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Sample Paper on Writing Historical Research

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  Quote hugoestr Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Topic: Sample Paper on Writing Historical Research
    Posted: 15-Mar-2007 at 12:22
Seko gave us this sample. Thanks!


Please feel free to comment on it.
----

A Sample Paper on Writing
Historical Research
Seko
AllEmpires


This sample paper will attempt to simplify the usage of the Publication Manual of the ______.

The following requirements, starting from the top of the paper and working down.

   1. The page number must be on all pages of the paper, including the title page. Use Arabic numerals and position the page number one inch from the right hand edge of the paper, in the space between the top edge of the paper and the first line of text. The page header identifies each page of the paper with the first two-to-three words from the title. The page header is positioned in the upper right corner above, or five spaces to the left of the page number.

and

   1. The running head, or abbreviated title, appears only on the title page. It is in upper case and must not exceed 50 characters, including punctuation and spaces. If the title of your paper is lengthy, end the running head at the end of a word; do not split the word. Type the running head flush at the left margin, approximately four lines, or two double-spaces below the page header. The term running head is included, as illustrated on page 306 of the manual, but is not counted as part of the 50 characters and is not upper case.
   2. The title of the paper is typed in upper and lower case letters, and is centered between the left and right margins and positioned in the upper half of the page. If the title is two or more lines in length, double space between the lines.
   3. If the title of your paper is only one or two words, the page header, running head and paper title will be indentical.
   4. The byline and institutional affiliation come next. The author's name (your name) is typed in upper and lower case letters and is centered on the line, one double-space below the last line of the title. The institutional affiliation or class is also typed in upper and lower case, is centered on the line, and is one double-space below the author's name.

Papers written in AE Academic style must document sources in the body of the paper.
Cite sources in the body of the paper is the author and date method of citation; that is, the surname of the author(s) and the year of publication are inserted in the text at the appropriate point. This can be accomplished in one of two ways. If the author's name is mentioned in the text of the paper, as in "Mr.____ stated that . . . ." then only the date need be cited. If the author's name is not mentioned in the text of the paper, then both the name and the date must be cited. Parentheses are used to enclose the author and date, or date alone. Separate the name and the date with a comma if both are listed. In some cases, as you will see later in this paper, page numbers either must or may be included.

another example:

Give credit to your sources whenever you either quote an author directly or paraphrase an author. When quoting, always provide the page number in addition to the author and year of publication. "When paraphrasing or referring to an idea contained in another work, authors are not required to provide a location reference. Nevertheless, authors are encouraged to do so, especially when it would help an interested reader locate the relevant passage. . . ."

The following are some general rules to keep in mind when citing periodical articles on the Reference list.

   1. Use the author's surname and initial(s) only. Do not use first names, medical degrees, Jr. and the like.
   2. Cite all authors in the References list regardless of how many there are. Cite them in the order they are listed with the source.
   3. Following the author information, give the date of publication in parentheses. For weekly and daily periodical/magazines such as newspapers and popular magazines, cite the year, month and day, while for professional journals, cite only the year.
   4. The title of the article follows. Only the first letter of the first word of the title or subtitle is capitalized as well as any proper names appearing in the title.
   5. The title of the journal comes next, followed by the volume number, and if appropriate, the issue number. If the journal uses continuous pagination, ie, it runs page numbers throughout a year or volume, no reference to an issue number is needed. In that case, the title of the journal is italicized, as well as the volume number.
      Example: AE Journal, 78,
      If the journal is re-paged issue by issue, ie, each issue has a page number 1, then the issue number must follow the volume number. The issue number is in parentheses but is not italicized.
      Example: AE Medieval History, 55 (5)
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  Quote Guests Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 15-Mar-2007 at 13:00
 
...there are a lot of fair points on view here, but i wonder why there is no mention of 'footnotes' or 'endnotes'. The vast majority of historical works use such methods for recognising sources and are not generally cited within the body of the text. I was always taught (by an Oxford graduate Professor) that footnotes and endnotes are the more academic format, and citations within the main body appear somewhat amateurish as it can detract from the flow of information and the actual task of reading the material in question....
 
