Essay and paper tips/Requirements for HIST 390
Structure:
The classic structure for a student essay is:
I. Introductory Paragraph
A. Context
B. Problem or Question
C. Thesis Statement: "This problem can best be
understood by exploring X, Y, and Z"
II. Historiography section
III. First Content Section [Here develop point X]
IV. Second Content Section [Here develop point Y]
V. Third Content Section [Here develop point Z]
VI. Conclusion [Here restate the
relationships among X,Y, and Z, and how, by exploring
them, you have shed light on your original problem or question]
This structure works well, and I recommend using it for all of your essays until you feel very comfortable as a writer. It works for papers as short as 2 pages and as long as 20. Each of your content sections can be as long as you want it to be, though you should try to keep them as even with one another as possible. In a shorter paper, each section might be only a paragraph long. In a longer paper, each might span several pages.
Thesis Statement: A strong thesis statement is a key to a well-structured paper. It is generally the last sentence of the paper's first paragraph. After reading your thesis statement, your reader should have a pretty good idea of the general structure of the paper. The thesis statement will not always be of the form "The problem can be best understood by exploring X,Y, and Z." It may be more like, "Charlotte Perkins Gilman and Hamlin Garland, in their fiction, showed how X,Y, and Z could challenge ideals of proper womanhood" or "Philips Brooks' ideas of manliness differ from those of his contemporaries in neglecting X,Y, and Z." In its classic form, however, the thesis statement should always point to the three main points you plan to make, in the order you plan to make them.
Paragraph Structure: Just as the structure of your essay as a whole is important, so too is it important that each of your paragraphs be structured. Begin each paragraph with a topic sentence, indicating how the paper fits into your larger thesis. Follow this topic sentence with about 3-5 sentences which do what the topic sentence says they will do by making arguments or by offering evidence. Finally, end the paragraph with a sentence that sums it up and links it with the next paragraph. Avoid paragraphs shorter than four sentences or longer than eight. Often these really long or really short paragraphs indicate problems with the larger structure of your paper.
Grammar: Obviously, proper grammar is essential. If you have difficulties with grammar, try to read your paper aloud to yourself before printing a final copy. Sometimes you will be able to hear problems that you did not notice when looking over the paper. Remember, however, that essays require more formal grammar than you might use in your daily conversation. You should avoid contractions, slang, and sentence fragments, though all of these are appropriate in casual speech. You might also want to ask a friend, family member, or instructor to go through your paper with you, checking for grammar errors.
Proper punctuation: All sentences must end with the appropriate punctuation mark. Commas should be placed within serial lists, before or after dependent clauses, or between two independent clauses that you are joining as one sentence.
Complete sentences: All sentences should have a subject and a verb at the very least. Sentences should not be fashioned as dependent clauses. Dependent clauses, by definition, cannot stand alone.
Spelling: None of us is a perfect speller. Fortunately, we all have access to a spell-check engine. Spell check will catch most spelling mistakes. However, it is also essential that you proofread your paper carefully. Proofreading will catch misuse of words; I consider these misuses misspellings. Some of the most commonly confused words are below:
too and to
scene and seen
there and their
effected and affected
except and accept
whose and who’s***
its and it’s***
This list is by no means exhaustive. Strunk and White’s Elements of Style includes a lengthier list of misused words. If you do not own a copy of Strunk and White, you should purchase one. Or, there are copies in the UNCA or any other library’s reference section. I suggest that, if you are unsure as to when you should use one or the other of these words, you look them up in the dictionary and make certain you are using the word that fits.
***The last two items on the above list bring up another common problem in formal writing. When one is writing formally, contractions are not appropriate. Spell out “do not” and “it is,” for example, rather than typing don’t and it’s. This is not technically a grammatical error or a misspelling; it is technically a stylistic issue. As you are probably aware, journalists use these contractions frequently. However, strictly speaking, AP wire writers and Asheville Citizen-Times journalists are not writing formally. Essay writing should be formal. Therefore, when you proofread your papers, eliminate any contractions that may have slipped into your work.
Capitalization: All first letters of proper names, titles, and proper nouns should be capitalized.
Eliminate any stray words. If you edit or delete specific phrases, make certain all words from the deletion are gone.
Use of apostrophes: Apostrophes are used only for contractions (which you should not include in your papers anyway) and for possessive nouns and proper names, but not generally for possessive pronouns. There are exceptions to this rule, for which you may want to consult a grammar text. A few examples: “Mr. Smith’s dog” and “the dog’s owner” require apostrophes, but “its owner” does not.
You should practice these basic writing skills every time
you write a paper. If you are diligent about following the above guidelines,
you can eventually eliminate bad grammatical habits. Over time, you will not
even have to make a conscious effort to write in a grammatically-correct manner.
Sometimes it can be difficult to catch all of your mistakes when you
proofread your paper. You might want to ask a friend, family member, or
instructor to go through your paper with you to check for errors. Use the
campus writing center to proofread your paper. Or, I am always available to read
your papers, if you give me the final draft at least a week before the due
date.
