Fall 2011 Historiography

This course has two basic components. The first is an introduction to Historiography. The second is an introduction to basic historical research methods.

Historiography is the history of historical writing. In this course, we will discuss ways historians over time have understood the history's meaning and purposes. Understanding historiography is a means of understanding a culture's intellectual history. But it also is integral to doing historical research.

Historians ask questions about the past, which they try to answer by reading and interpreting evidence from the past (primary sources). Historians do not study the past in some kind of vacuum. They think about the various historical contexts that relate to their sources. That requires knowing as much as is possible about the time period you are studying.

As you will find in this course (and in History 398), historians are always engaged in “conversations” about their sources and the past. Historians are always asking questions and “interrogating” their sources. And historians are always involved in “conversations” with all the other historians who have written (and are writing) on the same topic. If you don't know what other historians have written and argued about your topic—if you don't know the historiography on your topic—then you really can't do serious historical research on that topic.

This course introduces you to historiography and helps you "learn how to learn" skills essential to becoming a good historian. To be a good historian requires more than just loving history and knowing a lot of facts. To be a good historian also requires that you know how “to do history.” This course concentrates on three fundamental skills that a good historian must develop: “reading for argument,” asking good historical questions, and finding sources.

Some of you might be thinking “Wait a minute! I’m going to teach 9^th grade US history, so I don’t need to know how to do historical research or any of this other stuff!” Well, think about it this way: it really is not possible to teach something that you do not understand how to do yourself. A 9^th grade math teacher must know how to “do” math. A 9^th grade Spanish teacher must be able actually speak Spanish. Being a good history teacher is not just about loving history and “knowing a lot of facts.” Being a good history teacher also requires that you think about what History “means,” how historians turn the past into history, how researchers find and analyze sources, how historians build arguments, how historical arguments fit into patterns (schools), and how people’s understanding of the past relates to cultural/historical contexts. To be a good history teacher, you also need to know how to do history.

And for those of you who are History majors or minors, but who don’t plan on being a professional historian or history teacher—the skills that you learn in this course are applicable to almost any intellectual activity that requires reading and thinking about what you read.

This course is designed to help you learn how to “do history” by reading for argument, asking good historical questions, and finding sources relevant to your research interests. It is a pre-requisite for History 398, Research and Writing. Moreover, the skills you will develop in this course are essential to success in all other upper-level history courses.

If you take your work in this course seriously, it will help you:

ü relate the development of history as a scholarly discipline to broader historical contexts

ü recognize and accurately explain the argument in a historical study

ü compare and contrast the arguments of different historians

ü differentiate between various "schools" of historical analysis

ü use historical research tools to finding primary and secondary sources on a topic

ü define clearly-conceived topics for historical research

ü frame and clarify coherent historical research questions

ü organize the first stages of a historical research project

The course is designed as a series of mini-lectures and seminar discussions on historiography. We will also have seminar discussions on readings and exercises concerning historical methods.

The course assignments are designed to develop key skills. These assignments include:

Ø Library and online research exercises

Ø Writing assignments that focus on explaining arguments in secondary sources

Ø Writing assignments and conferences on defining clear topics for historical research

Ø Writing assignments and conferences on defining clear questions for historical research

Ø Compilation of bibliographies of secondary and primary sources

Ø Writing assignments that focus on the historiography of a specific topic

Ø Writing assignments that develop a research prospective on a specific topic

Required Texts:

You must buy one book for this course:

Rampolla, Mary Lynn. A Pocket Guide to Writing in History, 6th Edition. Boston:

Bedford-St. Martins, 2010.

There are other required readings for the course, though!

In the Weekly Syllabus, you will find reading assignments that are either available full-text online, or are linked to BOLT, or are in the BU library on reserve. I also will be giving you other short readings, which I will distribute or announce in class.

In addition, you will read at least 10 books (or the equivalent) by historians about the topic that you pick for your historiography project.

