Docsity
Log inSign up
Docsity
Prepare for your exams
Prepare for your exams

Study with the several resources on Docsity

Earn points to download
Earn points to download

Earn points by helping other students or get them with a premium plan

Guidelines and tips
Guidelines and tips
Sell on Docsity
Sell on Docsity
Log inSign up

Prepare for your exams

Study with the several resources on Docsity

Find documents

Prepare for your exams with the study notes shared by other students like you on Docsity

Search Store documents

The best documents sold by students who completed their studies

Search through all study resources
Docsity AINEW

Summarize your documents, ask them questions, convert them into quizzes and concept maps

Explore questions

Clear up your doubts by reading the answers to questions asked by your fellow students

Earn points to download

Earn points by helping other students or get them with a premium plan

Share documents
download point icon20 Points

For each uploaded document

Answer questions
download point icon5 Points

For each given answer (max 1 per day)

All the ways to get free points
Get points immediately

Choose a premium plan with all the points you need

Study Opportunities

Choose your next study program

Get in touch with the best universities in the world. Search through thousands of universities and official partners

Community

Ask the community

Ask the community for help and clear up your study doubts

University Rankings

Discover the best universities in your country according to Docsity users

Free resources

Our save-the-student-ebooks!

Download our free guides on studying techniques, anxiety management strategies, and thesis advice from Docsity tutors

From our blog

Exams and Study
Go to the blog

Writing a Research Paper in the Humanities: Tips from Yale's Graduate Writing Lab, Exams of Humanities

Davao Doctors College (DDC)Humanities

Guidance for writing a research paper in the humanities, emphasizing the importance of active reading and generating new ideas during the research process. It suggests strategies for thinking broadly about questions and problems, reading generously and critically, and keeping track of interesting problems and gaps in the discourse.

What you will learn

  • What strategies does the document suggest for generating new ideas while researching a topic in the humanities?
  • How can actively following every step of an author's argument help in writing a research paper in the humanities?

Typology: Exams

2021/2022

Uploaded on 08/01/2022

hal_s95
hal_s95 🇵🇭

4.4

(652)

10K documents

1 / 3

Toggle sidebar

This page cannot be seen from the preview

Don't miss anything!

bg1
!
!
!
Graduate(Writing(Lab(
Yale!Center!for!Teaching!and!Learning!
!
Writing(a(Research(Paper(in(the(Humanities(
(
The$Research$Process$
N.B.:!Research!and!writing!aren’t!necessarily!discrete!stages—you!will!naturally!
find!yourself!coming!up!with!new!ideas!while!you!research,!and!almost!always!
continue!to!research!while!you!write.!But!you!won’t!discover!new!ideas!in!a!
vacuum;!the!more!you!read,!and!the!more!actively!you!do!so,!the!more!ideas!you!
will!generate!for!yourself!and!the!sooner!you!will!do!so.!Here!are!some!suggestions!
about!how!to!begin!the!process.!
$
$
•Think(broadly(
Think!about!questions!and!problems!and!conversations$that!interest!you!in!your!
field.!If!you!are!writing!a!paper!for!a!seminar,!take!notes!every!week!on!issues!in!
your!course!discussion!that!you!think!have!not!been!adequately!resolved.!Move!
beyond!simply!finding!the!material!itself!interesting—think!about!what!questions!
you!can!raise!about!it!that!have!not!been!answered.!
!
!
•Read(the(work(of(scholars(on(your(topic(both(generously(and(critically(
Get!into!the!habit!of!trying!to!follow!every!step!of!an!author’s!argument!actively.!As!
you!read,!think!about!the!argument’s!underlying!assumptions,!its!potential!
implications!on!a!theoretical!level,!and!its!possible!application!to!other!areas!of!
analysis.!Ask!yourself!questions!about!the!argument’s!logic.!Does!the!evidence!you!
are!reading!about!always!support!the!point!the!author!is!making?!In!what!case!
might!it!not!do!so?!Are!other!possible!explanations!for!the!evidence!addressed?!Is!
the!main!claim!convincing?!Why!or!why!not?!Try!to!start!with!the!most!largeOscale!
issues!so!that!your!response!is!about!the!most!significant!underpinnings!of!the!
work.!Ask!yourself!what!the!author!is!trying!to!do,!and!what!conversations!the!
author!is!entering!into.!To!what!scholars!in!what!field!is!the!author!responding,!
and!how?!How!would!you!respond!to!those!same!scholars?!What!parts!do!you!
agree!with,!and!what!parts!do!you!not?!
!
!
•Write(down(interesting(problems,(questions,(tensions,(and(gaps(in(the(discourse(
All!of!these!provide!an!opportunity!for!you!to!contribute!new!ideas!to!the!
conversation.!Keep!track!of!them!somewhere.!Every!problem!is!a!gift.!!
!
!
Lynda!Paul,!May!2016!
pf3

Partial preview of the text

Download Writing a Research Paper in the Humanities: Tips from Yale's Graduate Writing Lab and more Exams Humanities in PDF only on Docsity!

