Due May 7 by email attachment

 

By Thursday, May 7, students will submit a 10- to 12-page biographical paper that analyzes a significant diplomatic contribution from an American historical figure (not serving as president) during the period between 1776 and 2008.  Each profile paper should provide background on the person as well as thoughtful context about that period.  All papers should analyze someone who appeared in George Herring’s From Colony to Superpower (2008), and should include quotations from that book, but they should also employ a wide-ranging combination of other scholarly sources and relevant primary sources, especially from ones that have been previously developed in their research journal posts. All essays should be typed and double-spaced as Word or PDF documents with title page and Chicago-style footnotes (no bibliography required).  Papers will be graded on research effort, depth of analysis, and quality of prose. Late papers are not typically accepted.

 

Additional Guidelines

  • Your title page should include a descriptive title and your name (byline).
  • Make sure to address a question and devise a thesis statement that can be effectively argued in a short paper.  Consult the Methods Center handout on How to Write a Thesis Statement 
  • Research effort is key for this paper.  Make sure to consult a thoughtful array of both primary and secondary sources.  To get started, look carefully at Herring’s book (including his footnotes and bibliographic essay) and academic reference sources, such as American National Biography Online (database finder), Office of the State Department Historian, or Congressional Biographical Directory.  Then turn to academic secondary sources, such as books via our library catalog or Google Books (but note limitations) or academic journals from our database finder, such as available via JSTOR or America: History and Life.
  • Your next research step involves careful primary source research.  Use different types of historical newspaper databases from our college subscription services, such as Historical Newspapers (ProQuest),  19th Century U.S. Newspapers, Accessible Archives, or Chronicling America (Library of Congress).  But also make sure to check relevant government document collections, especially FOREIGN RELATIONS OF THE US OR FRUS from the US State Department.  But also consult The Avalon Project at Yale Law School and other collections.  See our course web guide for further details. 
  • Here are three model profile papers culled from the Student Hall of Fame and submitted for previous versions of this course that everyone should try to review before writing: Brian Krussell, Bound by the Numbers: Robert McNamara (Fall 2009); Moyra Schauffler, Madeleine Albright Profile (Fall 2014) and Becca Solnit, Adlai Stevenson at the UN (Fall 2009).
  • Finally, here is a sample outline of a typical short profile paper:
    1. Introduction (1-2 pps)
      1. Striking quotation or narrative vignette + clear thesis statement
      2. Engage readers and provide analytical framework
    2. Background & Context (2-3 pps)
      1. Biographical, chronological and institutional insights
      2. Rely on secondary sources here
    3. Case Study Contribution (2-3 pps)
      1. Focus on decision-making and range of choices in key episode
      2. Show primary source research effort here
    4. Conclusion (1-2 pps)
      1. Return to (and refine) opening analysis
      2. Explain significance