Grade Components:

Your grade will be based upon the following assignments:

· Class Participation (10 percent of course grade; 100 points possible)

· Multi-Part Library Assignment (10 percent of course grade; 100 points possible)

· Definition of Historiography Topic (5 percent of course grade; 50 points)

· Revised Historiography Reading List (5 percent of course grade; 50 points possible)

· Definition of Research Project Question (5 percent of course grade; 50 points)

· Common Reading Précis Assignment (5 percent of course grade; 50 points possible)

· 2 Individual Reading Précis Assignments (5 percent each; 50 points possible)

· Primary Source Locator Assignment (10 percent of course grade; 100 points possible)

· Historiographic Essay (20 percent of course grade; 200 points possible)

· Research Project Proposal (20 percent of course grade; 200 points possible)

Course grade scale:

A = >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

F = <600

Course Policies:

1. Verification that you have read the syllabus and course policies (mandatory):

I require that you sign a form verifying that you: a) have read this syllabus; b) are aware of course policies and procedures.

Follow this link to fill out the form: Link to the "Verification Document" Form

If you have questions about the syllabus, course policies, or assignments, it is your responsibility to ask those questions. It is my responsibility to answer those questions as clearly and directly as possible.

I will not grade any of your assignments until you have verified that you have read the syllabus and are aware of course policies and procedures.

2. Plagiarism Policy:

This course has a zero tolerance policy regarding plagiarism and other forms of cheating. For the definitions of plagiarism as they apply to this course, see this link on plagiarism.

If I determine that you have cheated or plagiarized on any assignment, I will strictly follow university guidelines: a) You will receive a failing grade for the assignment; b) I will file a formal report with BU’s Student Standards Board, which can lead to your academic dismissal. If you are found to have cheated or plagiarized more than once in this course, you will fail the course.

The University's Academic Integrity Policy and an explanation of the appeals process regarding violations of academic integrity can be found in the online version of the BU student handbook, The Pilot.

3. Attendance policy:

Attendance of all regularly scheduled course sessions is mandatory, except in cases of excused absences (which are explained below).

The attendance policy in this course is relevant to all aspects of the course grade.

Because you cannot participate when you do not attend, your “Participation” grade will drop in direct proportion to your unexcused absences. For example, a student who misses 20 percent of class sessions with unexcused absences will have 20 points deducted from his or her participation grade.

4. Excused absences:

An excused absence refers to a case when a student misses class because of illness, a family emergency, or a University-related event, and has either informed the instructor in writing in advance or provided the instructor with University-approved documentation excusing the absence after the fact.

5. Late or missed assignments:

All assignments are due by the end of the university business day (5:00 PM) on the date indicated on the assignment. 10 percent will be deducted from that grade of any assignment per day that the assignment is late (with the first day starting at 5 PM on the due date). At the instructor's discretion, this policy may be waved in the case of excused absences.

Missing a scheduled conference will result in automatic failure of the conference assignment, except in the case of an excused absence.

Mandatory Paper Form:

ü All papers must be in 12 point Times Roman font (double spaced, one inch margins).

ü Type your name in the top right hand corner of p. 1 (no cover pages!).

ü Number all pages (preferred, number bottom center).

ü Staple papers in the top left hand corner.

ü Do not "double-skip" between paragraphs (In Word, in the “paragraph” menu, check

“Don’t add space between paragraphs of the same style”).

ü All quotations must be in quotation marks (exception = block quotations).

ü Cite source of all quotations, paraphrases, and direct summaries using correct endnotes

(exception = précis papers).

ü To prevent plagiarism and use notes properly, see Rampolla, Ch. 6 and 7; course links

On Plagiarism and On Endnote Form.

A NOTE ON GETTING THE MOST OUT F THE RAMPOLLA TEXT

Every chapter in Rampolla’s Pocket Guide can help you in work for this course and in other History courses. We will not discuss very chapter in class, however—in general, I expect you to read the sections of the book that contain “how to” information for writing papers on your own. These will help you with details about writing style and documentation by providing suggestions and examples. If you have questions, of course, we will discuss any and all of the book relevant to your questions.

It is very important that you read the entire book carefully, even if we do not discuss it all in class. If you have questions about any section of the book, ask in class, so that we can discuss it!

