HI 300: Sophomore Seminar in Historical Research & Writing

In this course we explore history from the bottom up. This is a workshop in which you will learn the nuts-and-bolts skills of being an historical researcher and writer. This course is a hands-on workshop that focuses on the historian's primary task-- researching and writing history. You will learn first hand how to do the historian’s work: how to find, interpret, and use evidence --the raw materials of research --how to select a topic and then systematically evaluate and gather primary and secondary sources -- how to organize and analyze material from these sources and begin to interpret their meaning -- how to research some more, write, rethink, and rewrite your analysis -- how to communicate your findings in both written and oral form. You will work with microcomputer software and primary sources at all stages of the project. We will reinforce the fundamentals of sound historical research and writing through class discussions, critiques, in-class editing, and repeated revisions.

Each student will write a major research paper as well as several short thought papers and reviews. Small groups of students will lead discussions during the semester. You will write and edit at least two drafts of a major research paper. You will explore traditional printed sources as well as electronic sources from CD-ROMs and the Internet.

For historians and history majors, computer literacy requires more than the skillful use of word processing software. You will learn how to use apply major types of software applications, an electronic "toolkit," to your historical work.

We will strive to become better at making the many decisions that go into the historian's work. The course removes the research and writing process from a mysterious black box and breaks it into logical, manageable steps. You will move from project conceptualization to research design, data selection, collection and analysis, writing, revising, and final data presentation in written and oral form.

We will also discuss the role of theory in historical interpretation, the nature of historical evidence, the varieties of historical methodology, and the varieties of historiography. In short, the course centers on nuts-and-bolts aspects of the history profession, but it also encompasses philosophical questions about the nature of historical inquiry.

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