HIST B 309, section 27118 / HIST H 509, section 26988         Dr. Thomas A. Mason

Fall 2015

Research Paper

Deadlines:  September 23  Selection of topic for research paper due (in writing, on an 8 ½ x 11” sheet of paper, please). Class discussion of research topics (and of Bede book reviews)

                        October 5          Meet at IUPUI University Library,

755 West Michigan Street, in Room 2120, the Learning Lab (in the reference room area, opposite the circulation desk, on the second floor of the library).

Kristi L. Palmer, Director, Center for Digital Scholarship, will provide an orientation to the library.

                        October 7          Outline / précis (one page) and working bibliography (one page) of research paper due. Class discussion of research topics.

                        December 2      Research paper due; Presentations on Research Papers.

Assignment: Write a research paper of 2,500–3,500 words (8–10 typewritten pages) on a topic to be mutually agreed upon by you and me, on white paper, 8 ½ x 11 inches, double spaced, in 12-point type, with a one-inch margin on all sides.

Please note:

• Please turn in the research paper electronically through the “Assignments” link on Canvas, and bring a hard copy / printout with you to class on the due date, December 2, when we will have a class discussion on the research papers.

• You are welcome to turn in the research paper early (before the due date, December 2) through the “Assignments” link on Canvas.

• If the research paper is transmitted electronically through the “Assignments” link on Canvas on the due date, and the student is absent from class, it will be considered late.

• The “Assignments” link on Canvas will automatically check your research paper for originality through Turnitin. The Turnitin Originality Report will be accessible to you and me.

• No more than one late assignment (research paper / book review / essay) or makeup examination will be allowed to any student.

• After the due date, you may turn in the research paper for full credit but subject to the abovementioned limit of one late assignment (research paper / book review / essay) or makeup quiz / examination per student.Purpose: A research paper demonstrates a student’s ability to identify a topic, locate and deploy evidence to support the topic and argument, reach a conclusion based on the evidence, present the evidence and conclusion persuasively, create new knowledge concerning the subject, and generally bring the research project to a successful conclusion.I want to know your ideas on your research topic, not somebody else’s. When you use someone else’s ideas, they must be acknowledged in a footnote (see hypothetical example below).¹ When you use someone else’s words, those words must be enclosed within quotation marks, and acknowledged in a footnote. If from a website, it is insufficient just to cite the “Web”; rather, you should cite the full URL (uniform resource locator) and the date that you accessed it: “accessed mm/dd/yyyy.” The “Assignments” link on Canvas will automatically check your book review / essay for originality through Turnitin, which will create an originality report that will be accessible to you and me. Plagiarism is a big word for stealing, passing off another’s work as your own, or cheating. When plagiarism is detected in this class, the student will receive an automatic F (zero points) on the assignment.

• _____________________
• Academic honesty: During the course of research, you will access primary and secondary source materials (for definitions of these categories, see below) in print and online. You must use those materials ethically. You warrant and represent that your research paper is our own work. You warrant and represent that any words not within quotation marks are your own. Any variation from this standard becomes a false representation, which is an offense under the university-wide Code of Student Rights, Responsibilities, and Conduct at Indiana University (www.iu.edu/~code/code/index.shtml). Cheating and plagiarism will not be tolerated in this class, and I will explain the correct way to acknowledge the words and ideas of others. If you have any questions on this or any other subjects, please ask!
• Style: Brevity and conciseness are harder to achieve than verbosity and vagueness. Do not just turn in a first draft. Proofread your writing; do not just rely on spell check, which will not alert you when you are using a real word that is the wrong word in the context. Write in complete sentences. A complete sentence has a subject and a verb. Style and accuracy are important and integral parts of content and will count heavily in or against your favor in the determination of your grade on this research paper.

1. John H. Smith, A History of the Ancient World, 4th ed. (New York: Jones Publishing Company, 2004), p. 202.

Step 1: Identify a topic

Below is a list of potential research paper topics. You are welcome to write on something different, but clear it with me first. The topics below are also potential topics for essays on the mid-semester exam and final exam. If you choose one of the topics listed below for your research paper, you must write on a different topic on the mid-semester exam and the final exam.