Explanations of Graded Assignments:

Class Participation (10 percent; 100 points possible)

As stated above, historians engage in conversations about the past. Learning how to discuss ideas in clear, coherent language is a critical skill for any historian or history teacher.

Moreover, learning about history (or any subject) is most effective when it is an active process—when learner participates by asking and answering questions and by discussing what they are learning.

For these reasons, participation will count for part of your course grade.

Your participation grade will be based on the quality of your contributions to class discussions.

You must attend every class session having completed all readings for that session. You will earn a participation grade of at least a “C” if you attend all class sessions having completed the readings.

To earn a grade higher than a “C,” you must contribute actively to class discussions by asking and answering questions and participating actively in group work. I assign you grade based upon the quality of your contributions; I will measure the quality of your contributions based upon the degree to which they reflect careful reading of assignments and careful thought about the topic under discussion. (In other words, don’t think that you can walk into class without doing the work and BS your way into a good participation grade.)

Because you can’t participate if you are not in class, your participation grade will fall in direct ratio to the percentage of class meetings that you miss. So, if you miss ten percent of class sessions, your grade will fall by 10 percent (etc).

Multi-Part Library Assignment (10 percent; 100 points)

There is a Multi-Part Library Assignment linked to this syllabus. The assignment is designed to help sharpen research skills and habits that a good historian must develop.

The assignment is divided into two sections: Section A (Secondary Sources); and

Section B (Primary Sources). Each section is sub-divided into several exercises, which require you to complete several tasks.

Read the directions for each part carefully before beginning that portion of the assignment!

You must complete each portion of the assignment on schedule (see the weekly schedule).

You will get credit for a portion of the assignment only if you have completed it correctly, according to the instructions. If you have made errors, you will have two business days after I return your paper to correct that portion of the assignment. If, when you turn in the revised paper, it is correct, then you will receive credit; if not, you will receive no credit.

If you complete the entire library assignment, you will receive full credit. Your grade will fall in direct ratio to the number of portions you fail to complete correctly.

Link to the Library Assignment

Definition of a Topic for Your Historiography Project (5 percent; 50 points)

Pick a historical topic that interests you. I must approve your topic.

Please note that there are some topics that I will not approve, either because the experience of previous students has shown that these topics are not really tenable for semester-long historiography or research paper projects (e.g., most topics concerning the Mafia), or because the faculty who teach History 398 consider the topics “overdone” and are unlikely to approve a research paper project when you make the transition to your Research and Writing course (e.g., the JFK assassination, the bombing of Pearl Harbor, the Molly Maguires). If I do not approve your topic, it is because I want to be sure that you can complete an acceptable Historiography paper this semester and/or prevent you from having to start again from scratch with your historiography when you are in History 398.

Once you have an approved topic, you will read 10-20 secondary sources (books by historians) to learn about the topic and to learn about the historiography on the topic (what other historians have argued about the topic).

Because you will concentrate on the same topic for a entire semester (and maybe for two semesters), you want to pick a topic that will hold your interest. Also, assignments related to your topic will account for more than half of your grade in this course.

Pick a topic that is "do-able" in one semester—in other words, a topic that is not so broad that it would require several semesters to master the key readings (“the history of the Civil War is too broad!), but not so narrow that you won’t find enough books to read (“the history of Bloomsburg's Fourth of July Parade in 1905" is too narrow).

To ensure that you choose a "do-able" project, and prevent you from spending a lot of time going down dead-end streets, I require that you:

ü Sign up for an individual conference to discuss your topic.

ü At this 10 minute conference, give me a clear written statement that defines your topic.

(One paragraph, in complete and grammatical sentences.)

ü At this 10 minute conference, give me with a reading list of at least 15 secondary

sources on your topic. At least 10 of these must be books.

ü The reading list must be comprised of scholarly books by historians, or book chapters or

research-based articles by historians published in scholarly journals.

ü Your reading list of must be in proper bibliographic form (see Rampolla, chapter 7).

ü If I approve your topic and reading list, you will receive full credit (5 percent).

ü If I do not approve your topic and reading list, you can repeat the process once.

ü If you fail to schedule a conference, or if you fail to attend your scheduled conference

appointment, you will fail this assignment.

