From Round to Square (and back)

For The Emperor's Teacher, scroll down (↓) to "Topics." It's the management book that will rock the world (and break the vase, as you will see). Click or paste the following link for a recent profile of the project: http://magazine.beloit.edu/?story_id=240813&issue_id=240610

A new post appears every day at 12:05* (CDT). There's more, though. Take a look at the right-hand side of the page for over four years of material (2,000 posts and growing) from Seinfeld and country music to every single day of the Chinese lunar calendar...translated. Look here ↓ and explore a little. It will take you all the way down the page...from round to square (and back again).
*Occasionally I will leave a long post up for thirty-six hours, and post a shorter entry at noon the next day.

Monday, June 5, 2017

Historical Research Methods Syllabus, Autumn 2017 (a)

On this date on Round and Square's History 
17 August 2016
17 August 2015
17 August 2014
17 August 2013
17 August 2012
17 August 2011
Click here for the other half of this two-part syllabus post:
Weeks 1-8                  Weeks 9-16
[a] Land and ocean RF
Method and Theory in History
(History Workshop)
History 190
Autumn 2017
Tuesday and Thursday
12:00-2:00 p.m.

Robert André LaFleur                                              Office Hours:
Morse Ingersoll 206                                                  Tuesday      4:00-5:30
363-2005                                                                     Thursday    4:00-5:30           
lafleur@beloit.edu                                                      ...or by appointment                 

Required Books           
Becker, Howard. Tricks of the Trade.
Booth, Wayne. The Craft of Research.
Duby, Georges. History Continues.
Larson, Erik. Devil in the White City. 
Lin, Jennifer. Shanghai Faithful.
Presnell, Jenny. The Information-Literate Historian.
Raab, Nigel. Who is the Historian?
Peacock, James. The Anthropological Lens.
                                       ***  *** 
Research notebook (preferred copies available at the bookstore)
Chicago Manual of Style Guidelines (available at the bookstore) 
Round and Square (www.robert-lafleur.blogsot.com)
The New York Review of Books (NYRB)

Readings Available in .pdf Format
Geil, William Edgar. Adventures in the African Jungle Hunting Pigmies (1917).
Geil, William Edgar. China's Sacred 5 (1926).
Geil, William Edgar. The Isle That Is Called Patmos (1896, 1904).
Stead, William T. William Edgar Geil: The Missionary Missioner (1910).
Wilson, William Whitwell. An Explorer of Changing Horizons (1927).
 ***  ***
Doylestown Historical Society Geil Exhibit (2010) 
Newspaper Articles with a Geil Focus 

Reserve Books
All books are on library reserve.

Course Description  
This course acquaints students with the different approaches to writing history by providing samples of the various ways in which historians (and non-historians) have treated problems in the past. The class also aims to give students experience doing history by working with various kinds of sources. Finally, the course seeks to excite students about the field of history by addressing the issue of why someone would want to become an historian. This course is required for all history majors, who should complete it by the end of their sophomore year or before they declare a major.

Evaluation
Quizzes                                                 10%        Every Session
Research Proposal Letter                     15%        Week Four
Exam I                                                   10%        Week Seven
Research Proposal (Skeletal Version)  15%        Week Nine
Exam II                                                  10%        Week Fifteen
Presentation                                          10%        Week Sixteen
10,000-word Research Proposal           30%       Week Sixteen

HIST 190
Method and Theory in History (History Workshop) 
Autumn 2017
Week I 
Tuesday, August 29 (Read the Book Before Class)
Duby, History Continues
          Foreword, by John W. Baldwin
          Preface
          The Choice
          The Patron
          The Building Blocks
          The Treatment
          Reading
          Construction
          The Thesis
          Matter and Spirit
          Mentalités
          Art
          The Collège de France     
          Travels
          Honors
          On Television
          William the Marshall
          Kinships
          Projects   
     
Thursday, August 31
Round and Square 
Syllabic Cycles: Introduction (a-d)  Read all four posts, not just “a.”
Film: Geil of Doylestown (in-class Thursday)
From the Geil Archive (read all nine posts)  
     Introduction 
     1-Southern Mountain Museum
     2-Sacred Mountain Map
     3-Hat and Cattle
     4-Seeking Anthropology
     5-Curly Fives
     6-How to Write the Book
     7-Mortarboard Man
     8-Orator
By Sunday, September 3 at 5:00 p.m.
Doylestown Historical Society Online Archive 
Spend half an hour looking carefully through the DHS Online Archive. Follow these instructions carefully. [1] Click on "Archives" [2] Search "Geil." Now you should have almost 350 pages of material (4,300+ individual items). Just proceed randomly for now, and explore the kinds of documents in the Geil archive. Send me an e-mail of at least a few short paragraphs describing your exploration (lafleur@beloit.edu).