...i do not think that there is an absolute rule about this, but i do support the 'footnote' theory....


Edited by Act of Oblivion - 15-Mar-2007 at 13:03
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  Quote Ovidius Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 15-Mar-2007 at 13:10
Papers written in AE Academic style must document sources in the body of the paper.
Cite sources in the body of the paper is the author and date method of citation; that is, the surname of the author(s) and the year of publication are inserted in the text at the appropriate point. This can be accomplished in one of two ways. If the author's name is mentioned in the text of the paper, as in "Mr.____ stated that . . . ." then only the date need be cited. If the author's name is not mentioned in the text of the paper, then both the name and the date must be cited. Parentheses are used to enclose the author and date, or date alone. Separate the name and the date with a comma if both are listed. In some cases, as you will see later in this paper, page numbers either must or may be included.


Argh!! Don't make us social scientists! All History should have footnotes, not references within the Text. All footnotes should include the full reference in the first instance and the page numbers. Putting References in the text possibly the most unhelpful type of referencing.

If you want to give a style Guide to footnotes/references, you need to give examples.

Also, another important rule is to state the date you visited a website, if you are references a websites information.


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  Quote Goban Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 15-Mar-2007 at 13:49
Is there a difference between writing historical papers and an "anthropology" paper (Chicago Manual  style)?
 
When I first changed my major to anthro, I had to 'learn' this writing style that is different than the MLA/APA style guides I was used to.
 
 
I've noticed that many of the papers on this forum appear to be quite similar...
 
 
 
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  Quote Seko Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 15-Mar-2007 at 14:33
The Sample provided is actually APA style. Certainly footnotes are important and quite simple. The example I initially provided was made in order to get the ball rolling and have you all create a format that is helpful for those wishing to follow a guideline when making research papers.
 
 
 
Some examples on footnotes:
 
 
Footnotes and Endnotes

Because long explanatory notes can be distracting to readers, APA style guidelines recommend the use of endnotes/footnotes. In the text, place a superscript numeral immediately after the text about which you would like to include more information, e.g.:

Scientists examined the fossilized remains of the wooly-wooly yak.1

Number the notes consecutively in the order they appear in your paper. At the end of the paper, create a separate page labeled Notes (with the title centered at the top of the page). Below are examples of two kinds of notes.

Evaluative bibliographic comments

1 See Blackmur (1995), especially chapters three and four, for an insightful analysis of this extraordinary animal.
2 On the problems related to yaks, see Wollens (1989, pp. 120-135); for a contrasting view, see Pyle (1992).

Explanatory or additional information considered too digressive for the main text

3 In a recent interview, Weller (1998) reiterated this point even more strongly: "I am an artist, not a yak!" (p. 124).
 
 


Edited by Seko - 15-Mar-2007 at 14:34
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  Quote Guests Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 15-Mar-2007 at 15:27
 
...I would personally always stick to footnotes for academic and employment presentation, and i only use endnotes occasionally in my own private study material, but i will always resort to footnotes for the final product...
 
..below is an example of footnotes i use for 'simple' referencing...
 
 
Adolf Hitler once asked; Is it not precisely the hallmark of British statesmanship to draw economic advantages from political strength and to transform every economic gain into political power?[1] A seemingly accurate description of British foreign policy, the Nazi dictator appears to have perceived the actions of Britains post-war Government. From 1945, Britain experienced an economic decline accentuated by the conclusion of World War II. The United Kingdoms economic growth had been weakening since perhaps the 1870s, but the financial cost of maintaining Britains resistance against Hitlers Germany amounted, according to one estimate, to a quarter of Britains national wealth.[2] By 1945, Britain had a vast amount of labour tied up in the role of occupying Europe, the Far East and the Mediterranean, additionally; some four million personnel had been engaged in munitions production.[3]


[1] Quoted from Mein Kampf and cited in Joseph Frankel. British Foreign Policy, 1945-1973 (London, 1975) p.258.

