EUH 3383:  Pagans, Christians & Barbarians                                                                                                         Prof. Andrea Sterk

Final Paper Assignment

        As already described in the course requirements, your final paper will be a chronicle of a particular period in a specific geographical and cultural setting of the late antique world.  You can write this paper as an actual chronicle of a short historical period, in the form of a letter to a late antique person of your choice, or as a brief autobiographical account.  For examples of the form such a chronicle, letter or autobiography might take, look at the following texts we have read this semester:

         **Ammianus Marcellinus, 14.6, where Ammianus reflects on life in Rome; other sections are also appropriate
         **Sidonius Apollinaris, Letters [three are included in your assigned reading]
         **Procopius, Secret History, e.g., chap. 6, or passages from On the Wars  in the Internet Medieval Sourcebook (“Justinian Suppresses the Nika Revolt” or “The Reconquest of Africa”)
         **Almost any section of Gregory of Tours, History of the Franks
         **St. Augustine, Confessions

        The account should be written in the voice of a late antique man or woman of your own creation.  For example, you might adopt the persona of a Roman senator, an Egyptian monk, a wealthy ascetic woman, a barbarian soldier, a Nestorian Christian serving in the Persian court, a sixth-century pagan philosopher in Athens, a North African martyr, a Gallo-Roman aristocrat, or just about anyone else you can imagine in the late antique world.  However, the character you create must be credible.  So, for example, if you choose the persona of a fifth-century peasant in Gaul, your account must incorporate some brief explanation of the fact that he or she knows how to write, i.e. is not illiterate.

        2 Strong Recommendations:
        1. Once you have a general topic in mind, start by consulting dictionary or encyclopedia articles related to your theme, geographical location, and persona.  3 resources are particularly helpful in this regard:
         a) Late Antiquity.  A Guide to the Postclassical World (ed. G. Bowersock, P. Brown & O. Grabar)
         b) The Encyclopedia of Early Christianity (ed. E. Ferguson)
         c)  Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium, 3 volumes - covers only the East Roman Empire
        Besides presenting an overview of the designated person, place or development, these sources will also include a short bibliography of other works (both books & articles) related to the topic.

         2. Choose an actual event as the focus of your reflections or a particular 5-10 year period which is in some way characteristic of the region in which your chronicle or letter is set.

        Though I encourage creativity in the composition of these chronicles, they must also be based on relevant reading and research.  Any descriptions of geography or reflections on culture, the economic or political situation, religion, major events, etc. most be historically accurate or at least based upon what we actually know about the region and the period you are covering.  The paper must include an annotated bibliography, that is, a bibliography of primary and secondary sources consulted with a short explanation after each title indicating what that particular source contributed to your research for the paper.  The Internet may be consulted, but use it with caution!  Many internet sites are unreliable historically, and exclusive focus on internet sources is unacceptable for a scholarly paper.  If you do use an on-line article, please be sure to list the URL on your bibliography.  Footnotes are not necessary, but you may include a few footnotes if appropriate or helpful at some point in your text.

        An extremely helpful resource for writing and for proper format for bibliographies and footnotes is available at the University of Wisconsin Writing Center.  For other websites with information on preparing an annotated bibliography are listed here.  I suggest you use the University of Wisconsin Writing Center website, and use the "combination" approach to annotation listed here. 
        Also, please consult this on-line stylesheet for papers in the humanities as you edit and prepare the final draft of your paper.

        By class on Tuesday, March 29, and preferably earlier, you must submit in writing a short description of your proposed topic (one paragraph is sufficient) including a bibliography listing at least 2 sources (book chapters, encyclopedia articles, etc.) that you have consulted so far.  I will be happy to give you some direction in forming a topic or finding sources to consult.  Feel free to come to my office during office hours or make an appointment with me.  The short written description and initial bibliography are required whether or not we have discussed the topic together.

        The paper should be approximately 6 double-spaced pages in length--no shorter than 5 full pages and absolutely no longer than 7 pages in length!  It is due in class on Tuesday, 4/19 (the last day of class) or in my office by 4:00 pm on Thursday, 4/21--though you are welcome to hand it in earlier if it is done earlier.  A late paper will drop a full letter grade (e.g. from B to C).