HIS 400-01: Seminar in Historical Methods
Instructors:
Howard Berger
Spring
2008
Steven Maughan (course
administrator)
Jeff Snyder
Office:
209A Strahorn
TuTh – 4:00-5:30
Office hours:
Mon., Weds. 9:20-10:10
STRA 201
2:15-3:15
(and by appointment)
COURSE OBJECTIVES: The Seminar in
Historical Methods is designed to achieve three goals. Students will: 1) conduct and complete an original
independent historical research project; 2) gain familiarity with major schools
of thought and historiography; and 3) discuss the meaning and significance of
history, both philosophically and in its historical practice in relation to the
assigned readings and papers.
This course is intended to be the
culmination of the students' undergraduate academic career as an historian and
will expose the students to different approaches to history during sessions conducted by
different members of the History Department. Through this exposure
students will be encouraged to pull together intellectual strands from all of
their previous courses. Thus, in this course you will be required to bring
to discussion and research the information learned and interpretive skills developed in your
four years as a history major, both in course discussions and in written
assignments. You will also be required to demonstrate ability to
grapple with major themes in historiography with informed and intelligent
contributions to the seminar discussions and in the production of your final
research paper.
Required Texts:
Joyce Appleby, Lynn Hunt and Margaret Jacob, Telling
the Truth About History (1994).
Daniel Boorstin, The
Genius of American Politics, (1953).
Paul A. Cohen, History
in Three Keys: The Boxers as Event, Experience, and Myth (1997).
Articles linked in the on-line syllabus.
COURSE
REQUIREMENTS:
Readings and Response Papers (35%): There are five response
papers due during the first seven weeks of class.
The papers should NOT be “reports” that summarize the readings but
rather each should be a critical analysis of the central points of the arguments presented by
the author(s). As you read the chapters
and articles, consider: What central questions are being asked? What is the debate?
How do the authors’ define the role and purpose of history? What are the methods, assumptions, and
results? All response papers are due at
the beginning of class. All writing for the
course should follow these General
Writing Requirements.
Research Paper (15
page minimum, 20 page maximum) and Portfolio: History is an interpretive
discipline. While few historians may disagree
about whether or not a particular event occurred, historians do debate and
disagree, at times vigorously, about the meaning,
the significance, and the consequence of that event. History is also a dynamic discipline where
the past is always contended, negotiated, and reexamined. At the heart of the discipline are primary
source documents—the building blocks of historical interpretations.
This assignment requires you to
write a ca. 15 page, primary source driven, original research paper on a topic of
your choice. For this project, you will
be asked to thoughtfully consider how historians have understood and presented
an historical event, provide a critical evaluation of those works, and finally,
show how your work contributes to historical understanding and the historical debate. This is a multi-step assignment. Be prepared to discuss your evolving topic
during group meetings and with history faculty.
All students will work closely in
groups of four or five with one history faculty member. On the days designated, each group will meet
separately to discuss the progress, problems, challenges, and successes of the research
project. The purpose is to insure
individual attention and to help each of you successfully complete your
project. Final grades on the project will be determined
by the history department faculty as a whole.
1)
Topic Proposal:
Pick a historical event or topic of your interest and
briefly explain your choice (e.g. nineteenth-century American immigration, Meiji
Japanese modernization, post-World War Two American political speech, the
causes of World War I, etc., etc.).
2)
Preliminary Proposal (2%) Due March 4: In a brief
paragraph elaborate on the proposed topic by narrowing your idea to a specific
issue, event, or theme that you want to explore (e.g. immigrants to
Idaho, etc.).
3)
Proposal and Bibliography and Revised
Proposal and Bibliography (3%) Due March 11 and March 18: In a
page or two, elaborate on your topic by discussing your focus and some of the
issues that explains its significance (e.g. Irish immigrant workers in
Idaho mines in late nineteenth
century, etc.). Include a preliminary bibliography
of at least eight secondary sources and most importantly, identify and discuss
the significance of the primary source documents (the collection and the
titles) you will use and how you will acquire the materials. By March 18, revise
and develop your proposal following small group discussion and individual
consultation with your faculty research advisor.
