Seminar in U

‘ to constructively assist colleagues in improving their work

Books:

The following books can be purchased at the bookstore in Cavanaugh or at Follett’s.

Required:

Kate L. Turabian, A Manual for Writers of Term Papers, Theses, and Dissertations, 6^th edition (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1996). You may find earlier editions provide sufficient instruction; they will, however, make it harder to understand references by number rather than topic [see page 6 below].

Note: if you plan to do extensive scholarly writing or editing in the future, you may want to consider purchasing a copy of the Chicago Manual of Style, now in its 14^th edition (1993). Turabian’s manual ought to get you through your masters.

Strongly Recommended:

William Strunk, Jr. and E.B. White [yes, the author of Charlotte’s Web], The Elements of Style, 3^rd edition [or later].

Optional:

Anne Lamott, Bird by Bird: some instructions on writing and life (New York: Anchor, 1994).

I strongly recommend having a recent U.S. history textbook readily at hand; they may be boring to read, but they are excellent reference tools.

Articles:

Articles will be available either on JSTOR or in CA537. When possible, the CA537 articles will also be on the EROL system. When using CA537 copies, please make personal copies and return the originals as soon as possible so that others may do the same. There will be a sign out sheet so please note when you take (and return) the piece.

Other Resources:

I will try to arrange for copies of the A Guide to the Preparation of Theses and Dissertations (Indianapolis: Research and University Graduate School, 2000). You should have a copy of the latest edition (8/00).

You should check H-NET (Humanities and Social Science Online) for listservs of possible use. H-Grad is intended for graduate students and often has useful practical advice about being a grad student. The subject area lists range widely in list culture, but almost all welcome (or are amenable to) graduate students joining. We can talk more about “netiquette” in class. I do not want joining a listserv (or multiple ones) to become a distraction from your work, but they represent an incredible resource.

Course Requirements:

The main requirement for this class is an original piece of historical scholarship of publishable quality and format (roughly 30 to 35 pages in length). In order to succeed with this requirement, students MUST hand in 3 drafts of their paper, as well as preparatory written exercises described below. All written assignments must utilize formal prose, be typed, and handed in on time. Please note that the 2 initial drafts, as well as the final version, should be submitted in a completed (not “rough”) draft form, critiqued, and then returned for further polishing.

As part of promoting the environment of collegiality essential to academic endeavors, an additional significant part of the course will be peer reviews in which students critique each others work. Students will write 3-4 formal critiques (approximately 1-2 pages each) and approximately 5 less developed responses to their classmates work (precise numbers will be determined by the final enrollment in the class). In addition, each student will deliver an oral comment on one other student’s paper during one of the final two session. This process will be described in greater detail in class. The overall purpose is to assist the other student in writing a stronger paper (and to receive the same assistance yourself). Copies of these assessments will go to both the students and the instructor.

Class participation will constitute the final portion of the course grade. This work entails completion of reading by the assigned date, occasional pass/fail written assignments, attendance at class meetings, oral presentations of one’s work-in-progress, and participation in class discussions. By definition a seminar requires a give and take that can happen only when people are there and participate. Please note that participation means not just speaking. It means being prepared and contributing thoughtful ideas, questions, or opinions.

As stated above, I expect both prompt, regular attendance and that written material will be submitted on time. If you must miss a class, there will be a required written assignment (primarily as a way of allowing you to engage the material). If for some reason you do need an extension on written work (and extensions are by no means automatic), you must arrange this in advance. You must get the extension from me in writing and attach that to the written work.

40% Final version of paper

20% Preliminary written exercises and (second) draft

20% Peer reviews

20% Participation in class

Grading policies:

While the majority of your grade will be based on your written work, active, constructive class participation is essential to a successful class. Attendance will be taken and absences will affect the participation grade accordingly.

Depending on how much your fellow students are inconvenienced, there will be a penalty in your grade for late assignments. Material that is handed in after the due will generally be marked down at least a 1/3 of a letter grade for each day it is late. That is: a paper that would have been an A, will be an A- if it is one day late and a C- if it is 7 days late, etc. Days means days of the week, not class sessions.

Developing your intellectual skills is possible only when you actually do the work assigned. We will have a longer discussion of intellectual work, intellectual dishonesty, and plagiarism. Plagiarism and cheating will result in an “F” for the work in question and possible disciplinary action by the University. See the Indiana University Academic Handbook (p. 123) or the IUPUI Campus Bulletin, 2000-2002 (p. 36) or talk with me if you have questions about what is or is not permissible.

A grade of “incomplete” is troublesome for everyone. The University’s policy is that they are only for students who have completed almost all course requirements and have been prevented by significant or unanticipated circumstances from finishing them.