[2] Approximately 7,300 million according to F. S. Northedge in Descent From Power: British Foreign Policy, 1945-1973 (London, 1974) p.38.

[3] Elisabeth Barker. The British Between the Superpowers 1945-50 (London, 1983) p.56.

 
..and this example is what i was required to present in my final dissertation and shows examples of primary source referencing in footnote style...
 
With regards to British military commitment overseas, Jeffrey Pickering in particular has provided a comprehensive discussion and analysis on the factors that constituted Britains withdrawal from east of Suez announced by the Government on 16th January 1968.[1] Pickering concludes that from this point forward, Britain became principally a European rather than a global power.[2] The decision to reduce a significant number of Britains overseas forces was part of a programme to help initiate a concerted effort towards British integration with the European continent. On the 27th February 1968, Cabinet level discussions stated that Britain should [now] aim to become part of a more cohesive Western Europe which would provide a power structure able to exert world-wide influence in defence of its interests.[3] A premise of this study is that part of the reasoning behind the reconsideration of British foreign affairs was due to the events that took place in Vietnam between October 1967 and March 1968. General Vo Nguyen Giap, commander of the North Vietnamese military forces, initiated a general offensive/general uprising in a bid to deal the United States thundering blows so as to change the face of the war, further shake the aggressive will of US imperialism, [and] compel it to change its strategy and de-escalate the war.[4]


[1] Jeffrey Pickering, Britains Withdrawal From East of Suez-The Politics of Retrenchment (Macmillan,  Hampshire, 1998).

[2] Pickering, Britains Withdrawal From East of Suez, p.177.

[3] Public Records Office, Kew, London, [henceforward PRO]: CAB 128/43/Part 1, CC (68) 15th conclusions, 27th February 1968.

[4] Cited in Ang Cheng Guan, Decision Making Leading to the Tet Offensive 1968: The Vietnamese Perspective in Journal of Contemporary History Volume 33, Number 3, July 1998, p.351. A letter by North Vietnamese Lieutenant Le Duan, dated 18th January 1968, addressed to the Vietnamese Communists in the south. The contents sum up the North Vietnamese leaderships thinking on the general offensive strategy planned for the end of January 1968.

 
..i think for purposes of article and research presentation on the AE site, my vote would go to the examples i have given, or of close similarity (perhaps after a few more people have posted ideas and thoughts, the format could be improved, or formalised?)....i think we need some more opinions to explore this issue further....
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  Quote Maharbbal Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 15-Mar-2007 at 18:55
I'll personally go on putting the footnotes the way I like them... Remember, it is AE not the university of Tbingen 1938.
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  Quote Guests Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 15-Mar-2007 at 19:19
Originally posted by Maharbbal

I'll personally go on putting the footnotes the way I like them... Remember, it is AE not the university of Tbingen 1938.
 
...then i ask what is the point of this 'academy' forum and the attempts by those who oversee the site in trying take AE to a more higher discourse'????......so is there no positives to be taken from trying to improve matters????.....is it no good to try and attain a better standard?....
 
..surprising view from an AE Mod.....
 
..why is it that sooner or later, someone always pours water and scorn on what are genuine and useful enterprises?....
 
..sometimes it is just too damned easy to get disillusioned.....jeez...
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  Quote Ovidius Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 15-Mar-2007 at 19:36
indeed. House Style is a way of making a Website look and work more professionaly.


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  Quote hugoestr Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 15-Mar-2007 at 21:35
Act of Oblivion,

I believe that the point that Maharbbal is making is that we should have flexibility in the style. After all, we have people who have degrees from different disciplines, and many of us are already used to a style.

The most important thing is to cite, after all

As for your proposal of encouraging a single format for the articles, I think that it is a good idea. We do have to keep in mind that we will probably encourage people to adopt the style, but not make it mandatory. I think that we should allow for flexibility because participation is more important than sticking to a single style.
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  Quote Guests Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 15-Mar-2007 at 21:49
Originally posted by hugoestr

Act of Oblivion,

I believe that the point that Maharbbal is making is that we should have flexibility in the style. After all, we have people who have degrees from different disciplines, and many of us are already used to a style.