SOME VERY IMPORTANT TIPS ON TAKING NOTES AS YOU READ FOR YOUR HISTORIORAPHY PROJECT:

ü Keep careful bibliographic records (name, title, publication info) on everything you read.

ü Take careful notes on each author's thesis, as well as their sources, and whatever they say about how their

argument relates to other historical interpretations.

ü Make sure your notes indicate the exact page numbers for key quotations, etc.

ü Take notes on the relative strengths and weaknesses of each work.

ü Think about how historians' questions and interpretations have changed over

time--which means pay attention to when each book was written.

ü Try to fit the each authors' interpretation into a "group" or "school" of

similar interpretations based on what you have already read.

Revised Historiography Project Reading List (5 percent; 50 points possible)

ü Once you begin reading, you will find that some titles are more important than others.

You also will learn about important titles that were not on your initial list.

ü Therefore, you will revise and supplement your reading list.

ü Your revised reading list must include at least 15 secondary sources on your topic.

ü Your revised list must include the most important scholarly books and articles on your

topic. (If there is a title that shows up in "everyone's" bibliography, then it

should be on your reading list!)

ü Your revised list should include several titles from different decades, so you can trace

changes in historical interpretation over time.

ü Your revised list must be in proper bibliographic form (see Rampolla, chapter 7).

70 percent of your grade will be based upon your inclusion of the most significant appropriate works (scholarly books and articles); 30 percent will be based on use of correct bibliography form.

Common Reading Précis Assignment (5 percent; 50 points possible)

A précis is a very concise summary—in this case, of the thesis of a book or article.

Why do this? Because you can’t agree or disagree with what a historian argues if you don’t understand the author's main point (the "thesis").

Remember, historians don't just list "facts"! They read evidence, and they interpret evidence and propose arguments to explain what the "facts" mean.

Writing a précis of an article, chapter, or book requires that you grasp the author's main point and boil it down to a few paragraphs. (See the Rampolla section on writing "Summaries.")

You all have a common reading assignment, an article from a scholarly journal:

Jeanette Keith, "The Politics of Southern Draft Resistance, 1917–1918: Class, Race, and Conscription in the Rural South," Journal of American History 87, no. 4 (March 2001): 1335-1361.

ü Use your library skills to obtain a copy of this article

ü Read the article and take careful notes.

ü We will discuss this article in class

ü You then will write a 1 page précis of the article.

ü Without quoting the author, explain the article’s thesis (main point) in one or two paragraphs.

ü Begin by clearly stating the fundamental problem or question that the author is trying to solve or answer. (Historians write history to answer questions about the past or solve

problems in understanding the past.)

ü Then explain the article's main argument.

ü The paper must follow the mandatory paper format.

I will grade the précis on the basis of its logic, clarity, and accuracy.

Definition of Questions for a Research Project (5 percent; 50 points)

Choosing a topic is the starting point for historical research. But before you

can begin serious work with primary sources, you need to define your basic

research questions.

The questions you ask can shape the types of primary sources you need and the

methods you use to analyze those sources.

Defining a clear historical research question is not as easy as you might think.

Remember, you will only have one semester to write your paper in History 398.

So you need to avoid questions that are simply too big to answer in an undergraduate research project (for example, "How have big oil companies shaped US foreign policy?"--that would take years to research.).

At the same time, you need to define a real question, a question worth spending a semester trying to answer.

So, avoid questions that don't require research (for example, "Did the US aid the Shah of Iran?"--that is a basic fact!).

And avoid questions that don't really add to understanding of larger historical issues (for example, "What kind of guns did marines at the US embassy in Iran have in 1979?" is not a significant question).

Remember, you are planning a research project in a history course. So avoid questions that can't be answered by historical research, even though they might be important (for example, "Was it moral for the US to aid the Shah?" is an important thing to ask, but it is not really answerable on the basis of historical research).

OK, so far I’ve only told you what to avoid. But how do you start defining a clear historical research question?

Well, first you have to know enough about the topic to know what the important issues are, and you have to know what other historians have argued about these topics. And that means there is a strong linkage between the reading that you are doing for your historiography project and finding research questions. So you should be thinking about "do-able" research questions while you are reading the books and articles on your secondary source reading list.