Logistics:

Information for this class will be posted on ONCOURSE. This will include announcements to the class, changes in the syllabus or due dates, some handouts, etc. This is particularly helpful when you have to miss a class. If you miss a class, you are still advised to contact a classmate about what happened in class. I will not be using the “chat room” or discussion features of ONCOURSE, but will use it for e-mail and announcements. You can also contact your classmates via class mail.

I encourage you to set your ONCOURSE options to let you know when you have ONCOURSE mail.

I expect that all students in this class will access ONCOURSE regularly. Generally, I will post materials for class by Monday at 10am

Normally, I will respond to e-mail within 48 hours (except for messages sent after 12:00 noon on Friday, to which I may not respond until sometime late Monday).

As you may know, you are entitled to an e-mail account through IUPUI. I realize that many of you prefer to use another provider for e-mail and web work. The University encourages you to set up your IUPUI account to forward information to your other accounts. It means that you can easily access information from the University. If you need help setting up the account or forwarding mail, contact:

https://iupui-accts.iupui.edu/students/student.html

I have voice mail that is on twenty‑four hours a day. You are welcome to call me should you need to do so. Note, however, that I will not play “phone tag.” If you leave a phone message, speak slowly and clearly, provide a phone number where you can be reached, and state when you will be at that number.

FYI: There is a University web page that will let you know if the campus is closed for snow:

http://registrar.iupui.edu/adverseweather.html

The Dean’s Office has advised me to warn students that “ultimately, they are responsible for activity on their computer accounts.” Be so advised.

THREE IMPORTANT POINTS:

1. I cannot stress too heavily the usefulness of planning ahead, saving work on your computer OFTEN, making backups, and printing out your paper early. I will recount suitable horror stories of people who did not take these precautions. Please do not become another one of my instructive tales.

2. Unless it becomes necessary, I do not expect to assign pages in Turabian, Struck and White, or Lamott. I will make the following observations.

a. Turabian (the “ruler lady” of the University of Chicago) has an excellent index. If you encounter a problem when citing (or someone tells you that you have a problem), please consult her. Based on having read students and friends works, I particularly recommend reviewing the following sections (in the 6^th edition): 2.26, 2.53-54, 2.60, 3.65-97 [on the use of commas, colons, semi-colons, and dashes], 3.106 [a MUST READ], 4.19, 5.11. 5.16-23, 5.30-38, 9.28, chapters 8-9; and chap. 11 [“N”s and “B”s]. PLEASE BE ADVISED THAT WE ARE USING STANDARD HISTORICAL CITATION FORMAT---what Turabian calls N&B---NOT PARENTHETICAL REFERENCES AND REFERENCE LISTS---referred to as PR & RL.

Turabian is limited in her advice after referring to manuscript materials. For listing materials in a bibliography, you generally list the collection; see 10.16 [although it suggests the form for a Reference List entry, you can use second example in your bibliography]. You may also want to check with the archivists of collections you use for suggestions or look at the footnotes in the articles we read for the class.

b. You may also find Strunk and White helpful (with the exception of Ch 5, pt. 17).

c. Be sure to begin following the format laid out in the University’s Guide to the Preparation of Theses and Dissertations, esp. pp. 7-9.

3. Handouts, your copy of articles, and other reading material should be brought to class the day/s they are being discussed.

TENTATIVE COURSE OUTLINE AND ASSIGNMENTS

The syllabus for this course will be on ONCOURSE. I will post additions, corrections, handouts, and other supplemental materials there as well announce them in class. It is the responsibility of the student to stay on top of changes.

1/10: Introductions, overview of course objectives, requirements, themes, and the syllabus.

Study the historian before you study the facts. -E.H. Carr

Handout: Brecht, “A Worker Reads History.”

Review form

Part I. History and Gender

1/17: WHAT IS HISTORY?

WHO MAKES HISTORY?

WHO ARE HISTORIANS?

WHY DO WE WRITE HISTORY?

History’s great tradition is to help us understand ourselves and our world so that each of us, individually and in conjunction with our fellow men, can formulate relevant and reasoned alternatives and become meaningful actors in making history. Considered in this light, History is a way of learning.

-William Appleman Williams

Required Reading:

Brecht (handout)

Carl Becker, “Everyman His Own History” AHR (1932) - JSTOR.

Florence Miller, “Open Letter to Salman Rushdie” (1992) - CA537

GENDER AS A CATEGORY OF ANALYSIS IN U.S. HISTORY

Required Reading:

Joan Scott, “Gender: A Useful Category of Historical Analysis,” AHR (1986) - JSTOR

Karen Anderson, Teaching Gender in U.S. History (AHA 1997) - CA537

Assignments:

Be prepared to answer the question: What is gender?

With Anderson (or Scott) in mind, examine a relevant section of an American history textbook and be prepared to talk about how the perspective/s she lays out would have you rethink the history presented there in a significant way.

Be prepared to present to the class (in less than 5 minutes) your initial plans for the topic of your paper.