UHC: Modern Europe (EP)
Long Paper Guide
The Assignment
The paper is due at the end of the semester, but it involves a semester-long commitment,
reflected in a schedule of subsidiary submissions. You will devise a topic of social or cultural
importance, then find and read three different primary sources that illustrate the topic in different
ways. You will note interesting, observable trends in your sources and formulate a research
question. Finally, you will develop a thesis related to the information in your chosen texts,
conduct research and assess other work done on your topic and expand this into a paper, eight
pages in length. Your texts will be the main sources for this paper, but I expect you to be
comfortable with the arguments made by a sampling of other scholars as well, and to cite any
and all works you consult.
I. Topic and Source Selection: Thu. Sept. 10. Please select a topic, and find your three
main primary sources for it; type up the citations in full bibliographic format. In a short
paragraph or two, please explain why you chose this particular topic and these particular
sources. How did you find them (ie., what searches did you do? what databases did you
use? Etc.) What makes these the best sources possible? What else is available?
II. Source Presentation: TBD (see below)
III. Research Prospectus: Mon. Oct. 26. In about four to five pages, please provide
the following: (1) A fuller description of your topic and an overview of your main
theme/problem that you would like to investigate further; (2) A bulleted summary of each
primary source with historical context and biographies of the authors; (3) A clearly
identified thesis and main topic sentences for the paper in outline format; (4)
bibliography of three relevant secondary sources (all books/journal articles) plus your
primary sources.
V. First Draft: Thu. Nov. 19. This is an conversion of your Research Prospectus to an
essay of at least five to seven pages. Please make sure your thesis is developed, and even
if you do not get to write your paragraphs completely, give your topic sentences for all
paragraphs so your readers know where your argument is going. It behooves you to
complete as much of the paper as possible at this stage.
VI. Peer Review Sessions. Nov. 23-24. This stage entails critically reading two peers’
papers and providing feedback on their writing, especially their formulation of an
argument, use of evidence and clarity in writing. Your critiques will be handed back to
the author, and I will also collect a copy.
VII. Final Draft: Thu. Dec. 10 The final essay must be exactly eight pages in length
(not including bibliography).
Source Presentation
At a scheduled point in the semester, you will be given the opportunity to lead the class in
explicating your topic and how you will be using your sources. You will prepare a 5- to 7-minute
presentation for the class. We will then discuss the topic in relation to the day’s materials
together as a class.
Formatting Guidelines
Written assignments are meant to serve as exercises in communication. Your papers should all
make an argument, using convincing evidence from the sources to build your case. I will be
grading your papers on content, organization and the strength of your argument.
All submitted work should be typed, double-spaced (unless otherwise indicated) in 12-point
Times New Roman or similar font. Margins should be 1-inch on all sides to facilitate reading.
Research Tips
For this project, you will need to find and locate sources for your topic, both your primary
sources and any pertinent secondary sources relating to it. It is never a bad idea to search for
your topic or source online to see what comes up (in fact I recommend starting with this step for
any project), but you will need to dig deeper. Here are some tips to multiply your sources and
find whatever you are looking for.
It goes without saying, but use the library and use it wisely. The library catalog is a formidable
resource on its own, but consult with the reference librarians (of any library) who are there to
help you find information when you find yourself at a dead-end. Also, do not be afraid to use our
library’s Interlibrary Loan service, which pulls books off of the shelves of other libraries for
Fordham University students.
Second, use the databases under the resources menu of the Fordham Library website. Some
useful databases include JSTOR, Historical Abstracts, Bibliography of British and Irish History,
to name a few. Simply type in a subject and quickly see all the recent journal articles published
on it. Note that you will then have to locate the titles in a library.
Please use the Internet carefully. Some of it is incredible. Much of it is falsehood. The following
websites may be of particular assistance as you complete this project. This list is not meant to be
exhaustive, but should help you at least to get started:

New York Public Library Guide to Modern European History: (a basic bibliographic
guide to resources available to assist in researching modern Europe, including
newspaper databases)
o http://www.nypl.org/node/5636

Princeton University Library Bibliography of Modern European History: (a listing
of sources, guides and studies of modern Europe)
o http://library.princeton.edu/databases/subject/modern-european-history

The Internet Modern History Sourcebook: (a vast collection of often out-of-print
primary sources and secondary studies; there are often brief introductions for each
source)
o http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/modsbook.html

Eurodocs: Online Sources for European History: (a compendious listing of research
materials available online for all periods and countries of Europe)
o http://eudocs.lib.byu.edu/index.php/Main_Page

