HIST 302: Introduction to History
Summer 2009
LL 229
M-Th 10:50-11:55
Dr. Roxanne Easley
LL 100-I; 963-1877
easleyr@cwu.edu
Ofc Hrs: M-Th 9:30-10:30
COURSE SYLLABUS
HIST 302 familiarizes sophomore and junior history majors with the
skills and concepts necessary for undertaking and completing upperdivision history requirements, such as the philosophical foundations
of the discipline, research methods, analytical tools, and the writing
conventions of the profession. Throughout the quarter, we will
practice these skills by means of library visits, in-class exercises,
independent writing, peer critique, and class presentations. The
culmination of the course will be the completion of an individual
research paper on the issues, trends, personalities, and/or events of
nineteenth-century Russia.
COURSE OBJECTIVES:
After successful completion of this course, you will have improved
your ability to:
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Reconstruct patterns of historical continuity and change in
nineteenth-century Russian history
Isolate the central question(s) and perspective(s) of different
kinds of historical narrative
Identify the relationship between historical fact and
historical interpretations
Analyze cause and effect relationships, bearing in mind
multiple causation
Present original historical analysis orally and in writing
Plan and write a substantial research paper on a topic of your
choice
Locate finding aids, primary and secondary materials in the
library
Learn formal source citation and avoid plagiarism
Bring sound and relevant analysis to the service of informed
decision-making
REQUIRED TEXTS (available at CWU Bookstore and Jerrol's):
1. Offord, Nineteenth-Century Russia (course packet)
3. Turabian, A Manual for Writers of Term Papers, Theses,
and Dissertations (7th ed.)
COURSE REQUIREMENTS:
READING: The study of history requires frequent and considerable
reading, inside and outside of class. The research process for your
paper requires that you read our texts and also that you exhaust the
library’s reference tools to locate, read, and think about a wide
variety of sources on your research topic. In a six-week course, it is
crucial that you begin the reading early and stay on top of it
throughout the term. Start your project with primary sources that you
can assess for yourself. Then approach secondary sources with an
eye toward mining the experts’ assertions and the sources they have
cited.
ATTENDANCE AND PARTICIPATION: Each class session will
require your active participation. Quizzes, writing assignments, short
exercises, peer critiques, and presentations are essential training for
your final research paper, and are factored into your course grade.
Given the complexity of our tasks and the short time to complete
them, attendance is mandatory. The instructor must excuse all
absences, or the course grade will be adversely affected. More than
four unexcused absences will result in a failing grade. Preparation for
and participation in all class discussions and assignments is
absolutely essential.
WRITING: The main goal of the course is to help you plan and
prepare a research paper of no less than eight pages, excluding
endnotes/footnotes and bibliography, on a nineteenth-century
Russian topic of your choice. The preparation of the paper will
proceed according to the following six mandatory steps: selection of
a general topic, based on two or more primary sources; a brief (3-4
pp.) analysis of the selected primary source(s); an annotated
bibliography of at least six book-length secondary sources on your
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topic; a paper outline, with a clear and practical thesis statement;
rough drafts of the research paper; and finally, the revised research
paper itself. See course calendar for due dates.
COURSE EVALUATION:
20% Participation (attendance, peer critiques, quizzes)
15% Primary source analysis
15% Annotated bibliography
15% Outline
15% Rough draft
20% Final paper
LATE POLICY:
assignment sheet, and related materials. The center has two
locations. The Hertz 103 center is open 10 a.m.-7 p.m. Monday
through Thursday. The satellite center, in the Library’s second-floor
Fish Bowl, is open 2-7 p.m. Sunday. Students may drop by and take
a chance there is an opening, or they may call 963-1296 and make an
appointment.
ASSIGNMENT GUIDELINES:
CHOOSING A TOPIC
Remember the parameters of our course theme (nineteenth-century
Russia)! Clear all doubtful topics with me.
ACADEMIC HONESTY:
Rather than choosing a topic for which there may be no primary
sources readily available, choose a source first. Locate primary
readings in the Offord book, the History Conference Room, the
library, or on the internet, and note which seem most appealing to
you.
Incidences of plagiarism will be fully prosecuted according to
University guidelines.
Neatly type your proposed topic, and include full bibliographic
information on the primary source(s) you’ve chosen.
SPECIAL NEEDS:
THE WRITING CENTER:
PRIMARY SOURCE ANALYSIS
Research in primary sources is the backbone of any good historical
analysis. This project will provide the most important evidence in
support of conclusions you eventually draw in your final research
paper. Note that the primary source analysis is a stand-alone
paper, with a thesis, supporting evidence, and conclusions of its
own. It is NOT a proposal or prospectus. The primary source
analysis should be from three to four pages in length (typed in 12 pt.
font, 1-inch margins, double-spaced).
