For each of the first two ethnographies we read, you will respond with an essay that discusses an anthropological theme using information from three sources:

• the ethnography
• a journal article
• course lectures

Your essay will include the following features:

• at least 7 full pages* long, double-spaced [5 pts]
• interesting, original & informative title [2 pts]
• introduction ends with clearly defined thesis [5 pts]
• provides a thoughtful & complete summary of the ethnography [10 pts]
• summarizes and incorporates a relevant article published in a recent scholarly anthropology journal [20 pts]
• discussion/analysis defines and uses anthropological concepts and insights [10 pts]
• discussion/analysis includes specific examples from monograph & article in support of thesis [10 pts]
• conclusion restates main points, reiterates thesis, states significance [10 pts]
• carefully organized, spell-checked, edited, numbered, stapled [10 pts]
• work of others is cited appropriately in text [10 pts]
• References Cited page contains complete information in AAA form [10 pts]

*a standard page of double-spaced text has 1 inch margins, uses Times 12 pt font, starts on line one, doesn't skip extra lines between paragraphs, and ends on the last line of the page. Put your name and page numbers in the header or footer.

Research

To begin, complete your reading of the ethnography and write notes/study questions on each chapter. Look over your notes from class. Reflect on what you have read. 

Next, use the list of suggested articles or find an article that matches your particular interests.  If not from the list, your article must be:
    1) published in a scholarly anthropology journal (a refereed publication)
    2) published since 1999,
    3) not by the ethnography's author, nor extensively discussed by him/her,
    4) not a brief research note or a book review, and
    5) approved by me.

One substantial article (10+ pages) is enough. You may use one or two other minor sources, especially if you need a map, a definition, or an illustration. 

DO NOT use Wikipedia or unrefereed material from the internet.

Now,look for an intersection between the ethnography and your article. Two possibilities are:

• the article extends your knowledge of a topic in the ethnography
• the article provides a comparative example for a topic in the ethnography

Next, apply what you've learned in class to craft an insightful question that you will answer in your paper; this will be refined into a thesis statement.

Elements of the Essay

Begin writing with three separate tasks: 

    1) Write a summary of the ethnography. 

    2) Write a paragraph about the topic in the ethnography you find particularly interesting and/or significant. 

    3) Write a summary of your article. 

As you write, insert citations and accumulate a References Cited list. The References Cited should be part of the same file as your text. Do not wait put in citations or add your References Cited later. Many writers forget! Their professor is not sympathetic!!

Next,

    4) discuss the material you've just presented. What anthropological tools have you used in doing this research? What specific examples from the ethnography and article support your thesis? Answer your thesis question.

Now you have most of your paper written.  Just organize it, write transitional sentences and paragraphs where needed, and construct

    5) an introduction that orients the reader to the contents of your paper (time, space, form, sources of data) and ends with your thesis. Finally

    6) write a summary that reiterates your main points and restates the thesis and makes some kind of claim for the significance of your work.  This is not the place to introduce new information, facts, perspectives, sources, etc.  Write a memorable closing statement.  Avoid ending with a quote--give yourself the last word.

Mechanics

When you complete the tasks I've described above you will have a nice review essay on the ethnography with a theme reflecting your own particular interests and a modest amount of outside research.

You should write for someone who is not part of our class.  Don't refer to the assignment ("for my article I picked..."; "as we discussed in class..."). Assume your reader will appreciate a lot of explaining and illustrating. Carefully describe specific examples from your readings. Define and use relevant anthropological terms.  Use what you have learned in class or one of the reserve texts in the library if you need a definition.

Do not use Webster's dictionary or Britannica! For Pete's sake, do not use Wiki--kiss of death--pedia!!!).

Make sure you have an introduction, a body, and a summary/conclusion. Go back and spend some more time on your analysis of your ideas and your summary and conclusion.  Students with good ideas and insights often short-change themselves by hurrying through these parts of the paper.  Accomplish this task in not less than 7 or much more than 10 double-spaced, edited, proofed, numbered pages; supply an intriguing, original title and your own staple. Please DO NOT use a plastic or other cover -- these devices usually make it difficult to open your paper flat or to stack your paper with the hundreds of others I must carry home to read. 

A final note on length, since this seems to be a point of great concern to many students. I don't think the average writer can do a decent job on this assignment in less than 7 pages, hence the 5 point reward for reaching that mark. There is NO penalty for going over 10 pages as long as the paper is worth reading.