Week II  
Tuesday, September 5
Round and Square Quotidian Quizzes:Introduction (a-h) 
Read all eight posts, not just “a.” (You may skim a-d, but begin reading carefully with post "e"; your grade depends on it).
New York Review of Books See separate New York Review of Books syllabus  
Philip Whitwell Wilson, An Explorer of Changing Horizons, 19-97
     The First Book: Apprenticeship
          The Horizons
          His Inheritance
          The Struggles of a Student
          The Objective
          Towards the Sun
          The Twilight of Old Turkey
          The Island of Saints
          The Seven Lamps
          The Arming of Europe
William T. Stead, "Missionary Missioner," 1-62
     The Man and His Methods
     Round the World after Missionaries
     The Great Melbourne Mission
     Across China and Darkest Africa
     In Defence of Missions
     A Missioner for the Missions

Thursday, September 7 
Presnell, The Information Literate Historian, xv-xix, 1-51 
       Preface
       Historians and the Research Process: Getting Started
       Reference Resources 
Booth, The Craft of Research: 1-50
       Thinking in Print: The Uses of Research
       Connecting with your Reader: (Re-)Creating Yourself and Your Reader
       From Topics to Question
From the Geil Archive (read all five posts)
      13  Out of the Frying Pan

By Sunday, September 10 at 5:00 p.m.
Doylestown Historical Society Online Archive 
Spend half an hour looking carefully through the DHS Online Archive. Follow these instructions carefully. [1] Click on "Archives" [2] Search "Geil." Now you should have almost 350 pages of material (4,300+ individual items). Just proceed randomly for now, and explore the kinds of documents in the Geil archive. Send me an e-mail of at least a few short paragraphs describing your exploration (lafleur@beloit.edu).

Week III
***  ***
Geil, The Isle That Is Called Patmos (1896) Spend thirty minutes with this book.
     Carefully read all front matter...in detail.
     Examine all photographs carefully and study the book's organization     
            A Trip to Patmos
            The Monastery of St. John
            Persecutions
            John and the Revelation
            The Geography of Patmos
            Georgirene's Description of Patmos
            St. John's Visit to Patmos
            Patmos in Classical History
            The Re-Inhabiting of the Island
            The Female Monastery
            Home Life on Patmos
            Mount St. Elias
            Prochorus
            Hermits of Patmos
            The Monastery of the Apocalypse
            A Meditation
*Geil, The Isle That Is Called Patmos (1904) Spend at least two hours with this book (your success in this class depends upon it). Review the marked (*) chapters especially carefully
            *The Voyage to Patmos
            *Landing in Patmos
            *The Geography of Patmos
            *Persecutions and John
             John and His Writings
            *John in Legend
             Christodoulos, Founder of the Monastery
             *Patmos in 1677
             *The Monastery of St. John
             *The Monastery Library
             Hermits of Patmos
             The Nunnery
             The Seminary
             Mt. St. Elias
             The Monastery of the Apocalypse
             *The Laity of Patmos
             *Home Life in Patmos
             *The South of Patmos
             *The North of Patmos
             *Farewell to Patmos 


Thursday, September 14
Presnell, The Information Literate Historian, 52-103 
     Finding Monographs and Using Catalogs
     Finding Journals, Magazines, and Newspapers: Using Indexes 
Booth, The Craft of Research: 51-101
     From Questions to a Problem
     From Problems to Sources
     Engaging Sources 
From the Geil Archive (read all five posts)
    18  Don't Call Me Reverend 

By Sunday, September 17 at 5:00 p.m.
Doylestown Historical Society Online Archive 
Spend half an hour looking carefully through the DHS Online Archive. Follow these instructions carefully. [1] Click on "Archives" [2] Search "Geil." Now you should have almost 350 pages of material (4,300+ individual items). Just proceed randomly for now, and explore the kinds of documents in the Geil archive. Send me an e-mail of at least a few short paragraphs describing your exploration (lafleur@beloit.edu).

