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The Chicago Manual�of Style

Brian Regal, PhD

Professor for the History of Science, Department of History

Kean University

Union, New Jersey USA

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Basic format for your papers: Unless a professor tells you otherwise, always set your papers up this way.

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  • Typed
  • Double spaced
  • 11 / 12 pt type
  • Simple type Face
  • 8 ½ x 11 page size, portrait
  • Only two colors: black type on white paper
  • No artwork or page graphics
  • Page number upper right hand corner
  • Left alignment
  • Indent the first line of each paragraph
  • No plastic covers, no card board, no fancy folders
  • Plain old copier paper, no special paper stock
  • Hold the entire project together with a single staple in the upper left hand corner
  • Use the spell check
  • NO COVER PAGE

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Basic format for your papers: Unless a professor tells you otherwise, always set your papers up this way.

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  • When searching for and using sources, always go for the highest end sources you can find. Primary Sources are preferred.

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  • NEVER USE THE FOLLOWING AS SOURCES:
    • Wikipedia (or anything with WIKI in the name)
    • History.com
    • Encyclopedia.com
    • Any type of general history/dictionary/encyclopedia sources as these are for children in grammar and high school

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Look to the library and to JSTOR, Project Muse, or other university level sources. If you are unsure about the validity of a source, ask.

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Basic format for your papers: Unless a professor tells you otherwise, always set your papers up this way.

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Use the control bars at the top of every Word document:

Follow ‘Home’ to find ‘paragraph’ then indent and line spacing.

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This is what your cover page/first page should look like

Your Name

Date

HIST1062:05

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Don’t forget the section number

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NO!

CMS

MLA

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Expository footnote

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Elements of a Thesis statement:

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The Thesis statement is one of the most important parts of your paper. Put as much effort into it as possible. It tells the reader everything they should know about the paper:

  • Topic
  • Subject
  • Specific argument
  • Something about sources
  • Conclusion

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If you are having trouble figuring out how to word your thesis, try the simple way. “In this paper I will…”

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For a paper this length, your thesis/introduction should roughly a chunky paragraph. It should come first.

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Hint: Be as clear as you can be. Be careful not to repeat yourself. Also, stick to one argument. A pitfall students often run into is having more than one argument or topic in the Thesis Statement.

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Getting Started:

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Things to keep in mind when choosing a topic:

  1. What can I argue about it?
  2. Is there enough source material to do the job?
  3. Can I get it done in the time allotted?

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Make sure you have a proper thesis statement/argument

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You must argue something about the historiography.

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Examples:

“The scholarly community has always been divided over whether Benjamin Franklin actually performed the kite experiment.”

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“Depictions of the Battle of Gettysburg have tended to focus on the leaders rather than the soldiers.”

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“Historical examinations of Genocide have suffered because of the lack of a specific definition of Genocide.”

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Historiography:

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Not the study of history, but the study of how history has been studied.

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Questions to ask:

  1. Who are the important writers on the topic?
  2. What are the ‘canon’ works associated with this topic?
  3. Are there schools of interpretation?
  4. Are there controversies about how this material is studied?
  5. Do most authors agree on the meaning of something?
  6. Are there multiple meaning being put forward?

(you can come up with others)

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In this paper you must focus of the historiography of your subject.

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There is no one right way to do this other than to focus on the notion of historiography, and to ask these sorts of questions.

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