How to Write a History Thesis
The discussion portion of the thesis typically is the longest since its here that the writer will explain the limitations of the work, offer explanations of any unexpected results, and cite remaining questions about the topic.The capacious genre government records is probably the single richest trove for the historian and includes everything from criminal court records, to tax lists, to census data, to parliamentary debates, to international treatiesindeed, any records generated by governments. If youre writing about culture, primary sources may include works of art or literature, as well as philosophical tracts or scientific treatisesanything that comes under the broad rubric of culture. Not all primary sources are written. Buildings, monuments, clothes, home furnishings, photographs, religious relics, musical recordings, or oral reminiscences can all be primary sources if you use them as historical clues. The interests of historians are so broad that virtually anything can be a primary source. (See also: Analyzing a Historical Document) It was up to me to decide what to do, says Larson. There were no meetings, there was no record-keeping. He had freedom; it was a real kick. But to Larsons way of thinking, the culture didnt focus on, well, the right stuff. Speed there was the biggest thing, he says. The engineers would say, these are our top priorities, and we need to getem as fast as we can. But the impression Larson got was that engineers didnt seem too concerned about how well the finished software actually worked.
In casual conversation incredible often means extraordinary, astonishing, or impressive (Yesterdays storm was incredible. ). To avoid confusion in historical prose, you should stick with the original meaning of incredible: not believable. If you write that William Jennings Bryan gave incredible speeches, youre saying that you dont believe his speeches, or that his audiences didnt believe them at the timein other words, that he appeared to be lying or mistaken. You probably mean that he gave great speeches. If you write that Its incredible that Japan attacked Pearl Harbor, youre calling into question the very existence of a historical event. You probably mean that the Japanese attack was unwise or reckless. English is rich with adjectives. Finding the best one forces you to think about what you really mean. You are not prohibited from writing about controversial topics. On the contrary, you are advised to give it a try. Take a look at our controversial world history topics: If you need to write an argumentative essay, you are probably looking for the most interesting ideas. Take a look at these awesome world history argumentative essay topics: The final version of a thesis statement might be argumentative, for example, taking a side in a debate.
Basically, they wanted quick software just put it out the door. We are certain you dont want to spend too much time writing the paper, so we did our best to come up with some pretty easy world history topics to write about: Most people choose to spend their money at the wrong end of the process, says Munson. In the modern software environment, 80 of the cost of the software is spent after the software is written the first time they dont get it right the first time, so they spend time flogging it. In shuttle, they do it right the first time. And they dont change the software without changing the blueprint. Thats why their software is so perfect. Your professor may allow parenthetical citations in a short paper with one or two sources, but you should use footnotes for any research paper in history. Parenthetical citations are unaesthetic; they scar the text and break the flow of reading. Worse still, they are simply inadequate to capture the richness of historical sources. Historians take justifiable pride in the immense variety of their sources. Parenthetical citations such as (Jones 1994) may be fine for most of the social sciences and humanities, where the source base is usually limited to recent books and articles in English. Historians, however, need the flexibility of the full footnote.
This sentence is a disaster. Who invaded? Your professor will assume that you don't know. Adding by Italy to the end of the sentence helps a bit, but the sentence is still flat and misleading. Italy was an aggressive actor, and your passive construction conceals that salient fact by putting the actor in the syntactically weakest positionat the end of the sentence as the object of a preposition. Notice how you add vigor and clarity to the sentence when you recast it in the active voice: "In 1935 Italy invaded Ethiopia. " In a few cases, you may violate the no-passive-voice rule. The passive voice may be preferable if the agent is either obvious (Kennedy was elected in 1960), irrelevant (Theodore Roosevelt became president when McKinley was assassinated), or unknown (King Harold was killed at the Battle of Hastings). Note that in all three of these sample sentences the passive voice focuses the reader on the receiver of the action rather than on the doer (on Kennedy, not on American voters; on McKinley, not on his assassin; on King Harold, not on the unknown Norman archer).