4)
Preliminary and Final Outline and Annotated
Bibliography (10%) Due April 1 and April 22: Include 1) one or two substantial single-spaced paragraphs
that elaborate on your topic, focus, and issues (300 word minimum); 2) a revised and expanded
bibliography of secondary and primary sources; 3) a critically annotated
bibliography that assesses each of your bibliographical sources and gives insights to the central points
and usefulness of each and, where appropriate, where they fit into the
historiography of your subject; and 4) a detailed outline (2 pages single
spaced minimum) that highlights the key points you
will discuss in your paper. By April 26, revise and develop your outline and
annotated bibliography following small group discussion and individual
consultation with your faculty advisor.
5)
Presentation and Abstract (10%) Due April
29
through May 8 (based on presentation schedule): There
will be an eight to 10 minute oral presentation given to the class and to
the history faculty. You are encouraged to
use PowerPoint. On the day of your
presentation, distribute to your audience a one page abstract of your paper (200
word minimum). Include in this a brief paragraph summarizing
the central points and your thesis, most significant sources used, your central
findings, and the contribution of your study to historical knowledge and debate. Presentations will occur over four class
periods.
6)
Final Paper (30%) and Research Portfolio (10%)
Due May 20: Submit your final paper as a part of your
course portfolio. The papers must follow the
standards in the Research Paper Assignment Sheet. This must include not
only the final paper but all of the original marked and graded items from above
as well as all your response papers.
Ideally, the portfolio will be
collected in a slender, simple, appropriate thin cardboard binder and will
be organized with a table of contents; it must not come as loose papers.
Research portfolios will not be returned.
Final grades will be assigned on the
following percentages:
A ‑ 94‑100
B ‑ 84‑86 C ‑ 74‑76 D ‑ 64‑66
A‑ ‑
90‑93 B‑ ‑ 80‑83 C‑ ‑
70‑73 D‑ ‑ 60‑63
B+ ‑ 87‑89
C+ ‑ 77‑79 D ‑ 67‑69 F ‑ below 60
Assignments and Late
Policy: Unless otherwise instructed,
please bring a hard copy of all assignments to class. Due dates are firm. There will be a five percent deduction on
ALL assignments not received at the beginning of class and for each subsequent 24
hour period, NO EXCEPTIONS!
Attendance and Participation: Attend all scheduled class and group meetings
as Attendance is Mandatory. You will be allowed NO UNEXCUSED ABSENCES!
If you must miss class for reasons of participation in college-sponsored
activities, or illness, you must contact the Course Administrator
BEFORE CLASS, BY
EMAIL, FOR EACH DAY that you will miss, and personally provide documentation
from appropriate authorities (a coach, the college nurse, a doctor, etc.)
supporting the reason for your absence. This policy will be strictly enforced.
If you fail to follow this procedure in all its particulars, the absence will be
considered unexcused. EACH unexcused absence will result in a 1/3 grade
reduction in your FINAL GRADE for the course (upon the first absence, an A
becomes an A-, upon the second a B+, etc.). It is your responsibility to make
appropriate arrangements to make up assignments and stay current on course work
when you have excused absences. You are expected to participate
in an informed manner in the seminar discussions.
Email capability: You must have a
functioning collegeofidaho.edu or yotes.collegeofidaho.edu email address to take
this course. You will be responsible for changes to the schedule, assignments,
and other particulars for the course as they are announced by email. You should
check your email daily and maintain a functioning account.