Once you have a question (or questions), you must:

ü Meet with me for a brief (10 minute) conference to discuss your research

ü questions.

ü At that conference, present me with a clear written definition of your main

ü research question or questions.

ü This written statement should one or two paragraphs, in complete and grammatical sentences.

ü It should explain the question and explain why that question is worth asking (in other words, why is it of historical significance—not why you think it is “cool”).

If your questions are clear, well-focused, and appear answerable on the basis of historical research, you will receive full credit (5 percent).

If your questions are not clear, well-focused, and answerable, you will repeat the process until I approve of your questions.

If you fail to attend your scheduled conference appointment or fail to schedule a conference, you will fail this assignment.

Individual Précis No. 1 (5 percent; 50 points possible)

Pick the most important book from your reading list.

Write a précis (a summary) of the book's thesis. (See Rampolla, "Summaries.")

The book must be:

ü a secondary source

ü By a single author

ü a monograph in book form (not a textbook!)

ü published by a scholarly press

In a one-page précis:

Ø Without quoting, explain the author's thesis (main point) in one or two

paragraphs (max. length of one page).

Ø At the head of your paper, identify the author, title, and publication

information for the book using bibliography form (see Rampolla).

Ø Begin your paper by clearly stating the book's fundamental question.

Ø Then explain the thesis.

Remember, explain the thesis. Don't simply describe the topic of the book!

I will grade each précis based on its logic, clarity, and accuracy.

Individual Précis No. 2 (5 percent; 50 points possible)

Pick the second most important book from your reading and write a précis on that book, following the same directions as Individual Précis No. 1.

I will grade each précis based on its logic, clarity, and accuracy.

Primary Source Locator Assignment (10 percent; 100 points)

When historians write research papers, they build their argument on what they find in primary sources. You are a historian-in-training, and when you take History 398, you will write a research paper based on primary sources.

This assignment is designed to get you looking for primary sources on your topic.

PART 1

ü Locate and identify an obtainable primary source collection (for example, a

collection of published documents, a book series, a set of newspaper, a

microfilm collection, or digital archive) that contains sources relevant to your

research.

ü Schedule a conference to discuss this primary source collection.

ü At the conference, give me a written identification the source collection in

correct bibliography form (see Rampolla).

If I approve, you can go on to PART 2. If not, you must redo Part 1.

PART 2.

Write a 2-3 page paper that:

Ø in its heading, identifies the source collection in bibliography form (based on

Rampolla )

Ø describes in detail the types of information found in this source collection

Ø explains the questions you might address using these sources

Ø explains why these sources are relevant to those questions.

REMEMBER, I am asking you to identify a collection of sources, not a specific document!

I will grade your paper on the basis of its logic and clarity and your use of correct form.

If you schedule a conference then fail to attend, or if you fail to meet with me for source approval, you will fail the assignment.

Historiographic Essay (20 percent; 200 points possible)

In this paper, you will analyze what other historians have argued about your topic.

You must also explain how historical interpretations on your topic have changed over time, and you must explain the differences between “schools” of historical

interpretation regarding your topic.

In other words, compare and contrast what many historians have argued about your topic.

Preparing for your paper:

ü You must analyze at least 10 secondary sources (10 books or the equivalent in

books and articles).

ü You must include a representative sample of works written about your topic

over time.

ü You must discuss the most important books and articles on your topic.

SOME VERY IMPORTANT TIPS:

ü Keep careful bibliographic records.

ü Take careful notes on each author's thesis, their sources, and how their

argument relates to other historical interpretations.

ü Make sure your notes indicate the exact page numbers for key quotations, etc.

ü Take notes on the relative strengths and weaknesses of each work.

ü Think about how historians' questions and interpretations have changed over

time.

ü Try to fit the each authors' interpretation into a "group" or "school" of

similar interpretations.

Writing your paper:

Ø Your must present and defend a thesis.

Ø The thesis is your main argument about the major trends (patterns) in historical interpretation of your topic.

Ø Your goal is to make an argument about the historiography, not about the topic

itself.