A page of text has 1 inch margins, uses 12 point standard font, does not skip lines between paragraphs, and does not waste space on course identification information.  Authors who engage in inflationary practices simply draw close attention to the lack of substance in their work.

Citations and When to Cite

Be sure to say where your information comes from. Most of what we modern people know about the world comes to us second-hand, from books, various other media, and other people.  Don't write as if you are omniscient or a walking encyclopedia.  Say how you know what you know. You must cite your source whether or not you directly quote the words of that source.  Review the Code of Student Responsibility definition of academic dishonesty.

In academic writing, everything in my paper that I do not "know" as a result of being a reasonably intelligent, experienced adult in my culture, anything specific enough that I had to look it up, and everything unique, creative, or distinctively the work of a particular person gets a citation.

The citation is placed in the text immediately after the material used. It includes the author, date, and page number. The citation is part of the sentence, so the punctuation comes after, like this (Smith 1998:23). Or you can move the author's name to the front and just enclose date and page in parentheses. Smith says the citation is still part of the sentence (1998:23). Or get really fancy and say: In her authoritative 1998 guide, Smith says the citation is always part of the sentence (23).

If you quote material from the ethnography or article, give the page number on which the quote appears, thoroughly discuss the quoted passage, and limit quoted lines to no more than 10% of your paper. ENCLOSE THE MATERIAL TAKEN FROM THE QUOTED SOURCE IN QUOTATION MARKS!  The citation goes outside the quotation marks. Quotes longer than four lines must be block indented and single spaced.  In a blocked quote quotation marks are not used because it is obvious that the material quoted is different from your text. Here's the tricky piece: in a blocked quote the citation goes outside the final punctuation.

You always need the page number if you are using a quote or specific data. You can use just the author and date if you are referring to substantial portions or the whole of a work, or to a general idea that occurs throughout the work.

When do you quote and when do you paraphrase? Quote if the author's words ring with authority, clarity, emotion, color, or some other quality that will be lost if you put the idea in your own words. Don't quote something bland or obvious. Use quotes sparingly.

Paraphrase when you understand what the author is saying and want to condense the ideas and rearrange them to fit your narrative. Paraphrasing means doing substantially more than changing a word or two in each sentence, changing the tense, omitting phrases, breaking one sentence into two or welding two sentences into one. The central idea remains the same, but you choose your own words to convey it. You still give the source of the original idea!

SLOPPY OR LAZY PARAPHRASING IS PLAGIARISM.

Here is a quote from William Sullivan's Exploring Oregon's Wild Areas (1994:247):

"The fresh-looking volcanism here is a by-product of an east-west fault zone extending from Newberry Crater to Jordan Craters near Idaho."

And a paraphrase:

A fault zone between Newberry Crater on the west and Jordan Craters on the east has created volcanic features in this location that have a very recent appearance (Sullivan 1994:247).

Your Beautiful References Cited

"References Cited" is the name for your alphabetized (by author's last name) list of sources, including author, date, title, publisher, and place of publication. Look at any article in American Anthropologist for a model, this one, for example. Or look at the the AAA Style Guide for rules. You might call this a "Bibliography" in some other discipline, but in Anthropology, use "References Cited." This will remind you to list all references you cite and only list references you actually cite.

What NOT to Cite

Please don't cite me, your other professors, or anyone you have not enlisted as an expert witness or informant! There are several reasons for this.

• First, you are supposed to be LEARNING what is covered in your classes, so that it becomes yours!
• Second, the accuracy with which you quote me or another professor is dependent on how good your notes are. How good ARE your notes? No one likes to be misquoted!
• Third (and most important), we cite published sources so that others can consult them. These will be around long after the individual who wrote them passes on. Our modern libraries are committed to archiving published sources.  Do not use internet sources for this assignment.
  

Deadlines

The deadlines listed in our syllabus apply to everyone. They exist so that both you and I can plan our work and meet our many obligations. Just about anyone could write a better paper if given additional time. Unless there is some reason why you should be treated differently from your peers, please do not ask. Turn in what you have completed and accept partial credit. Notice that papers are due IN CLASS.

Editorial Assistance

Every writer can benefit from constructive criticism. So have your roommate, significant other, or favorite uncle have a look at your paper before you give it to me. Also, at some point, take your manuscript to the Writing Center and get some feedback from a helpful peer tutor. Take this Essay Guide along, too, so your consultant will understand the assignment.

Use this list to evaluate your rough draft.  Then polish it!