ANTH-2211/ CLAS-2004 – Rise of Old World Civilizations
Research/Discussion Paper – Procedures and Policies
Topic
A two-part question forms the basis of the research/discussion paper:
Of all the ancient Old World civilizations examined in this course, which one is the best, and which one is the
worst?
Argue your response drawing upon information from the text, class, and supplemental readings. In large part this
paper seeks to draw out your investigative and argumentative aspects to support a position (i.e., which is best, which
is worst). Certainly, such components will contain an element of opinion (e.g., “I like civilization X; I chose
civilization Y, etc.”), but the reasons behind your choices are fundamental to good scholarship and argument
development. Stronger papers are those that develop those aspects, tying in supportive information from a wider
review of the relevant and scholarly literature.
Deadlines
Unless a clear reason exists, marks will be deducted if the research/discussion paper is submitted after the due date
(December 4, 2017). A deduction of 10% for each day late (a weekend counts as 1 day) will apply. Penalties shall
also apply for assignments that do not conform to layout and page/word limits.
Grading
The research/discussion paper will be marked using the Grading Sheet Template provided at the end of this handout.
You will receive a numerical grade on your paper with a maximum possible mark of 120 (see further below).
Format
The following aspects comprise the format:
1) typed or word-processed
2) DOUBLE-SPACED for the main portion of the essay, but SINGLE-SPACED for the reference
section (with one line between each entry)
3) REFERENCE at least 5 outside, academic sources (i.e., think journal articles and books, not
web-pages), beyond the textbook
4) contain at least 1 inch margins on all sides
5) standard style of font (e.g., Times New Roman), 12 point
6) 6-8 typed pages equivalent (1500 to 2000 words), excluding references
The Grading Sheet Template (provided at the end of this document) contains some general tips and pointers. In the
discussion below, I expand on some of these areas.
1) General structure of a paper – A primary purpose of writing papers is to learn the method used in a given
discipline.
2) Introduction – In the introduction there should be a clear statement of what you intend to do in the paper.
It should be brief and to the point and can be of a simple declarative nature such as “The purpose of this
paper is to…” (although stated this way, it tends to be rather boring!). Within the introduction you must
also clearly outline how the subject will be approached. A quality introduction helps channel your
subsequent discussion and forms a basis around which to structure your conclusion.
3) Body – In the body of the essay you argue your points. These need to be elucidated clearly, and
appropriately supported. You need to indicate the type of information available for the topic. Each part of
the paper should flow logically from the section immediately preceding it. If you suddenly realize you have
material that refers to a point made several pages earlier, previously overlooked, you should go back and
insert it in the right place, not just add it into the text randomly as an afterthought. The material you use for
the paper should also be as up to date as is possible. That is not to say that older sources should not be used.
You should, however, attempt to determine whether the information you are using is still accepted. In many
cases this can be determined by a careful reading of your text.
ANTH-2211/CLAS-2004: Research/Discussion Paper Procedures
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4) Conclusions – The conclusions section should pull the material together at the end of the paper. What have
you learned? How does it relate to the problem set at the beginning of the paper? Do the conclusions follow
clearly from the material presented in the body of the text? Are they well elucidated?
5) Bibliography and Reference citations – This is a critical part of the research process. It gives me an idea
of how completely you have surveyed and researched your topic. Your bibliography should contain a list of
all sources used to write the paper, arranged in alphabetical order by author, and within the list of any given
author, by year. Writing a paper from one or two sources is usually not sufficient. If you are primarily
dependent on the ideas of one author you should be looking for commentaries on his/her work, criticisms,
reviews, and so forth. Remember that just because something is written down does not mean that it is
correct. This is particularly important to keep in mind regarding the internet. The internet can be a
tremendous resource for the easy location of information on a huge range of topics, but it is important to
remember that there is no quality control whatsoever about what is made into a web page. This contrasts
with the many levels of evaluation that occur before any book or article is published. Who is the author of
the web page you are using? Is he or she an academic, a student, or a crank? Is the information properly
cited? Are the citations to reputable sources (e.g., refereed publications), or questionable sources (e.g.,
other web pages)? Be critical of the data on the internet – if the information it contains is incorrect or out of
date, it will hurt your essay grade. In general, I would recommend that you use web pages only as starting
points to provide you with places to look for more conventional reference sources. The library databases
are much better resources to consult. They provide links to multiple journal articles and scholarly literature.
6) Style – Does the paper generally read well? Has it been proof-read? Does one section flow into another in a
clear and logical way? Does the student avoid run-on sentences, excessively long paragraphs, and too many
long quotations?
