(above: watchtower and moat, Imperial Palace, Tokyo)
Steps:
1. Declaration of Term Essay Topic and list of sources - Due no later than class time October 1, 2007. Choose a topic that explores one or more of the following aspects as related to East Asia as a whole or to one or more of the countries we are studying - China, Japan, the Koreas, India, Taiwan - in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries: history, politics, economics, religion, and culture (including literature, art, etc.). Some topics associated with earlier historical periods may be acceptable. The following table of links may be helpful in selecting a topic and conducting your research:
Course Bibliography Historical Highlights Supplemental Readings Links to Quality Internet Resources Footnote and Bibliography Format Search NMH Library 2. Research Skills - visit to Dolben Library and orientation conducted by a librarian (week of October 1-5).
3. Initial Round of Research and Reporting: Some homework and class time will be devoted to your research on the Term Essay. Everyone in the section will present an oral report on his or her research in class. Write a paper of about three to five pages - due class time, October 15. Footnotes and bibliography are required. (click here to learn how to do this).
Oral reports will proceed according to the order of names as listed. The written report should contain an overview of your topic: introduction to the main ideas, personalities, and issues.
At this early stage your research should be based mainly in secondary sources: encyclopedia articles, books, and other materials about your topic. Your research should draw on a minimum of five sources. Professor Patrick Rael of Bowdoin College has provided a useful guide to working with secondary sources. Click here to read it: How To Read A Secondary Source. In later stages of your research, you should move on to primary source materials, which include works written by people who are main players in the phenomena you are studying (as opposed to secondary authors - like yourself - who are writing about the phenomena from a distance). See Professor Rael's How to Read a Primary Source.
A firm thesis is not required at this point. However, one will be required as the basis for your final paper in the course. The first essay should be based on an experimental thesis. Click here to read about what a thesis is and how to put one together.
Your essay must be fully documented (footnotes or endnotes plus bibliography). Consult the school writing handbook, Jane E. Aaron, The Little, Brown Essential Handbook for Writers for help with proper formatting in accordance with the Chicago Manual Documentation Style (pp. 118-125) or at this page. Note that Plagiarism (see the School Handbook; see also The Little, Brown Essential Handbook for Writers) counts as a violation of the Major School Rule prohibiting dishonesty. Please review these references prior to submitting your work.
4. The final draft of your Term Essay (25% of your final grade), is due by class time on Friday, December 14. The normal expectation is a paper of six to ten pages of prose followed by Endnotes and a Bibliography both organized in standard form. (consult Jane E. Aaron, Little, Brown Essential Handbook for Writers. More on this in class) The expectation is that you will use at least six sources (a mix of encyclopedias, books, articles, and other sources). Term Essays without footnotes and bibliographies will not be accepted.
N.B. Written reports accompanying oral reports should not be considered completed sections of the final paper but rather parts of a "work in progress" which we expect you to revise as the Term passes along. The shorter report should emphasize information rather than analysis. The final paper should emphasize interpretation, analysis, and critical assessment in addition to information.
Concluding Tips and Caveats:
- Avoid "junk" web sites. Use only web sites from universities, published journals, and others that have undergone rigorous editing and peer review. You may not use Wikipedia as a cited source in any papers submitted in this course (more on this in class).
- Do general keyword searches in the Library's online catalog.
- Search InfoTrac, JSTOR, ProQuest, and other electronic resources for journal and periodical materials (accessible via your Virtual Desktop).
- Most important of all, ask a librarian for help.
- Ask your friends for help: See Guidelines for Peer Editing.