The most important thing is to cite, after all

As for your proposal of encouraging a single format for the articles, I think that it is a good idea. We do have to keep in mind that we will probably encourage people to adopt the style, but not make it mandatory. I think that we should allow for flexibility because participation is more important than sticking to a single style.
 
..show flexibility eh?...well, that is not how it reads to me...i see what you are trying to say, but 'sticking to what you know' is hardly flexibility, the comments seemed more a casual criticism of the efforts being made? ...i was not suggesting that 'my' way is 'correct', just a suggestion to throw in the melting pot in order for others to improve, it seemed to me that is the opposite of what Maharbbal was saying?...so why don't we just stick to what we do personally, and disregard the efforts to improve?...that is what i read in the comments.....
 
...i thought the idea of such an enterprise was to encourage a more formal approach to contributing to AE in order to raise the level?....yes indeed, participation is important, but some sort of prescribed format is necessary for that change to take place, and change for the better is another aspect of what is trying to be achieved here, or maybe i have completely misinterpreted the intentions of this forum? 
 
bah humbug.....grumpy ol' Englishman....Ouch
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  Quote hugoestr Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 15-Mar-2007 at 23:36
Act of Oblivion,

Yes, you are right. The point of this forum is to raise the discourse level. I do maintain that the point behind the statement that Maharbbal made is to allow flexibility; Maharbbal just expressed it in a different way

And I believe that we all agree that we should encouraged citing. And we even agree that recommending the style used in academic historical papers would probably be the best. But if someone else is more comfortable citing in another style, they should be allowed to do so, which I believe is another point that you agree with as well.




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  Quote Guests Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 16-Mar-2007 at 04:14
Originally posted by hugoestr

Act of Oblivion,

Yes, you are right. The point of this forum is to raise the discourse level. I do maintain that the point behind the statement that Maharbbal made is to allow flexibility; Maharbbal just expressed it in a different way

And I believe that we all agree that we should encouraged citing. And we even agree that recommending the style used in academic historical papers would probably be the best. But if someone else is more comfortable citing in another style, they should be allowed to do so, which I believe is another point that you agree with as well.
 
..helllo again Hugoestr..
 
..ok then, i will let this rest in peace for the sake of what others are trying to do within this new venture...the last thing i would want is to upset the apple-cart regarding what is being attempted here...
 
..thank you...
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  Quote Seko Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 16-Mar-2007 at 09:36
So far we have shown the importance for the need of a format(s) which is/are yet to be finalized. Varied formats are OK too. As long as the writer can cover the basics.
 
Proposed ideas already mentioned :
 
- Title on the first page with accompanying name of the writer and institution (AE Academy, for instance)
 
Body of work with sources
 
- Citing authors, periodicals, journals, books, etc, in footnotes/end notes and/or a bibliography reference list.
 
Example of footnotes (Act of oblivion):
 
By 1945, Britain had a vast amount of labour tied up in the role of occupying Europe, the Far East and the Mediterranean, additionally; some four million personnel had been engaged in munitions production.[3]


[1] Quoted from Mein Kampf and cited in Joseph Frankel. British Foreign Policy, 1945-1973 (London, 1975) p.258.

[2] Approximately 7,300 million according to F. S. Northedge in Descent From Power: British Foreign Policy, 1945-1973 (London, 1974) p.38.

[3] Elisabeth Barker. The British Between the Superpowers 1945-50 (London, 1983) p.56.

 
more examples
 
 
Endnotes/footnotes. In the text, place a superscript numeral immediately after the text about which you would like to include more information, e.g.:
Scientists examined the fossilized remains of the wooly-wooly yak.1

Number the notes consecutively in the order they appear in your paper. At the end of the paper, create a separate page labeled Notes (with the title centered at the top of the page).