7) Spelling and Grammar – Are there spelling and grammatical errors? Has the student proof read the
paper? Have taxonomic names been formatted correctly? Have site and culture names been spelled
correctly?
8) General impression – Overall, how convincing is the paper? What impression does it leave? In this section
I will assess this and provide an overall commentary on the paper, indicating strengths and weaknesses.
Bibliographic style
References should be listed in alphabetical order, with works by the same author ordered by date (from oldest to
newest). Some examples are provided below:
A) Book:
Greene, Kevin. 1986. The Archaeology of the Roman Economy. Berkeley: University of California Press.
B) Article in a Journal:
MacKinnon, M. 2001. High on the hog: linking zooarchaeological, literary, and artistic data for pig breeds in Roman
Italy. American Journal of Archaeology 105: 649-673.
C) Chapter in a Book with Editor(s):
Silver, I.A. 1969. The ageing of domestic animals. In D.R. Brothwell and E.S. Higgs (eds.), Science and
Archaeology. London: Thames & Hudson, 283-302.
Note that book titles and journal names are normally italicized or underlined. If an author has two items in one year,
designate them by letter (e.g., Wolpoff 1975a, 1975b).
D) Web page:
Benzon, W. 1996. Culture as an Evolutionary Arena. www.newsayanna.comtwlb/CE/Arena/ArenaOO
NOTE: if the internet site has no author, make an acronym of the title of the site and use this as the author’s name,
both in references and in citations (e.g., Culture as an Evolutionary Arena = CEA)
If there is a date of publication, use it. If no date is given, use the date on which you consulted the sources as the
date of publication. If page numbers are given in the document, use them. Otherwise, use the number of the
paragraph as a page number.
ANTH-2211/CLAS-2004: Research/Discussion Paper Procedures
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Citations
Whenever you use someone else’s work, either directly quoted or paraphrased, you must cite that author. That is,
you must tell your reader where you got every piece of information. If you fail to cite your source(s), you are guilty
of plagiarism, which is a serious form or academic dishonesty and not tolerated in this course. Further particulars
concerning forms of plagiarism are outlined in the University of Winnipeg calendar. Make sure you understand
these concepts. With the advent of the internet, it is becoming easier and easier to catch students who plagiarize.
When in doubt, REFERENCE IT.
Every quotation must be cited:
“The Alamanni are first mentioned in a historical source in 213, when they were driven out of Upper Germany and
Raetia by Caracalla” (Cunliffe 2001: 448).
Every fact and statistic must be cited:
With estimates for the number of languages in the world ranging from 3,000 to 10,000 (Crystal 1987: 284), it is far
from clear that…
– as a general rule, no one should be able to read any sentence you have written and ask, “Says who?”
The basic rule is (author: page). If you are citing an entire work, rather than a portion, omit the page number:
(e.g., — “The first serious work in syntax (Chomsky 1957) sent linguistic anthropology into…”)
If you are citing several pages, use the following format: (Chomsky 1957: 7-24)
If there are two authors: (Maltz and Borker 1982: 203)
If there are more than two authors use “et al.”: (Flinn et al. 1998)
If citing several works by different authors:
(Chomsky 1957, 1981; Hymes 1964: 23, Hymes 1971: 49)
PLEASE USE THE ABOVE SYSTEM FOR REFERENCING
DO NOT USE FOOTNOTES OR ENDNOTES
If in doubt about things – please come and see me for clarification and help!
ANTH-2211/CLAS-2004: Research/Discussion Paper Procedures
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Essay Evaluation Guide
Introduction (10 points)
Is the question being asked in the paper elucidated well? Does the student clearly outline how the subject will be
approached?
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Body (50 points)
Is the argument made clearly? Does the student present appropriate support for his/her ideas?
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40
41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50
Conclusions (10 points)
Do the conclusions follow clearly from the material presented in the body of the text? Are they well elucidated?
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
References (15 points)
How completely has the student surveyed the subject? Is everything in the text properly referenced? Are the
references appropriately formatted? Are the requirements met as to the types of references included?
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15
Style (10 points)
Does the essay generally read well? Does one section flow into another in a clear and logical way? Does the student
avoid run-on sentences, excessively long paragraphs, and too many long quotations?
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Spelling and Grammar (10 points)
Are there any spelling and grammatical errors?
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Overall impression (15 points)
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15
Signature of Instructor _________________________ TOTAL SCORE /120