Helpful Tips for Writing a History Thesis
It consists of walking through an enormous packet of data and view graphs which describe the progress and status of the software line by line. Except for Kellers occasional asides, the tone is businesslike, almost formal, the view graphs flashing past as quickly as they can be read, a blur of acronyms, graphs, and charts. The first sentence has a nonrestrictive relative clause; the dates are included almost as parenthetical information. But something seems amiss with the second sentence. It has a restrictive relative clause that limits the subject (World War I) to the World War I fought between 1914 and 1918, thus implying that there were other wars called World War I, and that we need to distinguish among them. Both sentences are grammatically correct, but the writer of the second sentence appears foolish. Note carefully the distinction between that (for use in restrictive clauses, with no comma) and which (for use in nonrestrictive clauses, with a comma). Everything in the past or relating to the past is historical. Resist the media-driven hype that elevates the ordinary to the historic.
Dont leave your reader asking, So what? If you want to write about a specific period of history (or if your professor has asked you to do so), here are some interesting history topics from Columbus to the 1800s: Are you interested in writing about modern world history? Dont hesitate to pick one of our modern world history topics and start writing your paper right away: For over two centuries, Norwich University has played a vital role in history as Americas first private military college and the birthplace of the ROTC. As such, the university is uniquely positioned to lead students through a comprehensive analysis of the major developments, events, and figures of the past. Use as many primary sources as possible in your paper. A primary source is one produced by a participant in or witness of the events you are writing about. A primary source allows the historian to see the past through the eyes of direct participants. Some common primary sources are letters, diaries, memoirs, speeches, church records, newspaper articles, and government documents of all kinds.
The Importance of Research for Writing a History Thesis
What people? Landless peasants? Urban journeymen? Wealthy lawyers? Which government? When? How? Who exactly needed freedom, and what did they mean by freedom? Here is a more precise statement about the French Revolution: Threatened by rising prices and food shortages in 1793, the Parisian sans-culottes pressured the Convention to institute price controls. This statement is more limited than the grandiose generalizations about the Revolution, but unlike them, it can open the door to a real analysis of the Revolution. Be careful when you use grand abstractions like people, society, freedom, and government, especially when you further distance yourself from the concrete by using these words as the apparent antecedents for the pronouns they and it. Always pay attention to cause and effect. Abstractions do not cause or need anything; particular people or particular groups of people cause or need things. Avoid grandiose trans-historical generalizations that you cant support. When in doubt about the appropriate level of precision or detail, err on the side of adding too much precision and detail.
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As for your own feelings, keep them out of your papers. (I feel that Lincoln should have freed the slaves earlier. ) Your professor will be delighted that the material engages both your head and your heart, but your feelings cannot be graded. If you believe that Lincoln should have acted earlier, then explain, giving cogent historical reasons. Obviously, you should not just stop abruptly as though you have run out of time or ideas. Your conclusion should conclude something. If you merely restate briefly what you have said in your paper, you give the impression that you are unsure of the significance of what you have written. A weak conclusion leaves the reader unsatisfied and bewildered, wondering why your paper was worth reading. A strong conclusion adds something to what you said in your introduction. A strong conclusion explains the importance and significance of what you have written. A strong conclusion leaves your reader caring about what you have said and pondering the larger implications of your thesis.
Or it might be expository, explaining a historical situation. In addition to being concise and coherent, a thesis statement should be contentious, meaning it requires evidence to support it. This software is the work of 260 women and men based in an anonymous office building across the street from the Johnson Space Center in Clear Lake, Texas, southeast of Houston. They work for the on-board shuttle group, a branch of Lockheed Martin Corps space mission systems division, and their prowess is world renowned: the shuttle software group is one of just four outfits in the world to win the coveted Level 5 ranking of the federal governments Software Engineering Institute (SEI) a measure of the sophistication and reliability of the way they do their work. In fact, the SEI based it standards in part from watching the on-board shuttle group do its work. If you are tasked with doing a world history project, we can help you with some very nice ideas. Take a look at our world history project topics and pick the one you like: For another, its an exercise in order, detail, and methodical reiteration. The meeting is a classic NASA performance a rehearsal for an almost identical meeting several weeks away.
Try to imagine this typical footnote (pulled at random from a classic work of German history) squeezed into parentheses in the body of the text: DZA Potsdam, RdI, Frieden 5, Erzgebiet von Longwy-Briey, Bd. I, Nr. 19305, gedruckte Denkschrift für OHL und Reichsleitung, Dezember 1917, und in RWA, Frieden Frankreich Nr. 1883. The abbreviations are already in this footnote; its information cannot be further reduced. For footnotes and bibliography, historians usually use Chicago style. (The Chicago Manual of Style. 15th edition. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2003. ) On the Writing Centers website you can find a useful summary of Chicago citation style prepared by a former history major, Elizabeth Rabe 04 (Footnotes). RefWorks (on the librarys website) will convert your citations to Chicago style. Dont hesitate to ask one of the reference librarians for help if you have trouble getting started on RefWorks. However may not substitute for the coordinating conjunction but.