- page numbers
 
- A cool iced tea to chill out when the going gets interesting!Smile
 
 
 


Edited by Seko - 16-Mar-2007 at 09:38
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  Quote Maharbbal Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 16-Mar-2007 at 10:22
Originally posted by Act of Oblivion

Originally posted by Maharbbal

I'll personally go on putting the footnotes the way I like them... Remember, it is AE not the university of Tbingen 1938.
 
...then i ask what is the point of this 'academy' forum and the attempts by those who oversee the site in trying take AE to a more higher discourse'????......so is there no positives to be taken from trying to improve matters????.....is it no good to try and attain a better standard?....
 
..surprising view from an AE Mod.....
 
..why is it that sooner or later, someone always pours water and scorn on what are genuine and useful enterprises?....
 
..sometimes it is just too damned easy to get disillusioned.....jeez...


Hmmmmmmmm

I'm sorry to have sound depreciating. But (1) the post of Hugo is beyond my understanding all your stuff are cryptic to me, I have no idea of what the various types of footnotes (2) the point is to be understood as long as that stands it is ok (3) we're putting the cart before the horse the forum is virtually empty and we're dictating rules (4) it is a bad idea to discoraged people who would like to write in but fear to get the outlook wrong (5) lets have people posting regularly and then lets create rule (6) maybe this type of thing just don't fit with the AE system (cf the point about the page number!).

So I'd go for something which is simpler and just says that we have to write down the name of the author, the title of the book and the number of the page the quotation or the figure are from. Period, if people what to add anything lets them do it.
Where is the difference between
"there is a big truck in my street" (Suchar, 2008: 34).
"there is a big truck in my street" (Suchar, 34).
"there is a big truck in my street[1]" 
[1] SUCHAR John, Hey dad how are ya?, Boston: BYR Publishing, p.34.
?
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  Quote Ovidius Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 17-Mar-2007 at 17:02
no references should be placed in the text. Its looks terrible, its very difficult to look at and, tbh, its a waste of time. Footnotes are the place for references.

Its must easier to look at Footnotes and work through them, for cross checking information etc.
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  Quote Guests Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 17-Mar-2007 at 18:13
Originally posted by Maharbbal

Where is the difference between
"there is a big truck in my street" (Suchar, 2008: 34).
"there is a big truck in my street" (Suchar, 34).
"there is a big truck in my street[1]" 
[1] SUCHAR John, Hey dad how are ya?, Boston: BYR Publishing, p.34.?
 
..the difference is that the footnote example contains more information, which, as as general rule, should be always the case when writing about history.....
 
...the more information given in supplementary references adds credibility to the material in question, and the more information available makes it easier for readers to check, validate, disprove, debate etc....  
 
.....that is why a footnote is invariably used in the writing of history, such information cannot be contained in the body of the text for the reasons alreadys stated....clarity, ease of reading etc etc.....by just giving a name/year/page number does not reveal anything substantial.....in most history writing, the reference is not there 'just for show', they have a practical role in the evaluation of the material being read..
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  Quote Maharbbal Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 17-Mar-2007 at 22:06
Simple question: how do you do the fancy blue footnote?
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  Quote Guests Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 18-Mar-2007 at 05:52
Originally posted by Maharbbal

Simple question: how do you do the fancy blue footnote?
 
...Hello Maharbbal...
 
 
..the 'blue' boxes are not deliberate, somehow, that is how they are presented when pasted in the thread.......the original text looks like this example from earlier, "bewooly-wooly yak.1" 
 
...i am not sure why this happens, but it is a valid point.  Because i am used to this happening, i forgot to point out that the 'numbering' system would not look normally like that......


Edited by Act of Oblivion - 18-Mar-2007 at 13:10
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  Quote Dawn Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 18-Mar-2007 at 10:01
it comes from the enbedded coding in the word processor you are using. When I use word perfect and  paste to the forum all kinds of intresting things happen. I once asked II what was up and that is what he told me.
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