Step 1
What is the thesis of your paper?
The movie Gettysburg did have elements of the Lost Cause myth but the movie did make progress in teaching about Civil War through the movie.
Step 2
HOOK: What is interesting about this thesis? ‘Hook’ your readers with an interesting fact or angle.
The Lost Cause myth has been the basis of a lot of movies, and the Union soldiers and leaders aren’t respected at all in the Lost Cause myth.
Step 3:
Find a minimum of 7 sources (3 must be actual books) that relate to your thesis. (DON’T FORGET TO CONSIDER VISUAL SOURCES-POLITICAL CARTOONS, MUSIC, VIDEO, ETC.) For each one, list the relevant facts. (you can expand the list as needed for your research) For EACH source, you must fill out the following:
According to:
( you must list author, title, publisher, website, magazine or newspaper edition, date, etc.), the main idea about this subject is:
List the facts from the source that support this idea (and give page numbers)
1) American Civil War Battle, Gettysburg Pennsylvania, shows maps and videos or reenactment http://americancivilwar.com/getty.html sees the mistakes in the war but they are small especially compared to the very bad movies made earlier. Don’t think there is anything that contradicts the thesis. Concludes that the Confederates never recovered from their loss at Gettysburg.
2) ‘Films that continue the Lost Cause Myth,’ InfoBarrel.com, Gone with the Wind and the Birth of the Nation are clearly representations of the Lost Cause myth http://www.infobarrel.com/Films_that_continue_the_Lost_Cause_Myth. Gettysburg shows a lot of the film from the perspective of the North but the characters from South don’t ring true because in the movie they are portrayed like stereotypes of the Lost Cause. Lee is portrayed as the military genius even compared to Longstreet who is on the Confederate’s side. Conclude: that more movies will continue to be made using elements of the Lost Cause myth.
3) Gallagher, Gary. Causes Won, Lost and Forgotten: How Hollywood and Popular Art Shape What We Know about the Civil War. There are misrepresentations of the southern leaders in the movie. Gen. Lee wasn’t a state rights advocate he was a nationalist that supported slavery and the plantation way of life, he was a nationalist. This doesn’t contradict but asks where are the African Americans in the film (there is only one). Concludes that Lincoln would want to know why his goal for reconciliation and union has been forgotten.
4) “Gettysburg,” 1993. Internet Movie Database, IMDB.com. n.d. Web. 2 April 2012. <http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0107007/> The movie description. Some people didn’t think it was a very good movie because of details from history weren’t correct, like which buttons should have been on the coats. Someone said that “In the scene between Major Walter H. Taylor and General Lee at midnight July 3rd, Major Taylor's rank insignia changes to two stars (Lieutenant Colonel). In earlier scenes he wore only one star (Major).” Other details like that were mentioned. That’s about it no comments about the Lost Cause. Won awards Contradicts my thesis in the way the Confederates are portrayed as being for states’ rights. Slavery is only mentioned when Chamberlains brother brings it up. Only 1 African-American in the whole movie. Still all lot of good things about the movie
5) In The Gettysburg No One Knows. Gabors S. Boritt essays on what happened in history that doesn’t match what we think we know. Chamberlain is remembered “just as he would want to be remembered” but that was not how he was in real life. Lee’s and Longstreet’s decisions have been evaluated a lot so the author has the Union leaders’ decisions evaluated. Seems to uphold my thesis. Concludes that it is time for the Union part of the fighting to be evaluated more
6) Lincoln, President Abraham. The Gettysburg Address. He showed respect to both sides of the war when the cemetery was dedicated.
7)” The Pickett’s Charge Nobody Knows. In The Gettysburg No One Knows. Talks about who won the battle and how no one talks about the Union winning the battle just about the bravery of Pickett’s soldiers-that all got killed. No contradiction. Concludes the real truth of what happened cannot be known.
8) Shaara, Michael. The Killer Angels: A novel of the Civil War. The fictional novel that the movie was based on. It won a Pulitzer Prize. Contradicts my thesis. Portrays the southern leaders as very admirable, noble and they don’t ever talk about slavery but the rights of their home state are the most important motive for war.
Step 4:
Analysis:
The Northern leaders are not known as well as the Southern leaders.
People still avoid talking about slavery and continue to claim that states’ rights were the Confederate cause.
Northern soldiers and leaders were fighting to keep the Union together and fighting against slavery.
It was a terrible war, the Civil War.
The Union deserves more credit for keeping the USA together.
Lincoln did have honorable intentions.
The movie Gettysburg I a lot more reality based than Gone with the Wind.
Determine the ideas you think make the most sense. Do they support or contradict your original thesis? Now, write (or ‘rewrite’) your thesis again to match your research.
It makes the sense to me that popular culture and history leave out the Union’s part of the Civil War because I know a lot more about the South than about the North from the battle of Gettysburg and from other examples. I have learned a lot about where the States’ Rights political argument was started so have background when people talk about states’ rights now. It makes sense the Union leaders and the soldiers were capable because they won the war. Even though terrible things were done by Sherman and Grant was not said to be an honorable man. Now I think I will dig deeper to find out more facts about the Union leaders.
My working thesis for this paper is now: (it’s possible that it might be the same as before)
The movie Gettysburg did have elements of the Lost Cause myth but the movie did make progress in teaching about Civil War through the movie. (compared to Gone with the Wind for example.)
HOOK: What is interesting about this thesis? ‘Hook’ your readers with an interesting fact or angle.
The Lost Cause myth has been the basis of a lot of movies, and the Union soldiers and leaders aren’t respected at all in the Lost Cause myth.