All student writers are invited to meet with consultants at the
University Writing Center. Sessions typically last from 30 to 50
minutes and can include brainstorming ideas, developing research
skills, organizing an essay, revising, and discussing writing and
rhetoric in any discipline. The format is two writers talking about
writing. It is helpful if the student brings the course syllabus, the
1. Preparation. Begin by reading the primary source carefully and
completely. As you read, bear in mind your chosen theme. Question
the source! Remember that no primary source is complete or
objective. How do you interpret the evidence that is given?
Remember that this assignment should not depend on secondary
research--draw your thesis and conclusions only from the primary
Unexcused late assignments will negatively affect the course grade.
Students who have special needs or disabilities that may affect their
ability to access information or material presented in this course a re
encouraged to contact me or the office of Disability Support Services
at (509) 963-2171 for additional disability-related educational
accommodations.
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source itself and general background information available in our
class texts, lectures, or other basic secondary works. Present your
interpretation of the primary source. Detailed secondary research
comes into play later.
2. Introduction. Using your class notes, textbooks, or other general
secondary accounts, place the source in its wider historical context.
Include general information that we need to know in order to
understand the primary source. Why is your topic important for
understanding nineteenth-century Russian history? Does your
specific topic reflect larger forces or processes at work?
3. Thesis. Make a specific historical claim about the topic based on
the primary evidence you’ve read. This is what you will spend the
rest of the primary source analysis paper trying to prove, based on
the evidence in the primary source. The thesis should stand alone as
a statement and impart to the reader a useful interpretation. Be
realistic. Your thesis needn’t be grand or all encompassing;
remember that your argument is limited by the primary evidence
available. This thesis will likely be different than the thesis of your
final research paper.
4. Summary. Describe the kind of primary source are you using.
Who wrote it, where, and why? BRIEFLY indicate the contents of
the primary source.
5. Analysis. Break the thesis into manageable subpoints. Give
evidence (examples or quotations from the primary source) in
support of the subpoints. Quotations should not be used to carry the
weight of the argument, but only to illustrate or logically support
points you make in your own words. ALWAYS credit others when
you borrow their words or central ideas. For this paper, references
may be parenthetical (author, page number), but be sure to attach a
bibliography crediting the sources in full.
6. Conclusion. Indicate how the evidence you’ve given proves your
thesis claim. Suggest questions about the general topic that remain
unanswered by the primary evidence you have now. What
information is needed to fill in these gaps? Where will your research
go next?
7. Editing. Proofread your essay carefully for errors in spelling,
grammar, and punctuation. Be sure that each paragraph contains a
topical sentence, and that your writing flows smoothly from point to
point. Watch out for passive voice constructions, sentence fragments,
and inconsistent verb tenses. Plain sentences and precise vocabulary
are a foolproof stylistic combination for writing in the humanities.
ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY
Now that you have completed your own preliminary analysis of
primary sources, you will seek other educated opinions on your
research topic. For this assignment, you must consult as many
relevant secondary sources as you can find in our library. Six booklength sources is a good minimal guideline. Chapters, parts of
books, articles, and websites count as ½ of the six total sources.
The bibliography MUST contain at least one each of the following
types of secondary sources: scholarly articles, internet site, booklength primary and secondary sources from our library, and a
Summit item. Keep a running list of research materials you find
throughout the term. Be sure that internet sources are scholarly and
respectable. The more primary and secondary sources you consult,
the richer your analysis will be.
For the annotated bibliography itself, begin with your tentative
thesis statement. Then separate and list your primary and
secondary sources. For each source, include full bibliographic
information (author, title, publisher, place of publication, date of
publication, appropriate page numbers). Use the citation style
described in Turabian. Next, compose a DETAILED paragraph on
each source, describing what specific information the source
provides about your topic and specifically how the source helps you
to refine your analysis. What is the author’s argument? How will you
use this source to prove your thesis? Actively seek out secondary
authors who disagree with your and each other’s analyses. Compare
sources when appropriate. In the final research paper, you will not
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only state your own conclusions but also attempt to address contrary
opinions posed by other historians.
