History 112, Pennock,
Fall 09
Arc of Justice Paper Assignment
25% of
Course Grade. Due Wed. Nov. 4
(Or you may choose to write your paper on Coming of
Age in Mississippi, due Nov. 30. You may not write both papers for credit.)
Choose ONE of the
following topics on which to write a well-organized, well-written argument
paper of 5 to 8 pages in length. The typed
paper should be double-spaced with one-inch margins, 12-point font, and no
extra spaces between paragraphs. No
outside research is required for the paper, although I recommend using other materials
assigned for the course to help make sense of Arc of Justice.
All
students are required to submit their papers electronically to an online
plagiarism detection program called Turn It In by Nov. 5. Each student has to
set up an account at the Turn It In website.(Instructions
for doing so are included at the very end of this page.)
Unless you have a terrible
emergency that you inform me of right away, a paper will be deducted one letter
grade (10 points) for every day it is late, including weekend days.
1. What larger story about
the history of American race relations do you think author Kevin Boyle is
trying to tell by focusing on the Ossian Sweet case? Another way to ask this
is: Because of the author’s focus on Detroit (instead of the rural South) and
the Sweet case, what do we learn from this book that most Americans might not
emphasize or understand about American race relations during the early
1900s?
OR
2. At one point in the
court proceedings, Clarence Darrow declared: “I think we’re trying the race
question and nothing else” (p. 317). Was he justified in saying that? Evaluate
his statement using historical evidence and analysis. (in other words, I don’t
just want your unsupported opinion.)
You are to make an informed
argument about the topic you choose based on evidence. The key to a good paper is a strong thesis, or argument. You should state your thesis clearly and
concisely in your introduction, and then develop the argument in the body of
your paper. (A thesis can be more than one sentence long.) Make sure that the
information and interpretations in the body of your paper relate to your
thesis. The thesis should address all
parts of the question. Lay out
all your arguments in the beginning and develop them in the body of the paper. Don’t surprise your reader with a new
argument halfway through the paper.
A good essay requires a
judicious balance between evidence
(facts) and analysis
(explanation). A paper that contains a
lot of facts from class materials but lacks a clear thesis is not a good
essay. You must consider how the information you include fits
into the larger picture -- why is a particular fact significant? On the other hand, an essay that has a clear
thesis but lacks sufficient details is not much better. You must support your generalizations with
specific examples/facts.
One of the keys to writing
with both evidence and analysis is good “paragraphing.” This means that you should think carefully
about how you structure your paragraphs, and I recommend beginning and ending
each paragraph with an analytical statement that relates the topic/evidence in
that paragraph to larger themes/arguments in your paper.
Important: This paper should
not consist of a summary of the book(s). Refer to the story, but do not spend
much time “re-telling” it. Your focus
should be on analyzing the book in order to support your argument/thesis. Your tone should be scholarly – not too
informal or personal.
Use of sources:
Citations:
When using specific factual
information from The American Journey, on-line documents, and Arc of
Justice, you should put the abbreviated title and page number in
parentheses immediately following the sentence or sentences. You need a citation even if it is not a
direct quote.
I will repeat that bit of information
again because students normally don’t get it: You need a citation even if
it is not a direct quote.
** For the purpose of this
class, you do not need to include a citation for information derived from my
lectures or from class discussion.
Quotations:
Use
quotations selectively and only when they provide relevant evidence. This paper should be about your ideas and
arguments. In other words, do not use
too many quotations and always make sure you analyze them and make it clear to
your reader why you’re featuring a particular quote. When you use quotations, do not isolate them.
Instead, introduce them and integrate them into your sentences. A quotation should never stand alone.
Wrong: Upton Sinclair portrayed Abner
Shutt as naïve.
“It passed Abner’s comprehension how any man
or woman could fail to be grateful for such divine compassion on the part of
Mr. Ford” (Flivver King, 30).
Right: Upton Sinclair portrayed Abner
Shutt as naïve.
To show how Shutt worshiped Ford and believed
he was a benevolent “god,” Sinclair wrote: “It passed Abner’s
comprehension how any man or woman could fail to be grateful for such divine
compassion on the part of Mr. Ford” (Flivver King, 30).
You must use quotation
marks around words that are not your own (this includes texts found on
websites)! You must provide citations with page numbers for both ideas and
words that are not your own. Failure to do so constitutes
plagiarism, a very serious offense that will earn you an F.