Graduate Writing Lab

Yale Center for Teaching and Learning

Writing a Research Paper in the Humanities

The Research Process

N.B.: Research and writing aren’t necessarily discrete stages—you will naturally

find yourself coming up with new ideas while you research, and almost always

continue to research while you write. But you won’t discover new ideas in a

vacuum; the more you read, and the more actively you do so, the more ideas you

will generate for yourself and the sooner you will do so. Here are some suggestions

about how to begin the process.

  • Think^ broadly Think about questions and problems and conversations that interest you in your field. If you are writing a paper for a seminar, take notes every week on issues in your course discussion that you think have not been adequately resolved. Move beyond simply finding the material itself interesting—think about what questions you can raise about it that have not been answered.
  • Read^ the^ work^ of^ scholars^ on^ your^ topic^ both^ generously^ and^ critically Get into the habit of trying to follow every step of an author’s argument actively. As you read, think about the argument’s underlying assumptions, its potential implications on a theoretical level, and its possible application to other areas of analysis. Ask yourself questions about the argument’s logic. Does the evidence you are reading about always support the point the author is making? In what case might it not do so? Are other possible explanations for the evidence addressed? Is the main claim convincing? Why or why not? Try to start with the most large-­‐scale issues so that your response is about the most significant underpinnings of the work. Ask yourself what the author is trying to do, and what conversations the author is entering into. To what scholars in what field is the author responding, and how? How would you respond to those same scholars? What parts do you agree with, and what parts do you not?
  • Write^ down^ interesting^ problems,^ questions,^ tensions,^ and^ gaps^ in^ the^ discourse All of these provide an opportunity for you to contribute new ideas to the conversation. Keep track of them somewhere. Every problem is a gift. Lynda Paul, May 2016
  • Write^ out^ lists,^ questions,^ ideas^ that^ confuse^ you,^ and^ interesting^ problems Whether or not you feel “ready” to write anything down, the more you can get on paper, the easier it is to see your ideas in relation to each other. You need not start with complete sentences at first. Try drawing arrows connecting words that represent different ideas. Make lists of opposing binaries. Jot down in one place topics or texts that have not been analyzed sufficiently. Brainstorm. Then zoom in on the areas you seem to be thinking the most about, and continue to develop those ideas. This will lead you to your topic. Once you have that, continue reading in a more focused way, looking for sources that speak directly to your areas of interest.
  • Follow^ the^ bibliographic^ threads Look in the bibliographies and footnotes of the works you are reading. Try to find the most up-­‐to-­‐date discussions and the most cutting-­‐edge responses to the topic in your field. Where is the conversation on this idea right now? Are people from other fields responding to it? Try to write a 1 -­‐paragraph synthetic summary of what scholars used to think of your topic and what they think about it now.

The Writing Process

N.B.: Frequently, the process of writing a research paper in the humanities does not

follow a linear trajectory. Even changing just one piece might mean that the entire

structure has shifted and needs to be adjusted. You might discover new pieces of

evidence after you have written about others, or decide after two drafts that a

counter-­‐argument you have been thinking about actually undermines part of your

main claim and that you therefore need to change the point you are making. You

might not figure out what your main claim is until after you have written a place-­‐

holder introduction and a complete first draft. But in whatever order the pieces of

the paper unfold for you, and however recursively you revisit sections and revise

them, you will benefit from keeping in mind the following components, which are

crucial to a humanistic argument.

  • Articulate^ a^ question^ or^ problem^ that^ is^ driving^ your^ paper The question/problem may change throughout the writing process, but if that happens, just keep revising it. The more specific and complex you can make your question/problem, the more it will help you develop and refine your argument. It is useful for keeping you on track and can remind you of what ideas still need to be addressed when you are in the midst of the writing process. Lynda Paul, May 2016