HSRU-1300 INTRODUCTION TO MEDIEVAL
HISTORY: ESSAY PROJECTS
Instructor:
Tomas Zahora Fall
2004
OPTION 1: TWO SIX-PAGE ESSAYS: Write two 2000-word (about six pages, double-spaced,
1’’ margins) essays. Each essay, worth 17.5% of your total course grade,
must be based on at least one primary source.
► DRAFT: [not
graded; worth 20% of each essay grade; to be e-mailed (tzahora@highstream.com)
by
1.
Thesis statement: A half-page
description of the argument and main points of your essay, as well as the
conclusions you have reached, or are expecting to reach.
2.
Fifteen excerpts (sentence or two, even
a shorter paragraph) from the
primary source. Each excerpt will be followed by a brief (2-5 sentences)
description of the excerpt’s relation to the main thesis of the primary source
and to your argument in the essay. You do not need to use all excerpts in
your essay: the point of the exercise is to help you gather enough
material to build an argument, and to show me how you are approaching the primary
source and what your direction is. At the same time, turning in a finished
essay that has nothing in common with your draft will raise questions that will
probably need to be answered in some detail during an appointment in my office.
Remember that this project will probably take some time, and will probably be
about three single-spaced pages long, or longer.
► ESSAY:
1.
Choose a text that interests you—excerpts or full texts in the Internet
Medieval Sourcebook are a good start—read the whole work (let me know if the
books turn out to be too long or too complex), and write an essay in which you
analyze themes you consider interesting or especially relevant.
2.
Use at least four secondary sources (books, scholarly articles) to
complement your analysis, prepare an annotated bibliography of secondary
sources, and attach it at the end of your essay.
For
example, if you are interested in Chivalry, you can read one of Chrétien de Troyes’ romances, and compare his treatment of knighthood
with modern scholarly analyses; or if you like Charlemagne, an essay based on Einhard’s or Notker’s biographies
is always a challenging and rewarding effort. Any primary text or a combination
of texts or documents (let us say, of at least 50 printed pages in combined
length) can be used as a basis for your essay.
FORMAT OF YOUR PROJECTS
Draft: Single
space, 1’’ margins, 12-size font.
Essay: Double-spaced
main text, single-spaced block quotations. 1’’ margins, 12-size font.
Annotated bibliography and
footnotes: Historians tend to use the
Chicago Manual of Style or Turabian’s handbook; if
you are used to MLA or other formats, you can use those, as long as you are
consistent.
Example of an entry:
Johnson, Eleanor, and Michael Hollingbroke. Why Historians are Always Wrong: A Reinterpretation of Marx’s Historical Theory.
A radical interpretation of Marx’s view of history,
which argues that Marx simplified Hegel’s historical model and adjusted it to
fit his economic program. Johnson
and Hollingbroke show examples of Marx’s skewing of
data and omitting important segments of Hegel’s arguments. The book’s
conclusion is that these omissions undermine his three-stage historical model
and make the communist society of the future a highly improbable utopia.
DUE DATES
DRAFTS are due by 8 October (draft of essay 1) and 19 November (draft of essay 2), by
ESSAYS are due by 22 October (essay 1) and 3 December (essay 2), either in class, or by
OPTION 2: ONE TWELVE-PAGE ESSAY: Write a 4000-word (about twelve pages, double-spaced,
1’’ margins) essay that will trace the development, within the period of time
under discussion, of a broader political, social, or intellectual problem or
question that you find intriguing or particularly relevant. The essay will
be worth 35% of your total course grade, and must be based on at least two
primary sources.
► DRAFT: [not
graded; worth 20% of total essay grade; to be e-mailed (tzahora@highstream.com)
by
1.
Thesis statement: A half-page
description of the argument and main points of your essay, as well as the
conclusions you have reached, or are expecting to reach.
► ESSAY:
1.
Begin by selecting appropriate primary sources (at least two sources).
Read the entire texts (again, consult me if the texts are too long or complex).
2.
Research the treatment of your thesis by contemporaneous (=medieval) writers or
modern historians, and build up an annotated bibliography consisting of
at least eight secondary sources (books, scholarly articles). Attach the
bibliography at the end of your completed essay.
This
essay project allows you to broaden the scope of your research. For example, if
you are interested in economics, you can study or compare different Hanse charters and privileges, the ups and downs of
medieval fairs, or scholastic analyses of economical activities; if
ecclesiastical history is your thing, a comparison of a saint’s biography from
earlier period (say, 8-9th century) with a work from the 11th-12th
century could address issues like the changing ideal of a Christian life, or
position of women in medieval society. As in the shorter essay project, there
is no limit as far as topics are concerned: follow your interests. Together,
the primary sources should be at least 100 pages in length.
FORMAT OF YOUR PROJECTS
Draft: Single
space, 1’’ margins, 12-size font.
Essay: Double-spaced
main text, single-spaced block quotations. 1’’ margins, 12-size font.
Annotated bibliography and
footnotes: See the annotated
bibliography section on previous page.
DUE DATES
DRAFT is due by 22 October, by
ESSAY is due by 3 December (essay 2), either in class, or by