Additional Guidelines for the Source Paper
To reiterate some of
the basic parameters of the paper, remember that it should be focused
on a reconstruction of the
everyday crusading experiences of
a group or individual. Thus, I will be less interested in having
you
reconstruct the "big picture" of the Crusades through this person's
story than I will be in seeing the Crusades through their eyes as it
were. Please use one of the
approved sources as the primary source for th paper. The
paper
must be 10-12 typed, double-spaced pages in
length. Papers are to be typed in Times Roman font with a 12-pt.
pitch and must be appropriately footnoted (please see me before writing
a paper if you have questions about these standards). Also, do
keep in mind the mandatory draft and the peer critique process for the
paper (details on the dates for these things as well as the due date
for the final craft can be found below).
As promised and as per the
consultation process, I hereby provide additional guidlines for your
Source Essay. First, a source essay is chiefly focused on a
single substantial source or source collection (i.e. a source of 100
printed pages in length). Thus, your topic
and main point in the essay must be focused on what you find in that
source. Additional primary sources are permitted, but it is
expected that you will choose one central source for your
analysis. Second, you may use secondary sources, but you are
allowed no more than five and
one of them must include one of the assigned secondary source readings
for the course. Third, you are not
expected to determine the veracity of your source in the
sense of making a judgment as to whether it is, overall, trustworthy;
rather, in making your argument you will need to make judgments as to
the meaning of the passages of the source that you use in your
paper. Fourth, while there is lot of freedom to define
the essay, you have some obligations in terms of the length of the
various sections:
1. an introduction of .5-.75 pages, to include a well-defined thesis
2. a 1-2 page description of the context you are engaging as it
specifically relates to your topic of choice
3. a body section of 8-8.5 pages in which you need to demonstrate your
thesis chiefly using your
central primary source and in which you must cover five sub-themes.
4. a conclusion of .5-.75 pages
5. a bibliography that includes all sources used
Please take note of the following key dates for the paper: 11/15: Turn
in Rough Draft in Class and Participate in Peer Critique; 11/22: Pick
Up Commented Rough Draft; 12/7: Turn In Final Draft of Source Essay.
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