Name____________________________________



Name____________________________________

Research Component (30 points)

One of the most important skills we’d like you to develop this year is the ability to conduct research and incorporate both primary source evidence and secondary opinion/criticism into your essays and projects.

A primary source is a document or physical object which was written or created during the time under study. Some types of primary sources include:

ORIGINAL DOCUMENTS: Diaries, speeches, manuscripts, letters, interviews, news film footage, autobiographies, official records

CREATIVE WORKS: Poetry, drama, novels, music, art

RELICS OR ARTIFACTS: Pottery, furniture, clothing, buildings

Examples of primary sources include:

The Diary of Anne Frank - Experiences of a Jewish family during WWII

The Constitution of Canada - Canadian History

Weavings and pottery - Native American history

Plato's Republic - Women in Ancient Greece

A secondary source interprets and analyzes primary sources and events. These sources are one or more steps removed from the source/event itself. Secondary sources include:

Textbooks, magazine articles, histories, criticisms, commentaries, encyclopedia articles

Examples of secondary sources include:

A journal/magazine article which interprets or reviews previous findings

A history textbook

A book about the effects of WWI

An article of literary criticism

The best essays are a synthesis of your own ideas combined with evidence from primary and secondary sources. To this end, you will be submitting a written research component with each presentation you do this year. The first research component will require you to find:

• 3 relevant and insightful quotes (from either primary or secondary sources) about your topic, properly integrated and followed by a parenthetical citation

• Analysis for each quote: a statement of your own that explains the significance of the quote (Do not simply paraphrase the quote.)

• An MLA-formatted Works Cited page

Requirements:

1. Sources: You must find your 3 quotes from at least 2 different sources. These MAY NOT include your textbook or a general encyclopedia. You will find the best sources among the databases listed on the American Studies Research Guide found under the library’s subject links. You do not need a primary source, but where a strong one is available, we expect you to use it.

2. Quotes: Your quotes must be properly integrated (set up and introduced with a speaker tag) and cited parenthetically. These quotes should be highly analytical in nature, meaning they must provide some evidence, insight, opinion, or commentary about your topic. Do not quote facts! The best quotes are usually from a critic, historian, expert, or primary source document. Avoid quoting common knowledge: basic facts or general encyclopedic information, etc. Look at the library website’s MLA Guide to see how to properly cite each kind of source and how to format your Works Cited page.

3. Analysis: Each quote should be followed with a sentence of two of your own analysis explaining the significance of the quote. Do not merely summarize the quote.

4. Works Cited: Include your sources in a Works Cited page. Your Works Cited page must be properly formatted. There is no formal 4-line heading needed on any page other than the first page of your assignment. You do, however, need a header in the top right corner with your last name and page number. Works cited MUST BE in alphabetical order.

Jane Doe Doe 1

Mr. Pezza/Mrs. Mont

American Studies

14 September 2012

Quotes about The Birth of a Nation

Quote #1:

Historians are often shocked to learn that even President Woodrow Wilson endorsed the film, reportedly saying, “It [The Birth of a Nation] is like writing history with lightning. And my only regret is that it is all so terribly true” (Quirk 703). Yet one must always study history in the context of the times; Wilson’s sentiments accurately reflected the conventional beliefs of the early 20th century, however racist they may seem now.

Quote #2:

In explaining Griffith’s importance to film-making, critic Gary Scharnhorst explained that “Griffith did not invent close-ups or point-of-view shots as he claimed in his 1913 advertisement, he intensified their narrative power … by using them to invite spectator identification with the plights of characters” (n. pag.). However, at the time, his film-making skills evoked more sympathy for the Klan members than for the victims of racism.

Paraphrased Quote:

In response to critics who objected to the film because of its racist content, Roger Ebert defended it, saying that like Riefenstahl’s Triumph of the Will, The Birth of a Nation was a film that had a lot to teach man about the human propensity for evil. (Scharnhorst n. pag.) Perhaps studying such films as lessons about the horrors of racism and cruelty might assure that such atrocities never happen again.

Doe 2

Works Cited

Quirk, Tom. “The Birth of a Nation.” American History Through Literature 1870-1920. Detroit: Charles Scribner's Sons, 2006.

Scharnhorst, Gary. “The Legacies of The Birth of a Nation.” Encyclopedia of World Biography. Detroit: Gale, 1998. Gale Student Resources In Context. Web. 31 Aug. 2010. .

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