1. How and why did ancient British peoples build Stonehenge?
2. In an essay on Roman Britain, discuss why Julius Cæsar, and later Claudius, invaded the island. How did the province of Britannia fit into the Roman Empire? Why did Hadrian, and later Antoninus Pius, build the walls that bear their names? Why did Emperor Honorius abandon Britain?
3. Discuss Alfred the Great’s initiatives to achieve political, military, cultural, and religious stability.
4. Discuss the causes, course of events, and results of the Norman Conquest.
5. In an essay on the growth of Parliament, explain how that representative assembly came to engage the resources of the three estates of the realm (first estate: clergy; second estate: nobility; third estate: commons / burgesses / knights / gentry).
6. Discuss the causes, course of events, and results of English participation in the Crusades.
7. Cycles of religious / monastic reform: to what perceived abuses / challenges did the several medieval monastic reform movements (Cluniacs, Cistercians, Franciscans, and Dominicans) respond, and how did they respond?
8. Discuss the causes, course of events, and results of King John’s conflicts with his barons, with King Philip II (Philip Augustus) of France, and with Pope Innocent III.
9. Discuss the causes, course of events, and results of the Hundred Years’ War.
10. Discuss the causes, course of events, and results of the Black Death in Britain.
11. Discuss the causes, course of events, and results of the Great Rebellion of the English Peasants.
12. Discuss the efforts of English monarchs to consolidate their governance in opposition to what Sir John Fortescue called the “over-mighty subjects”—feudal warrior aristocrats who could deploy private armies and private castles.
13. Discuss the causes, course of events, and results of the Wars of the Roses.
14. Sir Frederick Powicke famously argued, “The one definite thing which can be said about the Reformation in England is that it was an act of state. . . . The Reformation in England was a Parliamentary transaction” (The Reformation in England [1941]). Was Powicke right? Was the Protestant Reformation in England a top-down act of state, imposed from above by secular rulers bent on confiscating church property, or was it a grass-roots reform movement led by religious leaders such as John Wycliffe and William Tyndale?
15. Compare and contrast the Catholic Reformation and the Protestant Reformation in Britain. How did the Catholic Church respond to the challenge of the Protestant Reformation there?
16. Discuss the impact of enclosure, conversion from arable land to pasture, and conversion from subsistence to commercial farming, in Britain.
17. Elizabethan foreign policy: Early during her reign, why was Queen Elizabeth I reluctant to support openly the Dutch revolt? What factors led her to go beyond covert action (privateering / commerce raiding by the Sea Dogs) against Spain, and ultimately commit to English boots on the ground in the Netherlands? Finally, how did England respond to the Spanish Armada?
18. Discuss the causes, course of events and results of the English Civil Wars.
19. Discuss patriarchy, the divine right of kings, and absolutism, and the countervailing political theories of resistance, whiggism, and natural rights. Include examples of authors and titles of their books that advocated each of these theories.
20. Discuss the causes, course of events, and results of the Glorious Revolution.The topics listed below are also potential topics for the analytical essay. If you choose one of the topics listed below for your research paper, you must write on a different topic on the analytical essay. For directions on how to analyze a work of art, see the instruction sheet for the analytical essay.
21. The Indianapolis Museum of Art (IMA) has strong collections in British art, mostly in the Clowes Courtyard and the Clowes Gallery. Choose any work of art that you see at the IMA, not a reproduction, created by a British artist, by an American painter who trained in England, or by a non-British artist of a British subject. Since the IMA has only a few British paintings from the early (pre–1688) period, you are not limited by time period of the painting. Examples:
22. Art historical topics:

• after Holbein, Hans, the younger (a German painter who worked at the court of Henry VIII and influenced later English painters). Portrait of the Artist (1542).
• Gower, George. Lady Philippa Coningsby (1578).
• Panini, Giovanni Paolo (an Italian painter whose works were purchased by British travelers on the Grand Tour and influenced the development of British neoclassicism). Two Roman Capriccios (1735)—The Pantheon and Other Monuments and The Colosseum and Other Monuments.
• Reynolds, Joshua. Charles Brandling (1760), Portrait of Thomas Bowlby (ca. 1765), or Portrait of Mrs. Thomas Watkinson Payler (1771).
• Ramsay, Allan. Portraits (ca. 1762–1766) of King George III and Queen Charlotte.
• Gainsborough, Thomas. Lady in a Mob Cap (ca. 1763) or Wooded Landscape with Mounted Peasants (1772).
• Romney, George. Portrait of Jane Dawkes Robinson (ca. 1778).
• Stuart, Gilbert (an American painter who trained in England). Portrait of a Family (ca. 1783–1793) or Marianne Ashley Walker (1799).
• Peale, Charles Willson (an American painter who trained in England), and Charles Peale Polk. George Washington at Princeton (ca. 1788).
• Raeburn, Henry. Portrait of Thomas Wood (ca. 1790), Mrs. MacDowall (ca. 1800), or Portrait of George Deuchar (no date).
• West, Benjamin (an American painter who trained—and then remained—in England). Woodcutters in Windsor Park (1795).
• Constable, John. The Cornfield (ca. 1816).
• Turner, J. M. W. The Fifth Plague of Egypt (1800) or East Cowes Castle (1828).
• Monet, Claude (a French Impressionist painter who visited England frequently, studied the works of Constable and Turner, and painted many London scenes). Charing Cross Bridge (ca. 1900).The researcher’s most valuable ally is always a knowledgeable reference librarian or archivist!
• Libraries in the Indianapolis area:
• Step 2: Identify evidence

• IUPUI University Library, 755 West Michigan Street 46202; (317) 274-8278; https://www.ulib.iupui.edu.
• Herron Art Library, 735 West New York Street, HR 117 46202; (317) 278-9484; www.ulib.iupui.edu/herron; herron@iupui.edu.
• Indianapolis Museum of Art, Stout Reference Library, 4000 Michigan Road 46208-3326; (317) 920-2647; available by appointment only, www.imamuseum.org/research/libraries/stout-reference-library; library@imamuseum.org.
• Indiana Historical Society Library, 450 West Ohio Street, 46202-3269; (317) 232-1882; www.indianahistory.org; reference@indianahistory.org.
• Indianapolis–Marion County Public Library, Central Library Links to an external site., 40 East Saint Clair Street 46204; (317) 275-4100; www.imcpl.org.For your research paper, you must consult no less than three primary sources and no less than three secondary sources. More is better.
• General introductions to research techniques:
• Historians recognize two fundamental categories of source materials. Primary sources include original records and eyewitness accounts such as government documents, diaries, letters, and images of various kinds. Secondary sources include interpretive works written after the events they describe, such as journal articles, specialized monographs, encyclopedias, biographies, obituaries, and surveys of local, national, and international history. Secondary sources are based on primary sources and incorporate, in varying degrees, narrative and analytical elements. Autobiographies and newspaper articles can serve as either primary or secondary sources depending on the questions that are asked of them and the context in which they are used.

• Barzun, Jacques, and Henry F. Graf. The Modern Researcher. 1957; 6th ed., Belmont, Calif.: Thomson / Wadsworth Publishing, 2004. It is no coincidence that this guide has been in print for more than half a century and has gone through six editions.
• Beasley, David R. Beasley’s Guide to Library Research. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2000.
• Mann, Thomas. The Oxford Guide to Library Research. 1987; 3rd ed., New York: Oxford University Press, 2005.
• Presnell, Jenny L. The Information-Literate Historian: A Guide to Research for History Students. 2007; 2nd ed., New York: Oxford University Press, 2013.Search engines (such as Google or Bing) match a search request with keywords and web pages and then post the results with URLs (uniform resource locators), which serve as the address of a web site. The leading search engines use sophisticated algorithms to find web sites, but such sophistication does not mean that the most relevant sites will appear at the top of the search results list. A web site may be ranked higher because it is more popular, though it may not have the most useful or trustworthy content. Analyzing a web site’s address, as well as its content, is a necessary step in evaluating its value as a historical resource. protocol://computer.domain.name/pathname/fileWebsites useful for British History:
• The Avalon Project: Documents in Law, History and Diplomacy, hosted by Yale Law School; includes an excellent selection of ancient, medieval, and early modern documents: http://avalon.law.yale.edu.
• A domain name consists of a string of identifiers that defines a particular realm of administrative authority and control on the Internet. It is very important that researchers pay attention to domain names when evaluating search results. The most prominent top level domain names are .com (commercial), .edu (education), .gov (government), and .org (organization). Academic web sites, including academic libraries, use .edu and can generally be trusted to provide more authoritative historical information than .com or .org, though exceptions abound.
• A URL uniquely describes how to access a specific online resource. URLs typically have the following format:
• Searching the World Wide Web:

British History Online: a digital library of key printed primary and secondary sources for the history of Britain and Ireland, with a primary focus on the period between 1300 and 1800, founded by the Institute of Historical Research and the History of Parliament Trust in 2003: www.british-history.ac.uk.