Ø You must present detailed evidence from your secondary sources, including

properly identified and cited quotations.

Ø Explain patterns of interpretation chronologically or thematically (which ever

makes most sense for your topic).

Ø You must provide proper endnote citations to all sources quoted, paraphrased,

or summarized in your paper.

Ø Your paper must be at least 7 pages long, not counting the endnotes.

I will grade this paper based on the logic of your argumentation, the clarity of your presentation, the accuracy of your analysis of secondary sources, your use

of appropriate sources, and your use of proper form for quotations and endnotes (which will account for 20 percent of the grade).

Research Project Prospectus (20 percent; 200 points possible)

Most professors who teach History 498 (Research and Writing Skills) will require that you write a research proposal or prospectus.

Writing a prospectus is a good skill to learn. It requires that you think carefully about your topic, the questions you want to answer, why those questions are important, how they relate to what other historians have written, and what sources you will need for your research.

If you have done all you assignments to this point, have already done most of the work for the prospectus. Now you must put it all together.

You will write a brief prospectus.

PART 1: The first part of your paper should be about 5 pages long. It must explain:

Ø The general topic (e.g., the history of the Great Depression in the United

States).

Ø Your specific topic (e.g., ethnic and religious tensions in Pennsylvania

mining communities in the 1930s).

Ø Your precise research questions (e.g., did employers manipulate those tensions

as a anti-union strategy?).

Ø How your question relates to what other historians have argued about this

topic or related topics.

Ø How answering your question could add to our understanding of the topic.

Ø What primary sources you will use to answer this question.

Ø How you will draw answers out of those primary sources (methodology).

Part 2: Attach a typed bibliography that follows the guidelines in Rampolla.

Ø Make sure that it is in correct bibliography form.

Ø It must include all your primary and secondary sources

Ø It must be divided into two sections: Primary Sources, and Secondary Sources.

I will grade your proposal based on its logic, clarity, and thoroughness. I will grade your bibliography based on its inclusion of key sources and use of

accurate form. The proposal will account for 75 percent of the grade; the bibliography for 25 percent of the grade.

Weekly Schedule of Assignments and Due Dates:

I may alter the dates of some assignments during the semester, so check the schedule every week!

_______

Rampolla refers to Mary Lynn Rampolla, A Pocket Guide to Writing in History.

_______

Week I:

Tuesday, 30 August:

Introduction to this course; Introduction to the Library Assignments;

For Thursday, read Rampolla Chapter 1 and Chapter 2.

ALSO, do individual readings on topics that interest you, to help you decide on your topic for the historiography project. You might start by reviewing sections that interested you in textbooks that you have used in intro level history courses.

Thursday, 2 September:

Introduction to topic of "Historiography"

Discuss nature of historical questions and sources

Discuss Rampola reading in class

For next Tues., read Rampolla Ch. 4, section on "Approaching a History Assignment " and "Thinking Like a Historian" and Chapter 5, section on "Moving

From Topic to Research Question: Choosing a Topic"

Continue individual readings on topics that interest you, to help you decide on your topic for the historiography project. You might start by reviewing sections that interested you in textbooks that you have used in intro level history courses.

Week II:

Tuesday, 6 September:

Discussion of Library Assignment A

Discussion of Rampolla Ch. 4, section on "Approaching a History Assignment " and "Thinking Like a Historian" and Chapter 5, section on "Moving From Topic to Research Question: Choosing a Topic"

!! In class exercise: Topic vs Thesis !!

Mini-lecture/discussion: History in Ancient Western Civilizations.

In-class signup for Historiography project topic conference times.

Thursday, 8 September:

CONFERENCES Historiography Project Topic CONFERENCES.

DUE: Library Assignment Part A 1

Week III:

Tuesday, 13 September:

CONFERENCES Historiography Project Topic CONFERENCES.

Thursday, 15 September:

Discuss Library Assignment A 2 and A 3.

Finish Lecture/discussion: History in Ancient Western Civilizations

Start Lecture/discussion: History in Late Antiquity and Medieval Europe

!! In class exercise: Find the Thesis Statement !!

Start reading books and articles on your Historiography project reading list. See link to tips on taking notes as you read for your Historiography project.