Week IV
Geil Exhibit (Doylestown Historical Society)
Geil Newspaper Articles (Doylestown Historical Society)
     Both of these resources will be provided via Dropbox by the instructor
***  ***
Peacock, The Anthropological Lens, vii-xii; 1-112
     Preface to the First Edition
     Preface to the Second Edition
     Substance
     Method

Thursday, September 21
Peacock, The Anthropological Lens, 113-145
     Significance
From the Geil Archive (read all five posts)
    23  Geil, An Intellectual Bricoleur

By Sunday, September 24 at 10:00 p.m. (later time this week because of the paper)
Doylestown Historical Society Online Archive 
Spend half an hour looking carefully through the DHS Online Archive. Follow these instructions carefully. [1] Click on "Archives" [2] Search "Geil." Now you should have almost 350 pages of material (4,300+ individual items). Just proceed randomly for now, and explore the kinds of documents in the Geil archive. Send me an e-mail of at least a few short paragraphs describing your exploration (lafleur@beloit.edu).
***  ***

Week V
Geil, The Sacred 5 of China (1926)
     Carefully read all front matter...in detail, especially "The Magic of 5" (xv-xix)
      Spend a solid two hours reading the text (a bit on each mountain)
     Examine all photographs carefully and study the book's organization
            Tai Shan, Green Peak of the East
            Heng Shan, Red Peak of the South
            Sung Shan, Yellow Peak of the Centre
            Hua Shan, White Peak of the West
            Heng Shan, Black Peak of the North

Thursday, September 28
Presnell, The Information Literate Historian, 104-167 
     Evaluating Your Sources
     The Thrill of Discovery: Primary Sources
Booth, The Craft of Research: 103-151
     Making Good Arguments: An Overview
     Making Claims
     Assembling Reasons and Evidence 
     Acknowledgments and Responses
From the Geil Archive (read all five posts)
    28  The Perfect 2
LaFleur, Rob’s Style Sheet, 1-32

Monday, October 2 at 5:00 p.m. (deadline adjusted so as not to confict with your paper)
Spend half an hour looking carefully through the DHS Online Archive. Follow these instructions carefully. [1] Click on "Archives" [2] Search "Geil." Now you should have almost 350 pages of material (4,300+ individual items). Just proceed randomly for now, and explore the kinds of documents in the Geil archive. Send me an e-mail of at least a few short paragraphs describing your exploration (lafleur@beloit.edu).
***  ***

Week VI
Be sure to make an appointment with Meghan Dowell in the library! Do this as soon as possible. You may sign up using this link:
Tuesday, October 3
Round and Square See separate Round and Square syllabus
New York Review of Books See separate New York Review of Books syllabus 

Philip Whitwell Wilson, An Explorer of Changing Horizons, 101-271
     The Second Book: Achievement
          The Enquiry
          Salt of the South Seas
          Savor of the Salt
          Thresholds of China
          Yankee on the Yangtze
          From Burmah to Bombay
          Across Africa
          The Pigmies
          The Great Wall 

Thursday, October 5
Philip Whitwell Wilson, An Explorer of Changing Horizons, 275-372
     The Third Book: Association
          A Layman's Use of the Bible
          The Forest and the Pagoda
          Changes in Changeless China
          The Mind of China
          The Soul Within the Mind
          The Book That Never Was Written
          The Final Victory
From the Geil Archive (read all four posts)
    32  The Sarawak Museum

By Sunday, October 8 at 5:00 p.m.
Spend half an hour looking carefully through the DHS Online Archive. Follow these instructions carefully. [1] Click on "Archives" [2] Search "Geil." Now you should have almost 350 pages of material (4,300+ individual items). Just proceed randomly for now, and explore the kinds of documents in the Geil archive. Send me an e-mail of at least a few short paragraphs describing your exploration (lafleur@beloit.edu).
***  ***
Make sure you read the Research Proposal 
(Skeletal Version) Assignment (due on 10/29)
Click Here to Review the Late Assignment Policy 

Week VII
Be sure to make an appointment with Meghan Dowell in the library! Do this as soon as possible. You may sign up using this link:
Tuesday, October 10
Round and Square See separate Round and Square syllabus
New York Review of Books See separate New York Review of Books syllabus 

From the Geil Archive (read all four posts)

Thursday, October 12
Exam I (in-class)
***  ***
Make sure you read the Research Proposal 
(Skeletal Version) Assignment (due on 10/29)
Click Here to Review the Late Assignment Policy 

Click here for the other half of this two-part syllabus post:
Weeks 1-8                  Weeks 9-16
[b] Secrets RF

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