PAPER OUTLINE
The outline is a good way to clarify in your own mind where the
paper is going and how it gets there. Begin with a clear, revised
thesis statement. Beneath the thesis statement, list the key subpoints
that you will develop in the paper. These statements should support
or develop the main claim you’ve made in the thesis. One easy way
to visualize these subpoints is to consider them the topical sentences
of your eventual paragraphs. The subpoints MUST be complete
sentences, and should present claims subordinate to the thesis.
Lastly, beneath each subpoint, list examples and evidence that you
will use to prove the subpoint claims. These need not be complete
sentences. Your finished outline MUST use the following format:
THESIS: While Stalin’s purges may seem like the expression of
irrational paranoia, they actually represent Stalin’s attempt to
eliminate Party factionalism and interference in matters he believed
contrary to socialist construction.
1. Stalin did show evidence of mental instability.
Childhood influences and attitudes (seminary, physical
disabilities, sense of national inferiority)
Deaths of those close to him (Allilueva’s suicide)
Nervous breakdown after invasion of Russia (doctor’s
report)
Personal participation in tortures and compilation of
execution lists (the four lists, friendship with Ezhov)
Megalomania (execution of all political challengers)
2. Party factionalism interfered with political centralization
Competition for Lenin’s mantle (The Testament)
Accusations and counter-accusations (right/left controversy)
Trotsky’s popularity and theoretical expertise (permanent
revolution vs. socialism in one country)
Stalin’s plan for political and economic centralization
(principles of the Stalin Revolution)…
ROUGH DRAFTS
The rough drafts that you make available to your peers and to me
must be as near completion as possible (your draft grade depends on
it!). Do not abbreviate or leave passages for composition later. Be
sure that your footnotes and bibliography follow Turabian’s
guidelines exactly. Above all, edit the drafts for logical
inconsistencies, awkward transitions, grammatical and spelling
errors, and formatting problems. Prepare for some pretty harsh
grading on this assignment, all with an eye toward an improved final
paper.
Use a Turabian-style title page. For the body of the paper, use 12 pt.
font with one- inch margins, and double-space (quotations of
more than three lines are single spaced and indented, without
quotation marks).
Organize the paper to include a detailed introduction, a firm thesis
claim, a sophisticated and logical analysis, and a compelling
conclusion. Quote liberally from your primary sources in support of
your main points, citing them in full (again, use an accepted
academic citation style). Remember that the primary source or
sources are your most important evidence, and that the focus of the
paper should be conclusions you draw from the primary sources.
One rarely needs to quote secondary sources; paraphrase and
cite them instead.
Attach a full, formal bibliography (not annotated, and with primary
and secondary sources combined).
PEER CRITIQUE
As a peer critic, you must first edit the draft for awkward transitions,
grammatical and spelling errors, awkward word choice and sentence
construction, citation problems, and formatting. Write these on the
draft itself for presentation to the author. Next, type a one-page
critique addressing the strengths and weaknesses of the paper as a
whole. Be as specific as you can! Use the checklist attached. Present
your main points of criticism to the author in class, and provide both
the author and me with a copy of the written critique. Treat the
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author respectfully, but don’t hold back valid criticisms for fear
of hurting feelings. Learning to deliver and accept constructive
criticism is an important part of scholarship, and it often means a far
better written product for both reviewer and reviewee.
FINAL PAPER
Address all of your readers’ concerns and criticisms. Edit again! In
the final draft, all editing errors will result in a lower grade. The final
paper accounts for progress since the rough draft.
WEEK 3 (7/6-7/9)
M:
Paper topics/primary source due
U:
The thesis statement
W:
Finding secondary sources
H:
Reading secondary sources
Primary source analysis due
WEEK 4 (7/13-7/16)
M:
U:
W:
H:
Turabian citation: bibliography
Introduction to historiography
Secondary source exercise
Organization and argument
Annotated bibliography due
WEEK 5 (7/20-2/23)
COURSE CALENDAR (TENTATIVE):
WEEK 1 (6/22-6/25)
M-H: Course Introduction: Nineteenth-Century Russia
READ: Offord packet
WEEK 2 (6/29-7/2)
M:
Library orientation
U
Discussion, Offord study questions
W:
Discussion, Offord study questions
Choosing a topic and finding primary sources
H:
Reading primary sources
M:
Turabian citation (footnotes) and format
U:
W:
H:
Outline due
Elements of style
No class: work on draft
Rough drafts due to peer for in-class review
WEEK 6 (7/27-7/31)
M:
Edited rough drafts due to Easley
U:
Individual appointments
W:
Individual appointments
H:
Student evaluations, last minute questions
FINAL PAPERS DUE TO EASLEY’S MAILBOX BY 5 PM
FRIDAY, JULY 31.
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