Style Sheet
Each discipline has its own writing conventions and expectations. The
following standards apply generally to written work in history, although
individual faculty may differ in some respects or propose additional
guidelines for some assignments. In any case, always check with the
instructor for additional requirements.
1. Title/Thesis. Every paper should have a title that states
its topic or question clearly and succinctly. An effective paper will
then begin with a more complete statement of its thesis or argument in
the form of a topical paragraph. While the general topic of the paper
should reflect the student’s interests, it will usually help to
consult with the instructor about the best way to pose or frame the
particular question. An appropriate thesis or argument has more than
one debatable side to it; it does not take the form of a true-false
statement. Thus the goal of the paper is to persuade the reader that
its interpretation is insightful, reasonable, and supported by the
evidence, not that it is the only conceivable one.
2. Body of the paper: The main objective here is to present, in
the most coherent, effective, and reader-friendly manner, the evidence
that supports the thesis or argument. The organization of the material
and the “flow” of the paper should reflect a conscious effort to
establish logical transitions between the ideas in a single paragraph
and between the various paragraphs that make up the paper. Each
sentence, moreover, should express one, but only one, complete
thought; it should have a subject, a verb, and an object - there
should be no sentence fragments or incomplete sentences in a formal
paper. Paragraphs in such a paper should always include more than a
sentence or two; and longer paragraphs should begin with a topical
sentence that introduces the rest. On the other hand, avoid paragraphs
that are too long, or that include too many disparate ideas.
3. Conclusion: An effective paper concludes with a final
paragraph or two in which the validity of the thesis or argument is
reaffirmed in light of the evidence that has been presented. This is
not the place, however, to introduce new ideas or material not covered
in the body of the paper.
4. Style and Format: Most History papers belong to the category
of formal writing, which means that some usages that are acceptable in
speaking or in informal writing are not appropriate. This is the case,
for example, with contractions (i.e. "wasn’t” in place of “was not”)
and such shortcuts as “etc.,” use of the first- or second-person voice
( "I," “we,” or “you”), and many colloquial expressions too numerous
to list. Wherever possible, one should also avoid the passive voice,
e.g., “the election was lost by the Democrats;” it is better to say
“the Democrats lost the election.” Above all, use the past tense
(“Caesar conquered Gaul”), not the “historical present” tense (“Caesar
conquers Gaul”), to describe past events, i.e., history. Finally, the
entire paper should be typed on one side of white paper, use standard
12-point fonts and one-inch margins, be double-spaced, include page
numbers, and be either bound or stapled. Because not even history
professors are infallible, save a backup copy of all written work
submitted.
5. Grammar. College students should be familiar already with
the basic rules of English grammar and punctuation. [Where the
student’s first language is not English, it will be up to him/her to
bring this to the instructor’s attention.] Among the general rules to
keep in mind: verbs must agree with their subjects, verb tenses should
remain consistent through a sentence or paragraph, proper nouns should
be capitalized, and all words must, of course, be spelled correctly -
nor can spell checkers, however useful, be relied upon to recognize
all spelling errors. Foreign words and phrases as well as book and
journal titles should be italicized or underlined; titles of articles
or book chapters belong in quotation marks. Above all, formal written
work at the college level needs to be revised more than once, and then
proofread carefully to eliminate typographical or grammatical errors.
6. Quotations: Direct quotations are used to support a point
made in the paper, not to make the point itself. They should be used
sparingly, and not be inserted without introduction or comment; each
direct quotation should cite the specific source from which it has
been taken. Quotations may be adjusted to fit one’s own text (e.g., to
maintain agreement and keep tense consistent), but if words are added,
they must be in brackets (i.e., [...]). By the same token, if part of
a quotation is omitted, this should be make clear by means of ellipses
(i.e. ...) Direct quotes of more than three lines should be separated
from the regular text, single-spaced, and indented; shorter quotes
should be incorporated into the text, but clearly identified as such
by quotation marks. Failure to use quotation marks to identify text
passages taken from another writer constitutes plagiarism, a serious
offense in academe and likely (if extensive) to result in a failing
grade.
