history of Latin America

History 135 Primary Source Paper #1 Prompt

GUIDELINES:

*Also consult the “Essay Rubric” and “Style Sheet for History Essays” so that you know what makes a good essay.

Overview In this essay, students will be required to select one of the following essay questions and answer it by writing a 3-5 page essay (see formatting guidelines below).

• Analyze three primary sources from Chapter 1 of Latin American Voices (“Chronicles of the Encounter”) and answer the following question: What do these sources reveal about the relationship between Europeans and indigenous peoples of Latin America upon their earliest contact?

• Analyze three primary sources from Chapter 2 of Latin American Voices (“Colonial Transculturation”) and answer the following question: What do these sources reveal about the transculturation that occurred upon European colonization of Latin America?

• Analyze three primary sources from Chapter 3 of Latin American Voices (“A Taste of Independence”) and answer the following question: What do these sources reveal about the nature of the independence movements that erupted in Latin America?

Formatting • Essay must be 3-5 pages in length. Make sure it is at least 3 pages, not 2½.

o 12 Pt Font –Times New Roman (or similar font) - Double Spaced § Essay should be well organized, with:

o Title (Not just the name of the topic) o A Short Introduction (With a thesis statement – your answer to the

question) o Supporting Paragraphs (With topic sentences and examples) o A Short Conclusion (Restates your thesis and wraps up your ideas)

§ See the Style Sheet for History Essays for more on formatting and organization.

§ Formatting Style: o To legitimize research, all essays must be formatted correctly, and failure to

do so will result in a deduction of points. Students should use MLA, but history majors should use Chicago Manual of Style (Chicago Style or Turabian Style). Useful samples from the Chicago Style and MLA can be found at the following websites:

§ MLA Style: https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/01/ § Chicago Style:

http://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/tools_citationguide.html

2

Source Requirements § Incorporate at least TWO SCHOLARLY SECONDARY

SOURCES in the body of your essay, minimum. o Your secondary sources should come from either the

History Research Database, EBSCOHost, JSTOR, or a book from the HCCC library (see steps below for finding the secondary sources)

o Avoid non-scholarly sources such as wikipedia.com, historylearningsite.com, about.com, etc.

§ Introduce and explain your quotes – See C.6. in Style Sheet § If you use quotes, use them in a proper context and do not overuse them. Quotes

should support your ideas, but not replace them. Don’t let them “speak for you.” Also – for a short essay, usage of quotes should be rather limited.

§

Academic Honesty § PLAGIARISM IS STRICTLY PROHIBITED: Please review the section in the syllabus

on plagiarism if you are not completely sure what it means. § Upload your essay before the due date via UniCheck in Canvas AND hand in a hard

copy on the due date at the beginning of class. Essays handed in after the start of class will be considered late.

Steps for obtaining scholarly journal articles (secondary sources) via HCCC’s library:

History Research Database Search (Just background info): 1. In the portal, select “Library.” 2. Click “Research,” and then select “History.” 3. Click on History Database Search 4. Search away! EBSCOHost: 1. In the portal, select “Library.” 2. Click “Research,” and then select “History.” 3. Click “EBSCOHost Databases” 4. It is probably best to check the first five boxes: “Academic Search Complete” through “E-Book Collection,” then continue. 5. Search away! *One note: it might be best to search using the word “and” between relevant terms. E.g.: You might want to also perform the following search: “Latin America” AND “Independence”, rather than only Latin American Independence if you were to research that topic. JSTOR: 1. In the portal, select “Library.” 2. Click “Research,” and then select “History.” 3. Click on JSTOR 4. Search away!