Week IV:

Tuesday, 20 September:

Discussion of Library Assignment Parts A 4 and A5

Finish lecture/discussion: History in Medieval Europe

!! In class exercise: Find the Thesis Statement !!

Start lecture/discussion: History in the Renaissance and Reformation

Continue reading books and articles on your Historiography project reading list. See link to tips on taking notes as you read for your Historiography project.

DUE: Library Assignment Parts A 2 and A 3

Thursday, 21 September:

Discussion of Library Assignment Part B

Lecture/discussion: History and the Enlightenment

DUE: Library Assignment Parts A 4 and A 5

Continue reading books and articles on your Historiography project reading list. See link to tips on taking notes as you read for your Historiography project.

Next Tuesday your revised Historiography project reading list is due—so you should be paying attention as you read figure out which are the 15 most important books (secondary sources!) on your topic.

Week V:

Tuesday, 27 September:

Discussion of Library Assignment Parts B1 and B2

Finish Lecture/Discussion: History and the Enlightenment

Start Lecture/Discussion: History and 19^th Century Social Theories

Continue reading books and articles on your Historiography project reading list. See link to tips on taking notes as you read for your Historiography project.

Due: Revised Historiography Project Reading List

Thursday, 29 September:

Lecture/Discussion: History and Social Theory in the 19^th Century, Marx

!! In class exercise: Find the Thesis Statement !!

DUE: Library Assignment Parts B 1 and B 2

Continue reading books and articles on your Historiography project reading list. See link to tips on taking notes as you read for your Historiography project.

Week VI:

Tuesday, 4 October:

Discussion of Library Assignment Parts B 3 and B 4

Lecture/Discussion: History as a Science?—Ranke and Positivism

!! In class exercise: Find the Thesis Statement !!

Continue reading books and articles on your Historiography project reading list. See link to tips on taking notes as you read for your Historiography project.

Thursday, 6 October:

Lecture/Discussion: History, Nation Building, and Intellectual Crisis in late 19^th Century Europe.

Start lecture/discussion: History in Antebellum America

Continue reading books and articles on your Historiography project reading list. See link to tips on taking notes as you read for your Historiography project.

DUE: Library Assignment Part B 3 and B 4

For NEXT WEEK, be sure to read the section in Rampolla, chapter 3, on writing précis papers--"Writing about Reading: Summaries."

Week VII:

Tuesday, 11 October:

Discussion of Library Assignment Part B5 and B6

Discussion of Rampolla, chapter 3, section "Writing about Reading: Summaries."

Lecture/Discussion: The Professionalization of History in the USA/The Turner (Frontier) Thesis in Context

Continue reading books and articles on your Historiography project reading list. See link to tips on taking notes as you read for your Historiography project..

READING ASSIGNMENT FOR THURSDAY: Richard L. Kagan, "Prescott's Paradigm: American Historical Scholarship and the Decline of Spain," American Historical Review 101, no. 2 (April 1996): 423-446. (Use JSTOR or one of the other library databases to get a digital copy, or go the library and get a paper

copy. Read this essay and then be ready to explain the THESIS.

Thursday, 13 October:

Start Lecture/Discussion: History and the Progressive Era in the USA

Discuss Richard L. Kagan, "Prescott's Paradigm: American Historical Scholarship and the Decline of Spain," American Historical Review 101, no. 2 (April 1996: 423-446.

I EXPECT YOU to: 1) explain Kagan’s argument (his thesis); 2) connect Kagan’s argument to what we have discussed in class about 19^th century historiography, especially in the USA.

Continue reading books and articles on your Historiography project reading list. See link to tips on taking notes as you read for your Historiography project.

READING ASSIGNMENT FOR NEXT TUESDAY: Jeanette Keith, "The Politics of Southern Draft Resistance, 1917–1918: Class, Race, and Conscription in the Rural South," Journal of American History 87, no. 4 (March 2001): 1335-1361.

