How to write a history paper
by Daphne Drohobyczer, Writing Lab, University of Missouri-St. Louis
M.A., History - UM-St. Louis
Based on A Pocket Guide To Writing In History
How Historians work
Historians evaluate and analyze while being objective to a certain extent. Arguing in a manner that displays sound, clear writing proves paramount to the success of the paper.
Historical questions
Who, what, when, where, and why are questions asked by historians to satisfy curiosity. Historians examine these questions in a fashion that places historical occurrences in context and includes surrounding aspects and elements related to the historical question at hand. Questions change and develop, and it is important to ask as many questions as possible before concluding.
Historical sources
Primary sources are crucial to historical research because they are eyewitness accounts of events, people, or occurrences. Examples of primary sources include diary entries, autobiographies, interviews, speeches, and directly involved articles from newspapers and magazines that give detail from a first person viewpoint. When including a primary source in your paper, you must know the significance of the primary source and what context it emerges from to succeed to explaining and displaying the account within the research from which you write.
Secondary sources include books, articles, and scholarly journals that have already done their research for you in a sense. In other words, researching a secondary source is researching other people’s research. Although secondary sources are helpful, primary sources make a research paper viable. Further, it is important to know that secondary sources’ bibliography can lead you to primary sources, which are very beneficial to research. At the same time, secondary sources might enlighten a researcher in terms of what arguments exist on the subject of research.
Approaching typical assignments in history
Reading critically
Reading history can not be compared to reading a novel. When one reads a novel, the reader might take on a more relaxed approach; while reading history, one constantly has to ask oneself questions. As Rampolla writes (8-10), these questions include such questions as,
• “What can this source tell me?”
• “Is this source primary or secondary?”
• “When was this source published?”
• Can I trust this--especially if it is an Internet source?
• “Does the author provide sufficient and logical support for his or her thesis?”
• “What is the author’s viewpoint and background?”
• “How does the source compare with other sources I have consulted?”
Types of Assignments
Summaries and book reviews
A summary asks one to simply report on the text of a historical document. This means that one does not include analysis of one’s own. When conducting a book review, one is obliged to recount why one likes the book or not. To draw a conclusion, it is important to apply the steps of critical analysis: summary, description of the author’s viewpoint, including evidence that backs the author’s thesis, analyzing the evidence and counter evidence put forth by the author, and a conclusion on the usefulness of a source.
Annotated bibliographies
This is composed of a citation followed by a short paragraph that reads like a book review. It shows critical thinking about the topic and evaluates the importance of the text. It gives a sound synopsis or overview of the book cited.
Writing A Research Paper
A history paper does not only consist of a series of facts, but confronts the questions “how?” and “why” and delves into answering them to the best of one’s ability. There is a protocol for history papers, and that requires one to state a clearly identifiable thesis and argue it by utilizing historical evidence and counter evidence. Though facts are a crucial aspect of the paper, it is also important that evaluation/ analysis are interspersed throughout the paper.
Quoting and documenting sources
Even a short history paper requires documentation as evidence to back up one’s ideas and facts to be included by the historical writer.
Choosing a topic that interests you
Begin to ponder and sift through what sources are readily available in the libraries and databases to which you have access. You can think in general terms about general topics, and once you have begun reading and asking yourself questions, then you can come up with your own conclusions about narrower topics within the texts you are examining and what kind of arguments you can make in relation to those topics.
Make an outline
You can begin an outline by jotting down the main ideas you intend to include in your essay. After you have created such a list, then get more specific within each idea. Make sure you have listed both facts and arguments. Then, come up with one sentence that sums up your main argument completely. Label this as your thesis statement. Include the thesis statement in your first paragraph. Make a list of your primary and secondary source evidence and explain how it is related to your essay. It is important to utilize both of these types of sources in your essay. You don’t have to stick to your outline in full, as your paper will change and develop; but allow it to act as your guide.
The Introduction and Thesis
In the introduction, you have to let your readers understand what your paper is essentially about. In addition, you have to state your thesis and give a context to what you are writing about. Place your topic within a historical context while laying out your main argument.
The Body
It is required that you begin each new paragraph with a topic sentence, and that you transition from one paragraph to the next in a manner that makes a clear correlation between similar or opposing arguments. Stay close to your arguments and the facts associated with your topic sentences; avoid tangents. Find counterevidence and respond to it so that you are prepared for attacking opposing views. This displays the strength of your paper. Show some counter evidence and attack it yourself.
Extra Tips
Try not to sound chatty or utilize slang/ jargon. Keep it professional, formal, and historically sound. In addition, avoid the passive voice where you can. Make sure to double check your facts, because it would look bad to include misinformation. For this reason, though you should include Internet information, be careful of it and fact check.
Quoting
Where you can paraphrase, you don’t have to quote. Quote a memorable phrase or sentence, but if it is just facts, then you might as well paraphrase. When you do quote, do not quote anything lengthy; keep it short and worthy of quoting.
Plagiarism
This is a serious violation of academic code and will be punished accordingly. Altering a couple of words does not make a quote a paraphrase. You have to paraphrase to the point that the text is put in your own words from the original text. You also have to reference all quotes and documentation is a requirement. Also, one needs to cite, even when information is paraphrased. The link below will take you to the definition of plagiarism in the University's Student Code of Conduct:
http://www.umsl.edu/studentlife/dsa/student_planner/policies/conductcode.htm
Conclusion
A conclusion should bring together the main ideas of your paper into one substantive paragraph. One should not introduce new ideas into the conclusion; however, one ought to infer ideas from the information already produced in the paper. Infer the thesis statement somehow and make it proven even further. No quotations are needed in the conclusion; just your own thoughts relating to the development of your paper.
CMS (Chicago Manual Style)
CMS is standard for history papers, and use of footnotes/endnotes and bibliography is applied, vs. a works cited page in MLA style.
Basic form for a book’s bibliography
Basic form for footnotes or endnotes of a book
Additional Reference to a source
Use the author’s last name and shortened form of title and page number:
Last name, page.
For more, read the book this summary is based on:
Mary Lynn Rampolla, A Pocket Guide To Writing In History, Second Edition, Boston: Bedford/ St. Martin’s, 1998.