British History: www.britannia.com/history.

British Monarchy: the official government site: www.royal.gov.uk.

The Chaucer Pedagogy Page, hosted by Daniel T. Kline, University of Alaska, Anchorage: http://hosting.uaa.alaska.edu/afdtk/pedagogy.htm

Concise History of the British Newspaper, compiled by the British Library Links to an external site.: www.bl.uk/reshelp/findhelprestype/news/concisehistbritnews/britnewspaper.html.

English History: A comprehensive site on English history, with a focus on Tudor England, hosted by Ryan Gibson and Marilee Hanson: http://englishhistory.net.

The History Guide, hosted by John Steven Kreis:

            Lectures on Ancient and Medieval European History:             http://historyguide.org/ancient/ancient.htm

            Lectures on Early Modern European History:    http://historyguide.org/earlymod/earlymod.html

History of the United Kingdom: Primary Documents, hosted by the Harold B. Lee Library, Brigham Young University: http://eudocs.lib.byu.edu/index.php/History_of_the_United_Kingdom:_Primary_Documents

History in Focus, hosted by the Institute of Historical Research, University of London, provides original articles, book reviews, and links to historical resources: www.history.ac.uk/ihr/Focus.

History of Parliament Online: This site contains all of the biographical, constituency and introductory survey articles published in The Story of Parliament (London: History of Parliament Trust, 2015): www.historyofparliamentonline.org.

The History of Parliament: The history pages on Parliament’s website: www.parliament.uk/education/about-your-parliament/history-of-parliament.

Irish History Online, a bibliography of Irish history, hosted and managed by the Royal Irish Academy Library (Dublin): www.irishhistoryonline.ie.

The Labyrinth: Resources for Medieval Studies, sponsored by Georgetown University: https://blogs.commons.georgetown.edu/labyrinth.

A Short Guide to Writing Research Papers in History and Theology, hosted by Augsburg Fortress Press, publisher of A People’s History of Christianity: www.augsburgfortress.org/education/academic/apeopleshistoryofchristianity/researchpaperguide.jsp

The Reformation Guide, with links to chief figures and topics, maintained by Laurence Bates, Michigan State University: www.educ.msu.edu/homepages/laurence/reformation/index.htm.

Royal Museums Greenwich, maritime history features: www.rmg.co.uk/explore/sea-and-ships/in-depth.

Spartacus Educational: British History: sponsored by The Guardian: http://spartacus-educational.com/industry.html.

Tudor History, maintained by Lara E. Eakins: Provides a biography and photo gallery for each of the Tudor monarchs, as well as for the six wives of Henry VIII: http://tudorhistory.org.

Despite the volume and accessibility of online records, many records are not (and probably never will be) digitized and disseminated online. Digitization is an expensive process, so archivists choose collections to digitize based on existing demand (as measured by the frequency of requests to access manuscript or printed materials). Thus a researcher will want to search not only collections available online but also collections not previously digitized. This research strategy has two advantages: it leads to materials that few if any researchers have previously consulted, and it avoids the occupational hazard of historians repeating themselves. Despite the widespread availability of web sites and online catalogs, collection guides, and finding aids, the researcher therefore still must master the subject area bibliographies in print and online.

Bibliographies of British history:

The best place to start is the bibliographies in our own textbooks:

Hollister, C. Warren, Robert C. Stacey, and Robin Chapman Stacey, The Making of England to 1399. 1966; 8th edition, New York: Cengage Learning, 2001. Bibliography: pages 363–387.

Smith, Lacey Baldwin. This Realm of England, 1399–1688. 1966; 8th edition. New York: Cengage Learning, 2001. Bibliography: pages 363–388.

Other bibliographies:

Bibliography of British and Irish History: A partnership between the Institute of Historical Research, the Royal Historical Society and Brepols Publishers; searchable by author, tile, and subject; accessible through Canvas > IUPUI Library Resources.

The American Historical Association’s Guide to Historical Literature, general editor, Mary Beth Norton; associate editor, Pamela Gerardi (1927; 3rd ed., 2 vols., New York: Oxford University Press, 1995), particularly section 23: Derek M. Hirst, “British Isles, 1450–1800,” volume 1, pages 760–785. D20 .A447 1995; also accessible online through the IUPUI University Library.