(Mussolini began his career as a socialist, but [not
however] he later abandoned socialism for fascism. ) The
word however has many proper uses; however,
[note the semicolon and comma] graceful writers use it sparingly.
With so many sources availablesome of which may provide
conflicting findingshow should a student research and write a
history thesis? How can a student create a thesis thats both
compelling and supports a position that academic editors describe
as concise, contentious, and coherent? Writing History: An
Introductory Guide to How History Is Produced, American
Historical Association
How to Write a Thesis Statement, Scribbr
The Importance of Historic Context in Analysis and
Interpretation, ThoughtCo.
7 Reasons Why Research Is Important, Owlcation
Primary and Secondary Sources, Scribbr
Secondary Sources in Research, ThoughtCo.
Analysis of Sources, History Skills
Research Paper Outline, Scribbr
How to Structure a Thesis, Paperpile
Writing Your Final Draft, History Skills
How to Prepare an Excellent Thesis Defense, Paperpile Are you
interested in writing about war history? After all, wars have
been an integral part of our history for thousands of years.
- Note major points.
- Categorize ideas supported by the theories.
- Arrange points according to the importance and a timeline of events addressed by the thesis.
- Create effective headings and subheadings.
- Format the outline.
Historians usually wish to focus on the doer, so you should stay with the active voiceunless you can make a compelling case for an exception. Primary research sources are the building blocks to help us better understand and appreciate history. It is critical to find as many primary sources from as many perspectives as possible. Researching these firsthand accounts can provide evidence that helps answer those what, how, and why questions about the past, Ulbrich says. Are you tasked with writing a paper on medieval history? You will be thrilled to learn that our experts have put together a nice list of medieval history paper topics: Avoid the common solecism of using feel as a synonym for think, believe, say, state, assert, contend, argue, conclude, or write. (Marx felt that the bourgeoisie exploited the proletariat. Emmeline Pankhurst felt that British women should be able to vote. ) The use of feel in these sentences demeans the agents by suggesting undisciplined sentiment rather than carefully formulated conviction. Concentrate on what your historical actors said and did; leave their feelings to speculative chapters of their biographies.
(A three-alarm fire last night destroyed the historic site of the first Portuguese-owned dry cleaners in Cleveland. ) Reserve the word historic for the genuinely important events, persons, or objects of the past. The Norman invasion of England in 1066 was indeed historic. Historically, historians have gathered annually for a historical convention; so far, none of the conventions has been historic. Explore Norwich Universitys online Master of Arts in History program. Start your path toward writing a compelling history thesis and taking your talents further. Are you interested in writing a paper on ancient world history? We have plenty of interesting ancient world history research paper topics right here. Check them out: Vague statements and empty generalizations suggest that you haven't put in the time to learn the material. Consider these two sentences: During the French Revolution, the government was overthrown by the people. The Revolution is important because it shows that people need freedom.
An array of primary and secondary sources can help provide a thorough understanding of a historical event, although some of those sources may include conflicting views and details. In those cases, the American Historical Association says, its up to the thesis author to determine which source reflects the appropriate point-of-view. Write in the active voice. The passive voice encourages vagueness and dullness; it enfeebles verbs; and it conceals agency, which is the very stuff of history. You know all of this almost instinctively. What would you think of a lover who sighed in your ear, My darling, you are loved by me!? At its worst, the passive voicelike its kin, bureaucratic language and jargonis a medium for the dishonesty and evasion of responsibility that pervade contemporary American culture. (Mistakes were made; I was given false information. Now notice the difference: I screwed up; Smith and Jones lied to me; I neglected to check the facts. ) On history papers the passive voice usually signals a less toxic version of the same unwillingness to take charge, to commit yourself, and to say forthrightly what is really going on, and who is doing what to whom. Suppose you write, In 1935 Ethiopia was invaded.
Note: The Writing Center suggests standard abbreviations for noting some of these problems. You should familiarize yourself with those abbreviations, but your professor may not use them.