Europe 1300-1700

History 102

Evaluation

Schedule

Papers

Exams

History Dept.
Courses

Christine's other Cornell courses

Papers

The Black Death
due Tuesday 9 March

Directions: Answer the question below in a paper that is approximately 1000 words in length (or about 4 pages). It should be typed, double-spaced and in 12 pt. font. You must also use proper referencing in the form of either footnotes or endnotes (see further instructions and examples of citations below) for any information or ideas you get from the readings provided in class on the Black Death. You must also refer to at least one of the primary documents about Florence and Pistoia. No additional research is needed to complete this paper, though you may wish to refer to your course notes or documents discussed in class.

You should make every effort to write a well-organized answer to the question, with good grammar, spelling, and transitions. Since most of the readings provided are secondary, you should not need to use direct quotations from them. However, in incorporating the primary documents handed out for this assignment, use quotations sparingly, and you should avoid long, block quotes.

If you have any questions on how to tackle the question, be sure to ask in class or during office hours as soon as possible, so you have time to write the paper with the clearest understanding possible. Also, feel free to discuss your ideas with your classmates, but keep in mind that originality of thought is a bonus and will help you to a higher grade. And in writing your paper, be sure that it is clear and understandable, even to a reader who knows nothing about the topic. For this reason I suggest that you ask a roommate or friend who is not in the course to proofread your paper, which should also help you catch typos. (If you have time, a visit to the Writing Studio in the Library is also something many students find helpful.)

What was the most significant consequence of the Black Death?
Be sure to discuss the types of evidence/sources that
support your argument.

You may wish to focus on one of the following topics as you read the materials provided for the paper (or you can identify another area of life affected by the Black Death):

political/governmental
economic
emotional
cultural (learning/transmission of knowledge)
social (family life or religion)
military

1492: The Debate on Colonialism, Eurocentrism and History
due Wednesday 17 March

You should make every effort to write a well-organized answer to the question, with good grammar, spelling, and transitions. Since the book is a secondary source, you should not need to use direct quotations. However, if you find that you would like to use information from the documents used in class discussion, use quotations sparingly, and you should avoid long, block quotes if at all possible.

Why was Europe able to become the dominant continent in the world
post-1492?
Focus on 3-4 factors and use arguments from as many of the historians
in the book as possible to strengthen your answer.

You may find it easier to, once again, structure your paper around one of the following topics from the book or related materials from the course:

political/governmental
economic
emotional
cultural (learning/transmission of knowledge)
social (family life or religion)
military

Footnotes or Endnotes
You may use either footnotes or endnotes in writing your completed paper, whichever you prefer. For all referencing, however, you must adhere to standard guidelines…see the handout provided for proper referencing form, and ask if you have any questions.

Plagiarism: According to The Compass, "Plagiarism is the act of taking the work of another and presenting it as one's own, without acknowledgement of the original source. ...It is always the responsibility of the student to provide precise sources for all ideas, information, or data he or she has borrowed or adapted. Simply listing sources in a bibliography is not sufficient. Students who use information from the World Wide Web are expected to follow these same guidelines for the citation of sources."

Footnotes or Endnotes
For any piece of information or ideas you use from another source, you must provide a reference. Let me repeat that…for any piece of information or ideas you use from another source, you must provide a reference. If you do not, you are breaking the law - it is called plagiarism, and is a very serious offense (see above).

As a general rule, you should have at least one footnote/endnote per paragraph in your paper. You may list more than one source in the footnote/endnote to save you making too many of them, but you must have all the knowledge you have "borrowed" properly cited.

You can use either footnotes or endnotes. Your computer will automatically insert them for you. To insert a footnote/endnote, place cursor at the end of the sentence and do as follows:

In Microsoft Word (for Windows)…pull down Insert menu.
Choose "Footnote…"
When the small window pops up…select Footnote or Endnote (Footnote is usually the default).
"AutoNumber" should also be selected. Click OK.
Automatically a new "footnote" screen will come up at the bottom of your paper, set to the correct footnote number you should be on. At that point you will type in your reference information (see format on the bottom of this page). After you are finished, you can move your cursor back to the main text of your paper with your mouse. It is also good to know that you can cut, paste, and copy footnotes just as you can any other text (by highlighting the number in the paper itself and performing whichever function you need). Footnotes are normally in 10pt. font.

Format of Footnote/Endnote References

Put the author's first name then last name, followed by a comma, not a period.
The title of the book comes next, in italics, followed by the publishing information in parentheses (you only need the publishing info. the first time you cite the source).
When using the course texts you must list the page or pages you got the information from (so that anyone reading your paper can go double check your information or read further on the topic). For class notes you should have the name of the course and the date the information was given in class.
After the first time you cite a source, you may use an abbreviated reference further on…or, if you are already familiar, you may use Ibids. (you may ask me about these, but they are not required…just a form of referencing shorthand that some people like to use).

Examples

1 Norman F. Cantor, In the Wake of the Plague: The Black Death & The World it Made (New York: Free Press, 2001), pp. 30, 45.
2 David Herlihy, The Black Death and the Transformation of the West, edited by Samuel K. Cohn, Jr. (Cambridge, Mass. and London: Harvard University Press, 1997), p. 63.
3 Herlihy, The Black Death, pp. 65-68.
4 The Institute for Advanced Technology in the Humanities, University of Virginia, "Plague and Public Health in Renaissance Europe: Pistoia," (8 March 2004), <http://www.iath.virginia.edu/osheim/intro.html>.
5 Pistoia.
6 History 102: Europe 1300-1700, class notes, March 1, 2004.
7 J. M. Blaut, 1492: The Debate on Colonialism, Eurocentrism, and History (Trenton, NJ: Africa World Press, 1993), p. 95.
8 Blaut, 1492, pp. 26-30.