Step 5
Here is the working outline for my term paper:
Introduction
(put thesis at bottom of second paragraph)
(take whatever space you need to complete your outline)
Introduce more about the movie
What is the Lost Cause myth?
How is Gettysburg different the other Civil War movies?
How is Gettysburg the same the other Civil War movies?
What Union leaders and what Confederate leaders are in the movie?
Real life and the movie; history and the movie
Finish with whether thesis is correct or not
Step 6:
Write up a formal bibliography of all your sources.
1) American Civil War Battle, Gettysburg Pennsylvania, July 1-3, 1863. americancivilwar.com (n.d.) Web. 2April 2010 [website with articles and videos] Accessed at <http://americancivilwar.com/getty.html>
2) ‘Films that continue the Lost Cause Myth,’ InfoBarrel.com, n.d. Web. 5 April 2012. Accessed at <http://www.infobarrel.com/Films_that_continue_the_Lost_Cause_Myth.
3) Gallagher, Gary. Causes Won, Lost and Forgotten: How Hollywood and Popular Art Shape What We Know about the Civil War. Chapel Hill, NC: University of North Carolina Press. 2008. Print.
4) “Gettysburg,” 1993. Internet Movie Database, IMDB.com. n.d. Web. 2 April 2012. <http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0107007/>
5) LaFantasie, Glenn. ‘Joshua Taylor and the American Dream’ Chapt. 2. In The Gettysburg No One Knows. Gabors S. Boritt (ed.) New York, NY: Oxford University Press, 1997. Print. pp. 31-55.
6) Lincoln, President Abraham. (1863 November 19). The Gettysburg Address. Speech delivered at the dedication of the Gettysburg, Pennsylvania Soldiers’ National Cemetery. <http://smithsonianlibraries.si.edu/smithsonianlibraries/2009/11/abraham-lincolns-gettysburg-address.html>
7) Reardon, Carol. ‘”I think the Union Army had something to do with it” The Pickett’s Charge Nobody Knows. Chapt. 6. In The Gettysburg No One Knows. Gabors S. Boritt (ed.) New York, NY: Oxford University Press, 1997. Print. pp. 122 – 143.
8) Shaara, Michael. The Killer Angels: A novel of the Civil War. New York, NY: Random House, 1974. Print.
Here are some basic suggestions for how to begin the process. We will do some work on this in class, and we will go to the library for additional help on finding sources, but you will be doing much of it on your own, so read this.
Determine the goal of your research paper. Before you write a research paper, determine whether you will write an argumentative research paper or an analytical research paper.
--An argumentative research paper takes a position on a controversial issue and argues the merit of the point of view. The issue should be debatable with a logical counter argument.
--An analytical research paper offers the academic community a fresh look at an important issue. The subject may not be controversial, but you must attempt to persuade your audience that your ideas have merit.
Choose a topic. The topic of a research paper should be specific enough to cover sufficiently. If you are writing a 20-page research paper, you can tackle a broader subject than if you are writing a 5-page research paper. The topic should also not be so specific it lacks an interested academic audience. Your instructor may provide you with a topic or a list of topics to choose from. If you have an idea for a specific topic not on the list, approach your instructor with your idea. If your idea fits the assignment, the instructor may allow you to do that topic.
Write a working thesis statement. A thesis statement states the main idea of a research paper. It is a "working" thesis statement because it may change during the course of your research. If your assignment is to write an argumentative research paper, the thesis statement should state your position on the issue and offer several main points indicating why your research backs up your position. If your assignment is to write an analytical research paper, start with a research question without taking a position. Your answer to the question will become your thesis. For example, if your topic is on the book To Kill a Mockingbird, your research question might be, "What role does honor play in “To Kill A Mockingbird”?
Look for sources. Ideally, you will find a variety of sources, including Web sites, books, magazines, academic or professional journals, and interviews with experts. Whatever the type of source, make sure the source is written by an expert in the field. If the academic credibility of a source could be questioned, do not use the source. Sources, particularly books, do not have to be used in their entirety. Use the index of your books to determine which pages are relevant to your topic.
Perform research. Read over all of your sources and take good notes. Write down page numbers and Internet links where important information is found and note any passages that you might want to use as direct quotes.
Revise your thesis statement. After you have thoroughly examined your sources, take another look at your thesis statement. You may need to adapt your statement to fit your research. The goal of research is not to simply back up your perspective, but to develop a perspective.
Draft an outline. An outline should include your thesis statement, main points and facts, and evidence which support your main points. Try to write one line for each paragraph of your paper. Remember to back up all of your assertions with a source.
What to cite with endnotes:
Any direct quote must be put in quotation marks and be cited. Common knowledge does not have to be cited, even if YOU did not know it. But, any original idea MUST be cited, even if paraphrased by you. An original idea is something from one of the sources you’ve used that is NOT considered common knowledge, but is unique to that author. For example:
Common knowledge: Pearl Harbor was bombed by the Japanese on Dec. 7th, 1941
Original idea: President Roosevelt knew it was going to happen and let it, so that we could get into the war. (btw, this is not true)
This internet site has a great chart, giving you examples of exactly how you write your endnotes.
http://www.oberlin.edu/faculty/svolk/citation.htm
And this one does the same for writing bibliographies:
http://www.asij.ac.jp/middle/lib/BibliographyFormat/Bibliography%20Format.htm
PLEASE MAKE SURE YOU GO TO THESE WEBSITES!! (these are both from teachers to their classes, so you can ignore the things that would seem to apply only to their own students—like grading rubrics, etc. But nearly everything else is usable)
If you read and follow the guidelines I’m sending you, you should be fine. But again, feel free to come at any point to office hours if you need more help.
