{"id":4210,"date":"2022-01-22T03:40:54","date_gmt":"2022-01-22T03:40:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/hist-282pinsker\/?page_id=4210"},"modified":"2026-02-17T15:21:37","modified_gmt":"2026-02-17T15:21:37","slug":"first-essay-early-us-diplomacy","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/hist-282pinsker\/assignments\/first-essay-early-us-diplomacy\/","title":{"rendered":"First Essay &#8211;Early US Diplomacy"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>Due Feb. 23 by EMAIL ATTACHMENT<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>On\u00a0<strong>Monday, February 23<\/strong>, students will submit by email attachment a 3-5 page typed, double-spaced essay on a topic concerning early US diplomacy provided to them during the previous week. All essays must include quotations from the Herring book as well as from relevant material featured at the course site, all properly cited using Chicago-style footnotes. Outside research is allowed but not encouraged. Essays will be graded on depth of analysis, use of evidence, and quality of prose. Late essays will be penalized up to 5 points each day.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p class=\"x_x_MsoNormal ContentPasted0\">Please choose ONE of the follow essay topics:<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<div>\n<ul>\n<li>\n<div role=\"presentation\">Who was a more successful expansionist as Secretary of State: John Quincy Adams or William Henry Seward?<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>OR<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<div>\n<ul>\n<li>\n<div role=\"presentation\">How did the Civil War upend some longstanding US diplomatic principles or doctrines?<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<ul>\n<li><em>Please open your paper with a descriptive title and your name (byline).<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em>Make sure to address a question and devise a thesis statement that can be effectively argued in a short paper.\u00a0 Consult the Methods Center handout on\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/hist-117pinsker\/files\/2011\/08\/HANDOUT-How-to-Write-a-Thesis-Statement1.pdf\">How to Write a Thesis Statement<\/a><\/em><em>\u00a0<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em>Make sure to provide essential definitions and background as you proceed with your answer &#8211;and most important&#8211; explain your analysis within a chronological framework.<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em>As you illustrate your points in general chronological order, make sure to employ information and details from George Herring&#8217;s book,\u00a0 From Colony to Superpower (2008) and from other sources on the course site.\u00a0\u00a0You may incorporate outside research if you choose, but that is not required or encouraged.<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em>Prof. Pinsker will comment on full or partial drafts until Sunday afternoon, Feb. 22.\u00a0 You may also consult with the Writing Center for help with your essay.\u00a0 Do not work with other students in the course.<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Sample Footnotes<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>According to George Herring, it was &#8220;unilateralism&#8221; and not isolationism which &#8220;formed a powerful and enduring strain in U.S. foreign policy.&#8221; <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/hist-118pinsker\/assignments\/first-essay-19th-century\/#_ftn1\" name=\"_ftnref1\">[1]<\/a>\u00a0 Any subsequent citation to Herring<em>\u00a0<\/em>can be abbreviated with only author&#8217;s last name and page number.<a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/hist-118pinsker\/assignments\/first-essay-19th-century\/#_ftn2\" name=\"_ftnref2\">[2]<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/hist-118pinsker\/assignments\/first-essay-19th-century\/#_ftnref1\" name=\"_ftn1\">[1]<\/a> George C. Herring,\u00a0<em>From Colony to Superpower:\u00a0 U.S. Foreign Relations Since 1776\u00a0<\/em>(New York: Oxford University Press, 2008), 6.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/hist-118pinsker\/assignments\/first-essay-19th-century\/#_ftnref2\" name=\"_ftn2\">[2]<\/a> Herring, 118.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<ul>\n<li><em>Make sure you are using and formatting your footnotes correctly in the Chicago style.\u00a0 Provide footnotes for all quotations and specific information (such as statistics). See the models above as well as this methods handout on <a href=\"http:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/hist-117pinsker\/files\/2011\/08\/HANDOUT-How-to-Use-Footnotes2.pdf\">How to Use Footnotes<\/a><\/em><em> and consult as needed with the \u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.chicagomanualofstyle.org\/tools_citationguide\/citation-guide-1.html\">long-form Chicago-style guide<\/a>\u00a0\u00a0but make sure to use sample footnote models for formatting and NOT bibliography examples.<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em>Don\u2019t underestimate the importance of integrating your quoted evidence with some degree of fluidity.\u00a0 Awkwardly inserting quotations is one of the hallmarks of mediocre undergraduate essays.\u00a0 Consult\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/hist-117pinsker\/files\/2011\/08\/HANDOUT-How-to-Use-Quotations.pdf\">this handout<\/a>\u00a0from the methods center for a range of good tips.<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em>Also, please guard against plagiarism.\u00a0\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/fys-pinsker\/files\/2025\/09\/Handout-Plagiarism.pdf\">Remember our discussion from early in the semester<\/a>.\u00a0 Never write your own words while looking directly at your sources, especially secondary sources \u2013unless you are quoting them.\u00a0 Do not use AI tools for brainstorming, reading, writing, or editing. You may only use AI tools as enhanced search engines or for spellchecking.<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em>And finally, always remember to proofread your work by printing it out and reading it aloud, slowly. See our methods handout on\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/hist-117pinsker\/files\/2011\/08\/HANDOUT-How-to-Proofreed.pdf\">How to Proofreed<\/a><\/em>\u00a0<em>[sic]<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Due Feb. 23 by EMAIL ATTACHMENT On\u00a0Monday, February 23, students will submit by email attachment a 3-5 page typed, double-spaced essay on a topic concerning early US diplomacy provided to them during the previous week. All essays must include quotations from the Herring book as well as from relevant material featured at the course site, [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":373,"featured_media":0,"parent":3702,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-4210","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/hist-282pinsker\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/4210","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/hist-282pinsker\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/hist-282pinsker\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/hist-282pinsker\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/373"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/hist-282pinsker\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4210"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/hist-282pinsker\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/4210\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4716,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/hist-282pinsker\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/4210\/revisions\/4716"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/hist-282pinsker\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/3702"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/hist-282pinsker\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4210"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}