See Student Handbook:
http://www.umaine.edu/handbook/Acad/academics.htm
7. Footnotes/Endnotes: While most essays and book reviews do
not require the use of footnotes or endnotes, formal research papers
do call for them. In addition to indicating the source of specific
information, notes may also be used to explain or expand upon points
made in the text. All direct quotes or paraphrased material, and any
specific fact or information that is not common knowledge, must be
cited. This applies also to graphs, charts, or images inserted into
the text. Simply rewriting a passage in one’s own words does not
eliminate this obligation; one should still acknowledge the source of
ideas or information taken from someone else’s work. The purpose of
such notes is to let the reader know the source of the information
presented and, if necessary, to check its veracity. It is crucial,
therefore, that sources be cited properly, including specific page
references, and that notes be placed correctly in the text - do not
rely on collective footnoting, where all the notes for a long
paragraph are grouped in a single note at paragraph’s end. On the
other hand, if parts of a single sentence draw upon multiple sources,
there is no need for more than one note.
Check with the instructor regarding a preference for footnotes vs.
endnotes. Both kinds should be single-spaced, numbered consecutively,
and include the author, title, place where published, publisher,
publication date, and page numbers [see examples below]. Subsequent
notes can be abbreviated, but must always include author, page number,
and (where there may be ambiguity) short title. Parenthetical notes in
the text itself, while common to several social science disciplines,
are not used in most history papers (again, unless the instructor so
advises). Where the use of internet sources is permitted - and this
should not be taken for granted without consulting with the instructor
- cut and paste the address for the exact page where the information
was found and the date of retrieval. [But keep in mind that “I found
it on the internet” may not make the information any more reliable
than “I heard it from some guy in a bar.”]
8. Bibliography. At the end of the paper, and beginning on a
separate page, there should be a list of all the works consulted,
i.e., a Bibliography. The format for bibliography entries differs
slightly from the note formats cited above. For example, because works
are listed in alphabetical order, last names come first; and for
chapters and articles, in lieu of individual page numbers the entire
page range is given. When the bibliography grows to more than a page
or so, it is common to list primary and secondary sources separately.
The following footnote / endnote and bibliography formats are used for
the most common kinds of sources:
Book:
1. William H. Rehnquist, The Supreme Court: A History (New York:
Knopf, 2001), 204.
Rehnquist, William H. The Supreme Court: A History. New York: Knopf,
2001.
Edited work:
1. Jack Beatty, ed., Colossus: How the Corporation Changed America
(New York: Broadway Books, 2001), 127.
Beatty, Jack, ed. Colossus: How the Corporation Changed America. New
York: Broadway Books, 2001.
Work in an anthology:
1. Zora Neale Hurston, "From Dust Tracks on a Road," in
The Norton
Book of American Autobiography, ed. Jay Parini (New York: Norton,
1999), 336.
Hurston, Zora Neale. "From Dust Tracks on a Road." In
The Norton Book
of American Autobiography, edited by Jay Parini, 333-43. New York:
Norton, 1999.
Article in a journal
(include the volume and issue numbers and the date; end the
bibliography entry with the page range of the article):
1. Jonathan Zimmerman, "Ethnicity and the History Wars in the 1920s,"
Journal of American History 87, no. 1 (2000): 101.
Zimmerman, Jonathan. "Ethnicity and the History Wars in the 1920s."
Journal of American History 87, no. 1 (2000): 92-111.
Article in a magazine/newspaper:
1. Joy Williams, "One Acre," Harper's, February 2001, 62.
Williams, Joy. "One Acre." Harper's, February 2001, 59-65.
Government document:
1. U.S. Department of State, Foreign Relations of the United States:
Diplomatic Papers, 1943 (Washington, DC: GPO, 1965), 562.
U.S. Department of State. Foreign Relations of the United States:
Diplomatic Papers, 1943. Washington, DC: GPO, 1965.
Source quoted in another source:
1. Adam Smith, The Wealth of Nations (New York: Random House, 1965),
11, quoted in Mark Skousen, The Making of Modern Economics: The Lives
and the Ideas of the Great Thinkers (Armonk, NY: M. E. Sharpe, 2001),
15.
Smith, Adam. The Wealth of Nations, 11. New York: Random House, 1965.
Quoted in Mark Skousen, The Making of Modern Economics: The Lives and
the Ideas of the Great Thinkers (Armonk, NY: M. E. Sharpe, 2001), 15.
Note: For anyone who would like additional help with writing, or with
the subtleties and perversities of the English language, or even with
the revision of particular manuscripts, a helpful Writing Center, 402
Neville Hall (phone 1-3828), stands ready to assist. Those with specific
questions about proper form or usage should consult the University of
Chicago’s Manual for Writers, by Kate Turabian; or its website:
http://www.library.osu.edu/sites/guides/chicagogd.html
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