Research Paper
Source Cards & Note Cards
• Source cards: Bibliographic information
(author, title, publishing info., etc.) of
resources you will use in your paper.
• Note cards: summaries, paraphrases and
quotations of resources.
Note card
Source card
Note card
Gathering Information &
Creating Source Cards
• Library resources:
– Reference books: Encyclopedias, non-fiction books.
– Online databases: Student Resource Center (Gale), EBSCO,
Facts on File, SIRS Researcher.
– Internet websites: .edu, .org, .gov (reliable); .com (be
careful which you choose).
• Sources should provide substantial amount of information.
• Print-out “printer-friendly” articles, take notes, photocopy,
borrow books.
• Create a MLA-formatted source card for each source.
Taking notes
• Types of note-taking:
– Summarizing: shortened version of original text: expresses
one or two main points of text.
– Paraphrasing: expresses all of the ideas of the original text
using different language and sentence structure.
– Quoting: word for word copy of text; use quotation marks.
Feminism origins
1
-3 “waves” of feminism
-18th c. – Mary
Wollstonecraft writes
“Vindication of the Rights of
Women” - education
p. 83
Creating Note cards
• Format:
– Key word (Examples: “Origins of movement,” “Major events of
movement,” “Key figures,” “Author’s education,” “Artist’s
major works”) on top of index card
– Source card number in upper right corner
– Page number (for print sources) in lower right corner
– Notes (summaries, paraphrases or quotes)
• Create a new note card for each new category of information.
• Organize cards by source, not by topic.
Feminism origins
1
-3 “waves” of feminism
-18th c. – Mary
Wollstonecraft writes
“Vindication of the Rights of
Women” – education
p. 83
To summarize, you need to…
• Re-read the text until you completely understand
it.
• Highlight key ideas (topic sentences of paragraphs
usually provide a clue).
• Delete minor supporting details and repeated
information.
• Collapse lists (“precious gems” instead of
“diamonds, rubies, emeralds”).
• Write the key ideas in your own words (bullet
pointed lists).
• Cite your source in your paper.
Sample summary
• Original text (by Lynne Ford):
“Cott identifies three characteristics that can be found in all feminist
ideas: (1) a belief in equality, defined not as “sameness” but rather as
opposition to ranking one’s sex superior or inferior to the other, or
opposition to one sex’s categorical control of the rights and
opportunities of the other; (2) a belief that women’s condition is
socially constructed and historically shaped rather than preordained
by God or nature; and (3) a belief that women’s socially constructed
position situates then on shared ground, enabling a group identity or
gender consciousness sufficient to mobilize women for change.”
• Create bullet points of information on note cards:
– 3 feminist ideas (historian Nancy Cott)
– One sex isn’t better than another and shouldn’t have more rights
– Women’s second place status created by society; not natural or
God-given
– All women are affected, allowing them to fight together
Sample summary (cont.)
• In paper, combine your bullets into your
own sentences:
The historian Nancy Cott recognized three
basic ideas shared by feminists. First,
males are not better than females and
should not have more rights and vice
versa. Second, women’s secondary status
is created by society; it is not natural or
God-given. Finally, all women are treated
unequally, allowing them to share in a
common fight (Ford).
To paraphrase, you need to…
• Re-read the text until you completely understand
it.
• Highlight key ideas (topic sentences of paragraphs
usually provide a clue).
• Write the material in your own words and
sentence structure (use synonyms, change verbs,
move parts of sentence around, combine
sentences, change parts of speech, change voice).
• Cite your source in your paper.
Paraphrase Tools
• Replace some of the words with synonyms.
– “As a word and concept, feminism is a
relatively recent addition to the lexicon.”
– The term feminism began to be used a short
time ago.
Paraphrase Tools
• Change a positive verb into a negative verb.
– “Feminism is a complex and somewhat
paradoxical ideology that defies a single
definition.”
– Feminism cannot be easily defined because it
includes complicated and contradictory ideas.