Keynes, Simon. Anglo-Saxon England: A Bibliographical Handbook for Students of Anglo-Saxon History, 1987; 7th ed., Anglo-Saxon, Norse, and Celtic Guides, Texts, and Studies, vol. 1 (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2006).

Graves, Edgar B., and Charles Gross, editors. A Bibliography of English History to 1485. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1975. DA130 .B5. In the reference section (does not circulate).

Read, Conyers, editor. Bibliography of British History: Tudor Period, 1485–1603. 1933; 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1959. DA315 .R43 1959. On reserve.

Davies, Godfrey, and Mary Frear Keeler, editors. Bibliography of British History: Stuart Period, 1603-1714. 1928; 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1970. DA130 .D25 1970. In the reference section (does not circulate).

For biographical subjects:

Dictionary of National Biography. Edited by Sir Leslie Stephen and Sir Sidney Lee. 1885–1900. Reprint. 22 vols., Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1945–1950.

            The IUPUI University Library has the print edition: DA28 .D47.

Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, plus Index of Contributors. Edited by H. G. C. Matthew and Brian Harrison. 60 vols., Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2001–2004. Provides access to 60,000 biographies of people who shaped the history of the British Isles and beyond, from the earliest times to the present; accessible through Canvas > IUPUI Library Resources.

Editions / collections of primary sources:

Elton, Sir Geoffrey R., The Tudor Constitution: Documents and Commentary. 1960; 2nd ed., Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1982. JN181 .T85 1982. On reserve.

Kenyon, J. P. The Stuart Constitution, 1603–1688: Documents and Commentary. 1969; 2nd ed., Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1986. JN191 .S78 1986. On reserve.

English Historical Documents, general editor: David C. Douglas. 12 vols., Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1953–1977. Contains more than 5,500 indexed and searchable primary documents covering 500–1914. IUPUI University Library has volumes 1–5. These are on reserve.

Volume 1, ca. 500–1042, edited by Dorothy Whitelock. DA26 .E55 v. 1. On reserve.

Volume 2, 1042–1189, edited by David C. Douglas and George W. Greenaway. DA26 .E55 v. 2. On reserve.

Volume 3, 1189–1327, edited by Harry Rothwell. DA26 .E55 v. 3. On reserve.

Volume 4, 1327–1485, edited by A. R. Myers. DA26 .E55 v. 4. On reserve.

Volume 5, 1485–1558, edited by C. H. Williams. DA26 .E55 v. 5. On reserve.

Volume 6(A), 1558–1603, edited by Ian W. Archer and F. Douglas Price.

Volume 6 (B), 1603–1660, edited by Barry Coward and Peter Gaunt.

Volume 7, 1660–1714, edited by Andrew Browning.

Step 3: The Transition from Research to Writing

The research and writing phases of a research paper will overlap. An essential first step in planning a paper is to develop a précis that will include an outline of the entire project. The outline will then be your guide through both the research and the writing phases of your project. The outline will help to give you a sense of where you are going, where you have come from, and what remains to be done on the project. As you conduct your research, you will inevitably find that you have reached a critical mass or a point of diminishing returns, beyond which you should start writing. The process of writing will expose to the author the gaps and loose ends in the research that may require a return to the sources. So the earlier you get started writing on the basis of your research, the better!

Step 4: Writing

Some useful guides to writing research papers:

• Strunk, William, Jr., and E. B. White. The Elements of Style. 1918; 4th ed., New York: Longman: 1999. One of the most valuable guides to basic writing skills. Strunk, the sole author of the first edition of this book, taught English at Cornell University. One of his students, E. B. White (author of books ostensibly for children such as Charlotte’s Web and Stuart Little), revised the book, and it has deservedly become a classic.
• Rampolla, Mary Lynn. A Pocket Guide to Writing in History. 1995; 8th edition, Boston: Bedford / St. Martins, 2015.
• Turabian, Kate L., and Wayne C. Booth. A Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, and Dissertations. 1937; 8th ed., Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2013.

·        Mason, Thomas A., and J. Kent Calder. Writing Local History Today: A Guide to Researching, Publishing, and Marketing Your Book. Lanham, Md.: AltaMira Press, 2013. With apologies for self-promotion, this book discusses the relevant processes of research and writing.