Good Historical Writing is Good Historical Thinking and Good Writing. A summary of ideas and concepts from my own thoughts, and other clever peoples' ideas about history and writing.
2. My thoughts on TwitterâŚ.
1. Evidence-based
2. Thoughtful
3. Purposeful
4. Respect audience and subject
5. "Long enough to reach the ground."
6. ...I think that's it.
3. From Your Syllabus
âThe grade is based primarily on the strength of
your argument as an answer to the question:
thesis,
historical evidence
(completeness and handling),
logic,
clarity.â
4. My Source: Derek Bok Center Rubric
â˘Thesis
â˘Use of evidence
â˘Design (organization)
â˘Basic writing skills (grammar, mechanics, spelling).
6. Andrews and Burke, âWhat Does It Mean to Think
Historically?â (aka âThe Five Câsâ)
1. Change over time.
2. Context.
3. Causality.
4. Contingency.
5. Complexity
7. Tim Lacyâs Four More Câs (and an S)
of Good Historical Writing
6. Chronology.
7. Citations.
8. Conjecture.
9. Characters.
10. Storytelling.
8. Additional Sources
⢠David Willecke, âAn Inflammatory Guide To Writing History Papers: The
Quest for Clarity and Specificity.â
⢠Heather Cox Richardsonâs advice for college students of history:
Richardsonâs Rules of Order, 2009, The Historical Society Blog.
http://histsociety.blogspot.com/search/label/Richardson%27s%20Rules%20
of%20Order
9. Sources
⢠Background Image: Metropolitan Museum of Art, NY, Japanese Bronze Cast Plate With
Lotus Sutra Text â 1141. Picture by Jonathan Dresner, 2012.
⢠Greenbush tweet: â@GreenbushESC Argumentative writing with #CommonCore
pic.twitter.com/DzwkoI9gAHâ
https://twitter.com/GreenbushESC/status/458279277784756224
⢠Dresner Tweet: https://twitter.com/jondresner/status/458097239613648896
⢠Harvard Standards, âGrading Papers, From a list by Lewis Hyde, edited by Sue Lonoff,
with thanks to Richard Marius's writing handbook.â
http://isites.harvard.edu/fs/html/icb.topic58474/GradingPapers.html copyright 2002-2006.
⢠Thomas Andrews and Flannery Burke, âWhat Does It Mean to Think Historically?â
Perspectives, January 2007. http://www.historians.org/publications-and-
directories/perspectives-on-history/january-2007/what-does-it-mean-to-think-historically
⢠Tim Lacy, âThe Nine Cs of Historical Thinking,â
http://thinkingthroughhistory.wordpress.com/2013/05/03/the-nine-cs-of-historical-
thinking/