WRITING A GOOD TERM PAPER
Term papers can take several forms, ranging from historiographical surveys of a particular topic to focussed analyses using a body of primary sources (journals, plantation records, newspapers). The UF Library has an extremely strong Caribbean history collection, probably the best anywhere; the term paper gives you an opportunity to use a world-class resource base to explore a topic of your choosing. The following points should be taken into account:The subject chosen must lie (primarily) within the chronological and geographical limits of the course. Listed below are some questions and reading material that might help you formulate a topic. If you choose a topic we have covered in class, you will be held to a higher standard than than if you have to research a subject from scratch.
You ought to have selected a topic by mid-term; this involves reading ahead in the course material. Students frequently encounter heavy demand for the same books; if library books are on loan, fill out a recall form. Discuss your choice with me; I can usually help. Aim to write several drafts; allow time to polish the writing and adjust balance and coverage. An essay needs to be crafted, not just poured out on to paper. Ten to twelve pages of text, not counting notes and bibliography, is sufficient. However, students wishing to write a longer piece preparatory to an honors thesis (and who have a 3.5 UDGPA) are encouraged to do so.
The merit of the paper partly will be judged on whether it lives up to the expectations created by its title. Don't call a paper "Slave resistance in Martinique" and write only about maroons or 19th century revolts. Hence, choose your title carefully, and adjust it, if necessary.
Aim for an analytic rather than purely descriptive approach. One way to do this is to adopt a "compare and contrast" framework. E.g. look at the same phenomenon in different colonies ordifferent periods. Also, while you may feel unable to criticize the opinions of published scholars, if you read two or three works on the same subject, you should start to notice differences in content or interpretation, about which you can form your own opinions. Conversely, you need to be able to justify your criticisms. In evaluating a book, take into account when it was published, who published it, and what sources it used. Beware of popular, unscholarly accounts, especially on the internet; material is only as reliable as the person who put in there. Books published by university presses and written by academics are likely to be the most reliable. It may be helpful to read reviews of the work, published in journals such as American Historical Review (available on-line via JSTOR) and New West Indian Guide.
Remember history is in large measure concerned with cause and effect; that is, how and why things change, especially why they do so at a particular point in time. So, if you want to write about Haitian voodoo, do not simply describe it. Rather, examine how it has developed and what roles it has played through history.
Avoid frequent or lengthy quotations. There is no reason to quote any author directly, unless the precise form of words is crucial. This should be your writing not someone else's. And note that the vast majority of students vastly overuse the word vast.
Consider using materials contemporary with the topic you are studying, either as a source of data to analyze or for evidence of attitudes specific to a time and place. For example, colonial era newspapers carried not just news and opinion but also lists of fugitive slaves, shipping and price data, and adverts of plantations for sale. The library has a 25-year run of the Affiches Américaines, the newspaper of Saint Domingue, and also abundant correspondence in French and Spanish by participants in the Haitian Revolution, plantation accounts from Saint Domingue, and demographic records and a magistrate's journal from Martinique. See me, if you are interested in working with historical documents; also Geggus, The Caribbean Collections at the University of Florida: A Brief Description.
In writing papers, be certain to give proper credit whenever you use words, phrases, ideas, arguments, and conclusions drawn from someone else’s work. Failure to give credit by quoting and/or footnoting is plagiarism and is unacceptable. Please review the University’s honesty policy at http://www.dso.ufl.edu/Academic_Honesty.html.
Part of your grade is determined by spelling, grammar, use of words, and punctuation. Pay close attention to the attached list. Do not use the "historical present" tense; use the past tense for past events, i.e. not, "In 1492 the Spanish reach the Americas and a demographic catastrophe begins."
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FAVORITE MISSPELLINGS AND OTHER MUCH-ABUSED WORDS Spain, Spanish, Spaniard, Caribbean
Portugal, Portuguese, Britain
Hispaniola, Española, Indianreceive hierarchical
seize monarchical
foreign bureaucracy
siege bourgeois
priest bourgeoisieindependent, independence, privilege
a phenomenon, two phenomena, separateexplanation, explain
occur, occurrenceprinciple [noun]; principal [adj.] A lack of principle
A principal reasonlose/loose. A loose screw
To lose your mindtoo/to/two. Two is too many to invite.
there [place]/their [possessive] There is their dog.
its [possessive]/it's [it is] It's in its kennel.
one country, two countries
one country's trade, two countries' trade
[singular possess. / plural possess.]effect [noun] An important effect
affect [verb: to influence] that affected many peopleeffect [(rarer), verb: to carry out] To effect a change
fewer [plural]/less [singular] Fewer people, less population
Fewer workers, less work
Fewer jobs, less employmenta capital city; the Capitol in D.C.
Never "off of"; just "off."
Spain's power declined. It [NOT "they"] became weaker.
[countries are singular not plural nouns]Commas and periods go inside quotation marks in U.S. (not British) punctuation. Known to the French as "flibustiers," they are usually called by British writers "privateers."
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