DUE: Library Assignment Part B 5 and B 6

Week VIII:

Tuesday, 18 October:

Lecture/Discussion: From the Progressives to the Consensus Historians in the USA

Start Lecture on the Annales School Historians

Discussion of Jeanette Keith, "The Politics of Southern Draft Resistance, 1917–1918: Class, Race, and Conscription in the Rural South," Journal of American History 87, no. 4 (March 2001): 1335-1361.

I EXPECT YOU to be able to explain Keith’s thesis!

Discussion of Common Reading Précis Assignment (it is due on Thursday!).

Continue reading books and articles on your Historiography project reading list. See link to tips on taking notes as you read for your Historiography project..

Thursday, 20 October:

Discussion/Lecture: The Annales Historians and the “Old Left” Historians

Discussion on Formulating Research Questions and the Definition of Research Question Assignment. RELEVANT READING in Rampolla: Chapter 5, section "Focusing on a Research Question" AND Chapter 3, section on "Historiographic essays."

Continue reading books and articles on your Historiography project reading list. See link to tips on taking notes as you read for your Historiography project.

Reading Assignment for next Tuesday: Richard L. McCormick, "The Discovery that Business Corrupts Politics: A Reappraisal of the Origins of Progressivism," American Historical Review 86, no. 2 (1981): 247-274. (Read to the end of the first paragraph on p. 250)

DUE: Common Reading Précis Assignment.

Week IX:

Tuesday, 25 October:

Lecture/Discussion: History and the New Left, with special attention to E. P. Thompson and W. A. Williams

Discussion of how historians use historiography, based on McCormick "The Discovery that Business Corrupts Politics: A Reappraisal of the Origins of Progressivism," American Historical Review 86, no. 2 (1981): 247-274.

Continue reading books and articles on your Historiography project reading list. See link to tips on taking notes as you read for your Historiography project.

Thursday, 27 October:

CONFERENCES Definition of Research Question CONFERENCES

Week X:

Tuesday, 1 November:

CONFERENCES Definition of Research Question CONFERENCES

Thursday, 3 November:

Lecture/Discussion: The New Social History of the 1960s-1970s

Discussion of Individual Reading Précis Assignments

Continue reading books and articles on your Historiography project reading list. See link to tips on taking notes as you read for your Historiography project.

Week XI:

Tuesday, 8 November:

Lecture/Discussion: Postmodernism and History

Discussion of Primary Source Locator Assignment and Refresher Discussion on Finding Primary Sources. RELEVANT READING, Rampolla, Chapter 5, section "Conducting research."

Continue reading books and articles on your Historiography project reading list. See link to tips on taking notes as you read for your Historiography project..

Due: Individual Reading Précis #1

Thursday, 10 November:

Lecture/Discussion: Where is History Headed Now?

Discussion of Historiography paper assignment. RELEVANT READING, reread Rampolla Ch. 3, on historiographic essays.

You should be close to finishing the last of the books and articles on your Historiography project reading list. See link to tips on taking notes as you read for your Historiography project.

Week XII:

Tuesday, 15 November:

CONFERENCES Primary Source Locator CONFERENCES

You should be close to finishing the last of the books and articles on your Historiography project reading list. See link to tips on taking notes as you read for your Historiography project.

Due: Individual Reading Précis #2

CONFERENCES Primary Source Locator CONFERENCES will also be held on Monday, 14 November and Weds, 16 November

Thursday, 17 November: NO CLASS (Hickey at conference in DC)

You should be close to finishing the last of the books and articles on your Historiography project reading list. See link to tips on taking notes as you read for your Historiography project.

Week XIII: THANKSGIVING WEEK, NO CLASS ON 22/24 November

Week XIV:

Tuesday, 29 November:

Discussion of Historiography paper Assignment. (Be sure to reread the discussion in Rampolla of writing historiography papers.)

You should be finished reading the books and articles on your Historiography project reading list.

Thursday, 1 December:

Optional Individual Conferences

DUE: Primary Source Locator Assignment

Week XV:

Tuesday, 6 December:

Discussion of Research Project Prospectus Assignment

Thursday, 8 December:

Final class meeting to discuss Research Prospectus Papers

DUE: Historiography Essay.

_______________

Week XV: FINALS WEEK

Research Prospectus due at final scheduled exam session