History 301

Devine

Fall 2013

Analytical Essay Assignment

You must turn in a copy of your essay via email attachment by Thursday, October 31st at 11:59pm.

If you would like to submit this essay as a draft and intend to work with a writing tutor on a revision of your essay, please indicate on the paper or in your email that the document you are submitting is a draft. Note that to take advantage of the opportunity to revise your draft, you must submit a complete 1500-word draft. Your final version will be due ONE WEEK after your appointment with the writing tutor. To make an appointment, visit the writing center web site at: http://www.csun.edu/social-behavioral-sciences/history/make-appointment

You are also welcome to make an appointment with me to go over a draft before submitting a revision and the same deadline will apply.

DIRECTIONS

HOW LONG SHOULD THE PAPER BE?

Papers MUST be 1500 words and no more than 1900 words.

HOW SHOULD I FORMAT THE PAPER?

• Typed, double-spaced, 12-point font with one-inch margins all around.

• Please number your pages.

• Give your essay a title that indicates what the paper is about. (Something more revealing than “Essay #1” or “Kennedy Essay”) Clever titles will be duly noted.

HOW DO I CITE?

If you are quoting directly from a source, cite the author and page number in parentheses within the body of the text, i.e. (White, 47). All direct quotes MUST be in quotation marks and must be cited. Paraphrases of ideas drawn from the book MUST also be cited.

HOW WILL I BE GRADED?

You will be graded on:

1) focus (do you have a thesis statement and does it answer the question asked?)

2) evidence (do you back up your argument with specific information from the reading and is the supporting information especially effective in making your case)

3) coherence (is your argument consistent and understandable throughout the piece? do your sentences make sense?)

4) scope (does your paper deal with the question in appropriate depth and breadth?)

THE ASSIGNMENT

In the wake of the Cuban Missile crisis, one US government official remarked, “Khrushchev put the nuclear missiles in Cuba after he promised he wouldn’t. Accordingly, he must take the blame for precipitating the crisis.” To what extent do you agree with this statement?

[You can agree or disagree to whatever extent you think is warranted. The key to producing a compelling response is to introduce specific evidence that either supports or undermines this claim. Alternatively, you might argue that the statement is too simplistic and that explaining the crisis and assigning blame is far more complicated that this official seems to acknowledge. You may draw on Alan Brinkley’s biography, Rabe’s essay in Debating the Kennedy Presidency or White’s The Missiles in Cuba for evidence to support your points. If your own research provides further evidence to support any argument you might make in your essay, you may incorporate that as well.]