Academic Dishonesty:
The College of Idaho community operates with integrity under the College
Honor Code. That means, among other things, that we assume you will be
honest in your work for this class. However, it also means if cheating comes
to our attention, we will feel free to fail and turn over to the Honor Code
Committee any student who cheats in any way. The papers are
individual projects. Obvious collaborative efforts or plagiarism of the
work of another student or of a published author or of an internet site will
be construed as cheating. Plagiarism is the act of stealing the ideas or
words of another and presenting them as your own. Both the using of
passages without quotation marks and/or citations (e.g. footnotes) and the
use of ideas without citations are considered plagiarism. Experience shows
that even upper-level students are sometimes confused about the definition
of plagiarism. If you have any questions about plagiarism, please speak
with us. You must read, sign, and turn in a copy of the
Academic Integrity statement of the Department of History when you turn
in your first paper for the course.
COURSE SCHEDULE
[n.b. some
of the links in the syllabus are
"internal" C of I Intranet reserve documents: you must be on campus and logged
onto the campus network to access the.]
WEEK ONE
Feb 26: Seminar
Introduction
Research Topic -- explanation
and discussion.
Feb. 28:
Discussion Day:
Read: Appleby, Telling the Truth About History, pp. 15-125.
Focus questions: (read the
assignment with these questions in mind; come to class prepared to discuss
them). "What were the purposes and
methods of the practice of history between the years 1700 and 1900? Who did history? Why did they do it? What were its methods, assumptions and
results in the production of knowledge?
Were there broad phases of development in the writing of history? If so, briefly identify the phases and what
forces affected them. From this history of the
first 200 years of modern historical practice, can you identify what elements
are necessary for one to "do history"? Is history a science? Why or
why not? At its most basic, what is "history"? What is it to do
"good history"? To you, what does it mean to "do history" or be a historian?" There will be a short reading quiz on this
material.
WEEK TWO
Mar 4: College Learning Assessment (CLA) examination. All students
in the seminar must report to the Covell Hall computer laboratory.
Attendance will be taken.
Preliminary Proposal Due
[must be a formal, typed submission.]
Mar 6:
Discussion Day:
Sources / research demonstration
Read: and explore the
Research Process Guide
the
History Department Research Links Page,
and the
Electronic Source
Listings Page.
Read: Jules R. Benjamin, A Student's Guide to History, 10th ed. (Boston:
Bedford/St. Martin's,
2006),
Chap.
4 and
Chap. 5 [intranet]
WEEK THREE
Mar 11: Discussion Day:
Read: Appleby, Telling the Truth About History, pp. 129-207.
Raymond Williams, "History,"
in Keywords [intranet].
Response Paper Due: Write a 3-4 page reaction essay (750-1000 words)
on the questions: "What were the
purposes and methods of the practice of history between the years 1900 and
1995? Who did history? Why did they do it? What were its methods, assumptions and
results in the production of knowledge? What were the leading schools of
history (list the most important) and what assumptions did their writing of history rest on? What forces shaped the changing
approaches to history that arose in the twentieth century?”
You must come to class prepared to intelligently discuss these
questions. There may be a short reading
quiz on this material. Any class member
may be required to read their reaction essay to the class. You will be graded on your participation,
knowledge and coherence in the class discussion.
Historical Agents Description Due: each student
will write up a 250-300 word summary of the theory, practice and/or significance
of an assigned theorist, historian or historical school. Each will be
responsible for acting as the expert on your assigned individual/group and be
prepared to discuss and represent the assumptions, importance, and impact of
your assigned topic to the practice of history. You should draw on specific
information from Telling the Truth About History but also on other
relevant reference sources, such as The Encyclopedia of Historians and
Historical Writing (Terteling Library: Reference
D14.E53 1999 ) in order to fully represent your
charge.
Proposal and Bibliography Due
Mar 13:
Research Group Meeting: (research groups announced).
Read: Jules R. Benjamin, A Student's Guide to History, 10th ed. (Boston:
Bedford/St. Martin's,
2006),
Appendix A. [intranet]
and explore the
Online Student's Guide to Research
WEEK FOUR
Mar 18:
Discussion Day:
Read:
Appleby,
Telling the Truth about History, pp. 1-12,
207-309
Stanley Fish,
"Postmodern Warfare," Harper's Magazine (July 2002): 33-40.
