Short Guide to Writing about History

by Richard Marius, Richard A. Marius

Overview

This engaging and practical book helps readers get beyond merely compiling dates and facts; it teaches them how to incorporate their own ideas onto paper and to tell a story about history that interests them and their peers. The new edition includes new sections on using, evaluating, and citing online sources, and new writing samples from diverse historical areas to illustrate concepts.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780321023872
Publisher:	Pearson
Publication date:	08/14/1998
Series:	Short Guide Series
Edition description:	Older Edition
Pages:	192
Product dimensions:	5.37(w) x 8.25(h) x 0.42(d)

Table of Contents

Introduction. Writing History as a Way of Thinking.

1. The Essay in History.

2. Thinking About History.
Questioning Your Sources.
The Importance of Asking Why.
Use of Inference.
Statistics.

3. Modes of Historical Writing.
Description.
Narrative.
Expositions.
Argument.
Rules of Argument in Historical Writing.

4. Gathering Information and Writing Drafts.
Find a Topic.
Limit Your Topic.
Be Sure You Have Access to the Necessary Sources.
Do Research.
Brainstorm and Make an Outline.
Write Several Drafts.

5. A Sample Research Paper in History.

Woodrow Wilson's Attitudes Toward Black Americans, by Dick Curry.
Things to Notice about this Paper.

6. Documenting Your Sources.
Sample Footnotes.
Bibliographies.

7. Suggestions about Style.

8. Conventions.
Manuscript Conventions.
Corrections in the Final Copy.
Using Quotations.
Other Conventions about Mechanics and Grammar.

Appendix A. Book Reviews.

Appendix B. Essay Examinations.