Research Paper
SSH 105: Final Research Paper STAGE ONE – PAPER/THESIS PROPOSAL
Due October 23 by 3pm
Your final research paper will be focused on an issue of global concern in the 14th century: the bubonic plague (also known as the Black Death).
There are 3 stages to this paper:
STAGE 1 (due by October 23): Paper/thesis proposal (worth 5% of overall grade)
STAGE 2 (due by November 6): Primary source analysis (worth 5% of overall grade)
FINAL: (due by December 11): Complete 7-8 page research paper (worth 20% of overall grade)
For this first stage of your paper, there are three steps, the first of which you should have already completed for your Week 5 reading questions:
1) Watch the 30-minute lecture by Professor Dorsey Armstrong titled “Europe on the Brink of the Black Death: Episode 1 of The Black Death.” This video is the introduction and first part of a 24-part video lecture series on the Black Death available through the Kanopy database on LaGuardia’s library website. You have already answered some questions about this film during week 5.
2) Choose one of the following thesis statements/arguments around which you will build your final paper (the first one is the argument that Dr. Armstrong makes in the lecture. The second one is a counter-argument):
1. “The Black Death changed just about every single thing about medieval society, and indeed produced the modern world we live in today.”
2. “While the Black Death was a terrible disease epidemic, many scholars have overestimated its significance on shaping the modern world we live in today.”
3) Explain in your own words (one paragraph) why you chose this thesis statement – it can include what you find interesting, important, and persuasive about this argument. Please note that this is the first stage in thinking through your paper, and you have not yet done the “research” part of the research paper. This stage should explain your initial thoughts about the direction you see your paper taking.
What is a thesis statement?
A thesis statement is a proposition stated as a conclusion which you will then demonstrate or “prove” in your paper. It is the focal point around which your research will revolve. It is usually stated in the form of an assertion or statement you resolve through your research. It is not a question; it is an answer.
1. tells the reader how you will interpret the significance of the subject matter under discussion.
2. is a road map for the paper; in other words, it tells the reader what to expect from the rest of the paper.
3. directly answers the question asked of you. A thesis is an interpretation of a question or subject, not the subject itself. The subject, or topic, of an essay might be the Black Death or the Silk Roads; a thesis must then offer a way to understand the epidemic or the trade route.
4. makes a claim that others might dispute.
5. is usually a single sentence somewhere in your first paragraph that presents your argument to the reader. The rest of the paper, the body of the essay, gathers and organizes evidence that will persuade the reader of the logic of your interpretation.
Writing in college often takes the form of persuasion – convincing others that you have an interesting, logical point of view on the subject you are studying. Persuasion is a skill you practice regularly in your daily life. In college, course assignments often ask you to make a persuasive case in writing. You are asked to convince your reader of your point of view. This form of persuasion, often called academic argument, follows a predictable pattern in writing. After a brief introduction of your topic, you state your point of view on the topic directly and often in one sentence. This sentence is the thesis statement, and it serves as a summary of the argument you’ll make in the rest of your paper.
(adapted from Dr. Connie Griffin’s UMass-Amherst Honor’s Project Seminar project page)