History of Europe: The Periodical Historical Atlas, 1100-2000: (a collection of
historical maps)
o http://www.euratlas.com/time2.htm

Exploring the French Revolution: (essays, images, primary sources, songs, maps,
timeline and glossary available)
o http://chnm.gmu.edu/revolution/

World War I: Trenches on the Web: (An internet history of the Great War)
o http://www.worldwar1.com/

World War I Document Archive: (an assemblage of primary sources relating to the
Great War available online)
o http://wwi.lib.byu.edu/

United States Holocaust Memorial Museum: (online materials relating to genocide,
Holocaust and anti-Semitism)
o http://www.ushmm.org/

German History in Documents and Images: (maintained by the German Historical
Institute, containing materials from 1500 to the present)
o http://germanhistorydocs.ghi-dc.org/

Worldcat:
o www.worldcat.org
Taking Notes
Another important skill you will be using will be your ability to critically assess the information
you are reading and taking notes on it. Do not get into the habit of taking long, continuous notes
on books and articles you read. It will take more energy to do so, and you will find that it does
not really help you with recalling the information.
Instead, adopt a system of taking thematic notes. You can use a note-taking program (available
online) to record major arguments of the works you are reading, or you can do this with
notecards. Use a single notecard for each argument that the author makes with the supporting
evidence listed below. What I find even more effective though is reading straight through an
article or chapter and then writing up a brief summary (a few sentences) of what the author was
trying to get across.
General Guides to Modern European History
These will be helpful for surveying relevant topics and themes and establishing context.

Coffin, Judith, Robert Stacey, Joshua Cole, et al., Western Civilizations: Their History
and Their Culture, Vol. C, 17th edition.

Kishlansky, Mark, Patrick Geary and Patricia O’Brien. A Brief History of Western
Civilization: The Unfinished Legacy. Volume II: Since 1555. 4th Ed. ISBN: 1321196775.

Merriman, John. A History of Europe: From the French Revolution to the Present (ISBN
9780393933857)

McKay, John, Bennet D. Hill, and John Buckler. A History of Western Society Since
1300. 7th ed. New York: Houghton Mifflin, 2003. ISBN-10: 0618522735

Spielvogel, Jackson J., Western Civilization: A Brief History, Wadsworth Publishing
ISBN-10: 0534646026
Simple Guide to Footnotes/Citations
Please follow the Chicago Handbook of Style (www.chicagomanualofstyle.org). All references
should be in footnotes at the bottom of the page. For guides about footnotes, please see the link
above or visit the Purdue OWL website, especially their overview of the Chicago Style
(https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/section/2/12/). Footnotes are single-spaced, in a font size
smaller than your main text (e.g. 10-point size) and should be formatted in the following general
manner:
1
Author, Title of Book (Place of Publication, Date of Publication), pp. x-x.
Last name, Shortened Title, pp. x-x.
3
Author, “Article,” Title of Journal Volume Number (Year): x-x.
4
Last name, “Shortened Article Title,” pp. x-x.
2
There are a series of online bibliography generators. These may be helpful in some cases, but I
strongly recommend learning the format yourself and getting in the habit of typing your own
bibliographies.
Picking a Topic: I ask you to stay within a very broad chronological/thematic category, as listed
below, so that your presentation will relate to the day’s discussion. But even with that limitation,
there are so many different directions you can go. As stated above, I would prefer that you work
on a topic of social or cultural significance (as opposed to political history, for example). This
means you might want to consider an analytical prism of gender, class, race or some combination
thereof. Of course, if you have any questions, please let me know!
BROAD TOPICS
Mon. Sept. 21: Capitalism and Industrialization
Thu. Sept. 24: Life of the Workers
Mon. Sept. 28: Romanticism
Thu. Oct. 1: Socialism
Mon. Oct. 5: National Unification: Italy/Germany
Thu. Oct. 8: The Russian Empire
Thu. Oct. 15: China and the West
Mon. Oct. 19: The End of Slavery and the Scramble for Africa
Thu. Oct. 22: Science in the late nineteenth century
Mon. Oct. 26: Nineteenth century cities
Thu. Oct. 29: Background to World War I
Mon. Nov. 2: The Great War
Thu. Nov. 5: The Russian Revolution
Mon. Nov. 9: Europe After Versailles
Thu. Nov. 12: Change and Crisis of the 1920s and 1930s
Mon. Nov. 16: The Rise of Fascism
Thu. Nov. 19: World War II
Mon. Nov. 23: Genocide and Memory
Mon. Nov. 30: Decolonization
Thu. Dec. 3: The Cold War in Europe
Mon. Dec. 7: The Fall of Communism