[Note: if you want to use
footnote style citations instead of the parenthetical (or MLA) citations
described above, that is perfectly acceptable. We call this Chicago Style
citation, and it is the style that historians prefer. Here’s a website
that shows how. (Your word processing program should have an option in the
“insert” menu that will allow you to create foot or endnotes.)]
Bibliography:
Formal bibliographies are not necessary.
However, if you use out-of-class materials, including websites, you must include a bibliography. (Note: use of out-of-class materials is not
necessary for the purposes of this paper and will not elevate your grade.)
Writing Style
This is a college-level paper
and I have high expectations for college-level writing. Presentation of ideas is very important for
effective communication. Your writing
should be formal, but not awkward or overly verbose (wordy). Strive for
efficiency and clarity.
PROOFREAD YOUR PAPER! I also highly recommend that you have someone who you
respect and trust for his/her critical opinion read over your paper. A second pair of eyes can be very helpful.
Word processing spellcheckers will help, but they will not catch mistakes such
as “they’re – their – there” or “would of” (instead of “would have”) or “lead –
led” or “your – you’re.” Also, sometimes
your spellchecker will suggest a word that is not even close to what you want,
and you click “replace” without thinking twice.
This often is humorous for me,
but it reflects carelessness on your part.
The
University runs a
I
am also happy to consult with you as you are writing your paper.
Other quick writing tips:
*Structure each
paragraph around one main idea. Think carefully about clear organization and
logical structure of your ideas.
Book titles (and film titles)
are underlined or italicized. Use quotation marks around article, chapter,
speech, and most short document titles.
A book of nonfiction is not a
novel. A novel is a book of fiction. (In other words, Arc of Justice is
not a novel.)
Maintain a consistent verb tense - I
recommend past tense. A common
error that students make in papers is to switch back and forth between present
and past tense.
Make sure your pronouns match
their antecedents (e.g. singular or plural.)
Write in complete sentences.
Do NOT use fragments, and do not write run-on sentences.
You may use first tense (“I”)
sparingly, but do not use second tense (“you.”)
Avoid wordiness and redundancy. Write as clearly and efficiently as possible.
Punctuate correctly – use a
writing style guide if you have doubts.
Grading System
I use the following criteria when grading your papers:
F: No introduction,
no thesis. Failure to respond to the
specific assignment. Superficial content with no indication of sources. Plagiarism. Poor structure. Significant
grammatical and typing errors. Failure
to understand material.
D: Weak, vague, or irrelevant thesis. Significant conceptual or factual errors.
Argument is undeveloped, and paper contains poor organization. Ignores relevant
evidence. Uses many generalizations without evidential support. Inaccurate citations. Significant grammatical
and typing errors.
C: Weak thesis. Some
confusion of facts or interpretation.
Argument is insufficiently developed, and the organization contains
weaknesses. Many grammatical and typing
errors. Ineffectual writing using unclear or awkward sentences, wordiness, and
passive voice.
B: Strong
introduction containing a clear thesis.
Good understanding of material. Well-developed argument with some
originality. Coherent organization with each paragraph developed around one
main idea. Evidence is accurately cited.
Occasional stylistic or grammatical problems.
Good conclusion.
A: Strong introduction with clear, original thesis. Mastery of material and sophisticated
analysis. Evidence of independent and
extended thought. Persuasive reasoning
and well-chosen examples that are linked clearly to thesis. Coherent organization, well-developed
paragraphs, fluid structure, clear transitions.
Engaging, sophisticated writing style.
Evidence is accurately cited. No grammatical or typing errors. Good conclusion.
How to submit your paper to TurnItIn.com: (you must submit your paper by Nov 5. I will not grade your paper until it is submitted to this website!)
Go to www.turnitin.com. At the top right of the page, click “New
User.”
(Actually, before you start
the log-in process, you may want to watch the Training Video, which is short
and helpful.)
Enter the Class I.D.: 2920121
Enter the class password: history
Follow the instructions to
create a user profile (kind of a pain)
After
logging in, click on the class name (HIST 112).
See assignment labeled “Arc
of Justice Paper.” Click the little submit button.
Upload the file that contains
your paper. (click browse, find your file, double
click it)
After submitting your paper
you will get a receipt # (it will also be emailed to
you.)
I will be able to see who in
the class has submitted their papers and when, and then I tell the program to
run a test on all the papers.