Emil Pocock, History and American Studies, Eastern Connecticut State University
Suggestions for Writing
      
Short Essays in History

Matters of Formal Style

     Short essays in response to class readings should be answer only the questions asked, be logically organized, and include appropriate facts and examples to back up your arguments. Take special care with spelling and grammar.  Follow these points of formal style exactly:

1. Use a computer printer in a clear 12-point font, such as Times Roman, Century Schoolbook, or something similar.  You can also type the paper using a mechanical typewriter.

2. Include a separate title page with an original title,  your name, and date.

3. Margins should be one-inch on all sides.

4. Place page numbers in the upper right corner, beginning with page 2 of your text.  Do not count the title page. The first page of your text will not have a page number and it is not necessary to repeat your essay title or name.

5. If a bibliography or list of sources cited is required, start it on a new page.

6. Do not quote from any source, including the required readings. Write the paper entirely in your own words, unless directions specify otherwise.

Citations (Notes to Sources)

     Citations are the specific references to all the sources of information used to write the paper.  All ideas, information, quotations, and anything else that did not originate in your own mind must be credited to the original authors. They provide readers with the sources of all ideas not your own and are insurance against questions of plagiarism.

      Citations in history papers are normally in the form of end notes, but papers in 100-level courses and non-history majors
may use informal parenthetical notes. Place such parenthetical citations at the end of a sentence in your text, like this. (Mulcahy, 32)  Informal references are cited by the author and page number only. A corresponding full bibliographic entry must appear at the end of the essay, beginning on a new page headed Bibliography..     

     If you want to use the proper University of Chicago Press endnote style used in history,
consult examples N in chapter 11 of Kate L. Turabian, A Manual for Writers. This book is on sale in the university bookstore and other places.

Bibliography

      In general, a full bibliographic entry includes author, full title, facts of publication, and page numbers (if an article).  Here are basic examples in the University of Chicago Style, which is used in History.  The style must be followed precisely, including  punctuation, spacing, indentation, and Italic or Roman font.

Book
Author. Title. City: Publisher, Year. 

Turabian, Kate L. A Manual for Writers of Term Papers, Theses,
     and Dissertations. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1996.

Article
Author. "Title." Journal Title Volume (Month Year): Pages.

Arcari, Ralph D. and Hudson Birden. “The 1918 Influenza Epidemic in
     Connecticut.” Connecticut History 38 (Spring 1999): 28-43. 

Chapter in a Book
Chapter Author.  "Chapter Title." In Book Title, ed. Editor, Pages. City: Publisher, Year. 

Mulcahy, Matthew. “‘A Tempestuous Spirit Called Hurri Cano’: Hurricanes
     and Colonial Society in the British Greater Caribbean.” In American
     Disasters, ed. Steven Biel, 11-38. New York: New York University 
     Press, 2001. 

For more information about proper style, consult examples B in chapter 11 of Kate L. Turabian, A Manual for Writers.  History majors ought to have their own copy for ready reference.

World-Wide-Web Page

     If your source is a world wide web page, you must provide the title for the site or pages you viewed, an author if one can be found, the complete URL address, and the date you saw it, just as in the example below. Some courses may require that you attach printed copies of the web pages used to write your essay.

Pocock, Emil.  "Disasters in the United States, 1650-2001."
     www.easternct.edu/depts/amerst/disasters.htm (Sept. 3, 2005).

 



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