Paraphrase Tools (cont.)
• Move parts of sentences around.
– “As a word and concept, ‘feminism’ is a
relatively recent addition to the lexicon,
emerging only in the 1910s to express a
broader set of goals than the suffrage
movement embraced.”
– After the 1910s right to vote campaign, the
term “feminism” came to include additional
aims for women’s rights.
Paraphrase Tools (cont.)
• Combine sentences with connecting words.
– “As a word and concept, ‘feminism’ is a
relatively recent addition to the lexicon. It
emerged only in the 1910s to express a broader
set of goals than the suffrage movement
embraced.”
– The term “feminism” came to be used after
the right to vote campaign in the 1910s, and it
reflected additional aims for women’s rights.
Paraphrase Tools (cont.)
• Change active voice into passive voice and
vice versa.
– “The unity of the female sex was symbolized
by nineteenth-century women’s consistent
usage of the singular ‘woman.’”
– Nineteenth-century women’s adopting the
singular “woman” represented their standing
together for one cause.
Paraphrase Tools (cont.)
• Change words into different parts of
speech.
– “The unity of the female sex was symbolized by
nineteenth-century women’s consistent usage
of the singular ‘woman.’”
– Nineteenth-century women used the singular
term “woman” to show their solidarity.
Poem, Song Lyrics, Art Image & Short
Story Note Cards
• In analysis, focus on answering the questions:
– What message does the artist/writer present in his/her work?
– How does he/she communicate that message?
• Use direct quotations from or descriptions of the works that
illustrate what the artist/writer hoped to communicate to
his/her audience.
Poem analysis
“Tomorrow,/ I’ll be at the table/ When
company comes. Nobody’ll dare/ Say to
me, ‘Eat in the kitchen.,’/ Then.”
-Hughes is hopeful that he will be given
his civil rights in the future, but makes it
clear that it is not happening now. The
words “tomorrow” and “then” show it is
not yet happening.
p. 802
5
Creating an Outline
• An outline presents the content and organization
of your paper.
• A thesis statement should appear at the top of
your outline.
Outline (cont.)
• Use standard number-letter format. Each
category of information (topics and subtopics)
receives a number or letter designation:
– Roman numerals: I, II, III, IV…
– Capital letters: A, B, C, D…
– Arabic numerals: 1, 2, 3, 4…
– Lowercase letters: a, b, c, d…
• Must have at least two subtopics (I & II, A & B).
• Capitalize first words of each entry.
• Italicize or Underline book titles.
• Italicize or place short story, poem or song titles
in Quotation Marks.
Writing a Thesis Statement
• A single sentence that
appears in the
introductory paragraph
and that reveals the
central idea of your
paper.
• Thesis statement may be
revised as you continue
your research.
Your thesis statement…
• should address the two artists/writers you
selected
– include names of artists
– include where/how artists fit into the big
picture of the movement
• should address how their work specifically
relates to the movement you researched
Sample Thesis Statements
• The work of poet Langston Hughes was accepted
into black artists’ communities and presents a
more hopeful outlook on civil rights than that of
poet Paul Lawrence Dunbar whose work was not
as well-received.
• Although they enjoy more rights than earlier
feminists, the personal experiences expressed in
the songs of artists Pink and Colbie Caillat reveal
new ways women are searching for equal rights.
Sample Thesis Statements
(cont.)
• The work of anti-war writers Bob Dylan and
Wilfred Owen, who wrote at different periods in
history when people had different views on war,
are effective because they appeal to readers’
emotions and show the meaninglessness of war.
• To communicate their messages about preserving
nature, environmental artists Joni Mitchell and
Alan Sonfist show how human beings have
destroyed the beauty of nature in the urban
settings in which they lived.
Review Your Thesis
• Is my thesis written in a single sentence?
• Does my thesis reveal the subject (topic) of
my paper?
• Does my thesis reveal the argument I will
make in my paper?
• Does my thesis avoid beginnings like… “I
think” or “The purpose of my paper is…”?