: Prepare a typed bibliography that follows the guidelines in Marius, chapter 6 (section on Bibliographies). You may also use as a guide the sixth edition of Kate L. Turabian, A Manual for Writers of Term Papers, Thesis, and Dissertations (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1996). This bibliography must include all primary and secondary sources that you have identified related to your research. Your bibliography must be divided into the following sections:
This bibliography is mandatory. If it does not follow correct form, I will make you rewrite it until the form is correct. Due 7 October.
Annotated Secondary Source Bibliography: Prepare an annotated bibliography of all of your secondary sources. The annotated bibliography should follow the same format as your bibliography, with this exception: each entry must be followed by an annotation of one sentence to a paragraph in length that either explains the book/article's thesis or explains how the information in the book/article relates to your research. This requires that you read the sources before writing your annotated bibliography! In some cases, you will have to explain that the source is of no use for your research. In a very few cases I will allow you to base an annotation upon catalogue descriptions of the source (if you have not yet obtained the source itself). But you must have annotations for all of your secondary sources. This assignment will account for 10 percent of your grade, and I will grade it on the basis of the clarity of your annotations and attention to proper form. Due 14 October.
First Midterm Project Status Report: On 19 and 21 October, you will present the class with a status report on your project. Explain what sources you have found, how these sources are helping you answer your question, and the problems you are confronting in your research. This is a mandatory presentation.
Annotated Primary Source Bibliography: Prepare an annotated bibliography of all of your primary sources. The annotated bibliography should follow the same format as the bibliography, with this exception: each entry must be followed by an annotation of one sentence to a paragraph in length that explains exactly how the information in each source relates to your own research. This requires that you read the sources before writing your annotated bibliography. In some cases, you will have to explain that the source is of no use for your research. In a very few cases I will allow you to base an annotation upon catalogue descriptions of the source (if you have not yet obtained the source itself). But you must have annotations for all of your primary sources. This assignment will account for 10 percent of your grade, and I will grade it on the basis of the clarity of your annotations and attention to proper form. Due 4 November.
Reading Assignment: Be sure to read Marius, chapter 6-8. I will hold you accountable for material in these chapters on documentation, form, style, etc. If you have questions about this material, then be sure to make an appointment and discuss them with me.
Second Midterm Project Status Report: On 9-11 November, you will present the class with a status report on your project. Explain what sources you have found, how these sources are helping you answer your question, and the problems you are confronting in your research. This is a mandatory presentation.
Draft: On Tuesday, 16 November, you will turn in a draft of your entire paper (20-25 pages plus endnotes). Remember, a draft does not mean your first draft! I expect that you will have already gone through several drafts and rewrites before you turn in your paper.
Your draft must include the following elements:
A) An introduction, in which you define your question clearly and explain how it fits into the context of what historians have written on this issue;
DO NOT INCLUDE A BIBLIOGRAHY!
I will comment at length on your drafts during individual conferences on 22-23 and 29-30 November and 1 December. Completing the draft of your entire paper on time will account for 10 percent of your grade. I will not accept incomplete papers, and I will lower the grade by 10 percent for each day your paper is late. If you do not attend the individual conference on the date scheduled, you will receive no points for your draft.
Research Presentation: You will present your research on 2, 7, and 9 December. Explain your question and your thesis, how your thesis fits into the historiography on your topic, what evidence and methods you have used in your research, and the structure of your argument. Then sum up by restating your thesis and explaining the relationship between your findings and the work of other historians.
Final paper: Your final paper (20-25 pages plus endnotes) is due by 4:30 on 17 December. It must be a complete, revised paper that takes into consideration the comments I made on your drafts. The final paper will account for 40 percent of your grade, and I will base the grade upon the paper’s logic, clarity, use of primary sources, demonstration of relationship to other historiography, and strict adherence to guidelines for form, citations, etc.
Calendar of Class Meetings and Assignments
31 Aug. First meeting. Discuss syllabus; Marius, intro.& ch. 1.
2 Sept. Marius, ch. 2-3.
9 Sept. Article Precis.
11 Sept. Book Precis.
13-17 Sept. Topics Conferences.
14 Sept. Source Analysis 1.
16 Sept. Source Analysis Two.
21 Sept. Marius, ch. 4.
21, 23, 28, and 30 Sept. Proposal Presentations.
30 Sept. Formal written research proposal.
5 Oct. No class meeting.
7 Oct. No class meeting. Bibliography.
12 Oct. No class meeting.
14 Oct. No class meeting. Annotated Secondary Source Bibliography.
19 and 21 Oct. First Midterm Project Status Report.
26 Oct. No class meeting.
28 Oct. No class meeting. Be sure to read Marius, ch. 6-8!
2 Nov. No class meeting.
4 Nov. No class meeting. Annotated Primary Source Bibliography.
9 and 11 Nov. Second Midterm Project Status Report
16 Nov. Draft!!!
22-23 and 29-30 November and 1 December. Draft Conferences.
2, 7, 9 Dec. Research Presentations.
FINAL REVISED PAPER DUE BY 4:30 on 17 DECEMBER.
Final Grade Scale:
A=1,000-920; A-=919-900; B+=899-880; B=879-820; B-=819-800; C+=799-780; C=779-720; C-=719-700; D+=699-680; D=679-600; E=599-0