[intranet]
Bennett, Grossberg, Morris, "History,"
New Keywords [intranet]
Response
Paper Due:
Write a 3-4 page reaction essay (750-1000 words) on the
questions: “What is the nature of the
post-modern critique of history? What
are the primary assertions of post-modernist and post-colonial theory and how
do they relate to the practice of history?
What are the status of historical “truth” and “objectivity” under these
critiques? How should the historian
respond to them? Can there be
"historical knowledge" in a post-modern world?" You must come to class prepared to
intelligently discuss these questions.
There may be a short reading quiz on this material. Any class member may be required to read
their reaction essay to the class. You
will be graded on your participation, knowledge and coherence in the class
discussion.
Revised Proposal and Bibliography Due
Mar 20:
Historical Writing Analysis Exercise:
Read: Susan Pedersen,
"Hannah More Meets Simple Simon: Tracts, Chapbooks, and Popular Culture in Late
Eighteenth-Century England," Journal of
British Studies 25 (Jan. 1986): 84-113. [intranet]
Response
Exercise Due:
Write a an analytical outline of sections and paragraphs in this
article according to this exercise prompt.
WEEK FIVE
Mar 25: No Class
Mar 27: Boorstin,
The
Genius of American Politics
Response
Paper Due: Write a 3-4 page reaction essay
(750-1000 words) on the questions: Boorstein suggests
that American political experience is different from that of other nations and
cultures. Upon what argument and what
evidence does he base this claim? Is it a
credible argument given what you know about American history and the history of
other nations and other times? You
must come to class prepared to intelligently discuss these questions. There may be a short reading quiz on this
material. Any class member may be
required to read their reaction essay to the class. You will be graded on your participation,
knowledge and coherence in the class discussion.
WEEK SIX
April 1: Preliminary
Outline and Annotated Bibliography Due
For an example of what an
Annotated Bibliography should do, and what each annotation might look like,
click here.
Your preliminary outline should be
headed with a provisional thesis statement, have multiple detailed headings and
subheadings, and be 3 pages double spaced, minimum. The Annotated
Bibliography should have at least 7 secondary sources and 1 clearly
identified primary source.
April 3: No Class
SPRING
BREAK: April 7-11
WEEK SEVEN
April 15: No Class.
April 17: Cohen, History in Three Keys, Parts 1, 2 and 3
Response Paper:
Write a 3-4 page reaction essay
(750-1000 words) on the questions: "Cohen’s monograph attempts to
write the history of the Boxer Rebellion in “three keys” – as event,
experience, and myth. What does he think is distinctive about each of these
approaches to history? What methodological problems does each of these
three kinds of history present to the historian, according to Cohen? What
kind of evidence does Cohen use in order to present a convincing portrait of
the Boxers in each part of the book? As an historian, is there one
methodological approach that you think would be more difficult to employ?
If so, which approach and why?" You must come to class prepared to
intelligently discuss these questions. There may be a short reading quiz on
this material. Any class member may be required to read their reaction
essay to the class. You will be graded on your participation, knowledge and
coherence in the class discussion.
WEEK EIGHT
April 22:
Final Outline
and Expanded/Refined Annotated Bibliography Due
April 24: No Class
WEEK NINE
April 29: Research
Presentations/ Abstracts
May
1: Research Presentations/ Abstracts
WEEK TEN
May 6: Research
Presentations/ Abstracts
May 8: Research
Presentations/ Abstracts
WEEK ELEVEN
May 12:
History Major Exit Interviews (signup for individual times required)
Exit
Survey:
Please click on the link, read and provide a short
written answer to each question. Also be prepared to discuss each area in
the interview. The survey will be collected at the end of the interview.
May 13:
History Major Exit Interviews (signup for individual times required)
May 14:
History Major Exit Interviews (signup for individual times required)
May 15:
History Major Exit Interviews (signup for individual times required)
WEEK TWELVE
May 20:
Final
Paper and Portfolio Due
May 22: No Class
WEEK THIRTEEN
Happy
Graduation!