Another way to proofread carefully is to start at the end of the paper and read it backwards, sentence by sentence. This tactic keeps you from listening to the argument that you are building or the story that you are telling and helps you to concentrate on each individual sentence’s grammar or syntax.
If you have any questions about the above guidelines, please ask them in class or come see me. If there are grammatical terms that you do not understand, look them up in an English composition/grammar text. You will retain the definitions and functions of the English language far more effectively if you research and read about them yourselves rather than using your instructors as an easy reference.
STYLE
Some types of writing are less effective than others. In general, in a student essay, you should avoid:
1. Use of passive voice: Instead of saying, "An African-American midwife was called by Elizabeth Avery Meriwether" say "Elizabeth Avery Meriwether called an African-American midwife"
2. Use of first-person: Instead of saying, "I think that Margaret Sanger is an ambiguous figure." say "Margaret Sanger is an ambiguous figure." or "From the textual evidence, Margaret Sanger’s ideas seem ambiguous."
3. Use of second-person: Instead of saying, "You had to fit into the ideals of the cult of true womanhood," say, "Nineteenth-century women had to fit into the ideals of the cult of true womanhood."
4. Unsubstantiated value judgments (Or unsubstantiated assertions of any kind): Unless it is an important part of your argument, avoid saying things like, "Charlotte Perkins Gilman wrote a very good and interesting short story."
5. Use of fluff and fillers: Instead of saying, "’The Yellow Wallpaper,’ a short story which was written by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, was about a young woman who was very ill indeed. She had a problem with her nerves. It was neurasthenia." say "Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s “The Yellow Wallpaper” told the story of a woman suffering from neurasthenia." You have a limited number of pages to make your argument, and you cannot afford to waste any space on words and sentences that are not doing any work for you. In general, if you find yourself trying to stretch a paper to fit an assigned length, you should instead try to add a new section or argument or in some other way enhance the content of the paper. If you have nothing more to say, it is better simply to hand in a short paper than one that is filled with fluff.
6. Statements of the obvious, platitudes, and cliches: Unless it substantially advances your argument, avoid making general and irrelevant statements such as "Women in the nineteenth century did not have the same rights we take for granted today." If an obvious statement is important to setting up your argument, and it sometimes is, say it briefly and then move immediately into specifics.
7. Use of the present tense: USE PAST TENSE. THEY ARE ALL DEAD. THERE ARE VERY FEW EXCEPTIONS TO THIS RULE IN HISTORICAL WORKS, EVEN IF YOUR SUBJECTS ARE STILL ALIVE.
8. Vague references to historians or historical “actors” in your paper. On first reference to an historian or an historical character, introduce your reader w/first and last names, and any other brief, general information that may be helpful to contextualize the work. For example, “In his address to the members of the American Historical Association, Frederick Jackson Turner discussed the significance of the frontier to American history.” Or, “Regional historian Frederick Jackson Turner asserted that the West was important to the development of American identity.”
For all other subsequent references to that same person, use only his/her last name.
9. Use of the verb “to be” in any form. That verb carries a passive tone and can cause wordiness trouble, whereas a more active verb can provide opportunities for more precise and concise illustrations of your points.
10. Conclusions that bring things up to the present: Avoid concluding history papers with observations about the relationship between the period the paper was about and the present day, unless you have a really creative and thought-provoking idea about this relationship. Too often, this type of concluding paragraph is packed with the "statements of the obvious, platitudes, and cliches" mentioned in #6.
Remember that plagiarism, simply put, is using someone else’s words or thoughts as your own. It’s amazingly simple to detect and prove plagiarism. Plagiarism means automatic failure of the class, and could mean further discipline from the university. Make certain that you credit anyone else’s words or ideas with a footnote – a properly-formatted footnote, in conformance with Turabian or the Chicago Manual of Style. (See Rampolla for the basic formats and examples.)
Your essay should have:
1. A classic essay structure
2. A strong thesis statement
3. Structured, standard-length paragraphs
4. Proper written grammar
You should avoid:
1. Passive voice
2. First-person references within sentences
3. Second-person references within sentences
4. Unsubstantiated value judgments
5. Fluff and fillers
6. Statements of the obvious, platitudes, and cliches
7. Conclusions that bring your topic up to the present
A FEW REMINDERS FOR THE HISTORIOGRAPHICAL PAPER:
Unless otherwise instructed, all essays should be double-spaced in 12-point Times Roman or Garamond font only. No fancy, cute, big, or small fonts. All margins should be 1 inch top and bottom, and 1 inch left and right. Essays are easier to read when only the left margin is justified -- so please unjustify the right margin.
You will be using footnotes for your senior thesis, therefore citations for the historiographical paper should also be in footnote form. USE PROPER FOOTNOTE FORMATS. YOU WILL LOSE POINTS FOR EGREGIOUS OR CONSISTENT FOOTNOTE FORMAT MISTAKES.