Super-Thesis Day 2

Directions: Using this secondary source, create a thesis responsive to the below prompt.   

In the period known as the "Middle Kingdom," why was Mentuhotep able to reunify and consolidate power in ancient Egypt?  

Lies My Teacher Told Me: Egypt Edition . . . "Revising" the Historical Narratives of Textbooks

Congratulations on finishing your research paper. As you've seen, the telling of Egyptian history has often focused on the great pharaohs of the ages as well as their monumental architectural projects. Indeed, as we saw in the first day of our unit, Egyptian history has been "periodized" with those achievements in mind.  The "kingdom" periods are described as times of unity, stability, and expansion, while the "intermediate" periods are described as times of chaos, disorder, or even invasion.

However, could the Intermediate Period(s) in Egyptian history actually have been good times for some?

Step 1: We will read the Lamentations of Ipuwer as a whole class rotating around the room as Ms. Gerst notes the major social classes and occupations discussed within it.

Step 2: You will work in small groups of about 3 students. Each group will be assigned a social class (typically organized by occupations).

Step 3: Using our first source (the Lamentations) and a second source "Be a Scribe," you will work in small groups to change the historical periodization (and underlying assumptions) often told in textbooks. Each group will create one 2-panel "before and after" depiction that answers the above question for their assigned social group.

Step 4: We will report out your findings, displaying your 2-panel picture using my iPad for the whole class.

Step 5: Ultimately, you will work in the same group to write a group (super-)thesis statement that summarizes the answer to the following question: However, could the Intermediate Period(s) in Egyptian history actually have been good times for some?  

Starter Thesis: While the literature typically presents the Intermediate Period(s) as times of disorder, chaos, and invasion, [INSERT REVISED ARGUMENT]. 

Final Reminders: Research Paper Formatting

• Need reminders of our discussion of effective thesis statements, body paragraphs, supporting evidence, and other feedback?  Make sure to use the WRITING GUIDELINES I passed out in class.  
• Your final paper should be about 3-5 pages (not including cover page and bibliography).  I will not take deductions for lengthier papers unless the paper reads more like a description or summary, rather than the required analysis and argumentation.
• Your paper must use a mix of primary and secondary sources.  You are required to use 4 sources (at least two scholarly sources like books and database articles and two primary sources). 
• Weave your sources together.  Try not to rely on just one source in each of your body paragraphs. 
• Use Times New Roman, 12 point font, double-spacing and 1 inch margins.  
• History papers use Chicago Style footnote citation and bibliography, not MLA parenthetical citation and work cited pages. Use http://www.citationmachine.net/turabian/cite-a-book to assist you in creating the proper citation. There is a 7 minute YouTube video that shows you how to create a "hanging indent" and insert a "footnote on the Citation Guide for this blog. Make sure you include the page number to which you are referring.  

Here are some examples of what it should look like, along with a research paper sample from Rampolla (note it uses endnotes - you should format as footnotes).   Need additional help on typical expectations for introductions, body paragraphs, and conclusions?  Review pages 55-69 of your A Pocket Guide to Writing In History (attached as well here).  

Footnotes:

Bibliography: 

Outline to Rough Draft

By Monday morning, your feedback and grade on your outline will be available for viewing on turnitin.com. You will have class 1 and class 2 to write your rough draft this week.  Based on my feedback, the most common problems are students writing descriptively rather than argumentatively and not having dived deep enough into their research, resulting in vague generalizations in the outlines. 

Remember that the Writer's Center (C307) is open and available to help you.  The hours are:

Mondays: 9:10-2:35 

Tuesdays: 8:50-3:50 

Wednesdays: 8:50-3:50 

Thursdays: 8:00-2:30 

Fridays: 12:20-1 (lunch) 

Drop in whenever it is open, or sign up for a conference up to one day in advance. The Writer's Center is open every day at lunch, every Tuesday open period, and every open assembly period.  You may tell them that papers must be in past tense throughout, the thesis should come at the end of introduction, topic sentences should be in the form of mini-thesis statements, it should conform to Chicago style with footnotes, and you may not write with "I, we, me, you" and should use strong verbs throughout (documents do not "talk" or "say" anything).   

From Research Topic to Research Question and Organization

"Since your goal is to create a thesis -- and a paper -- that takes a stand of a particular issue, you should ask a meaningful historical question that calls for analysis and interpretation, and that might elicit some debate." (Rampolla, 84). 

Which of the categories of analysis (geography, economics, technology, politics, economics, social structure) are most relevant to your topic?   

Are you comparing different pharaohs, social classes, time periods, or types of art? 

Why is your topic significant?  What does it illuminate most about Egyptian society? 

Last Minute Digital Links to Egypt Secondary Sources

In Early World, we aim to use primary source collections and scholarly secondary sources that are accessible to early high school students. I have linked many helpful resources that will help fill in any last minute gaps in your research.

EGYPT Artifact Collections

ABC-CLIO Ancient History

Oriental Institute Egyptian artifact collection book

Oriental Institute of University of Chicago

Metropolitan Museum of Art (search for articles and related/similar artifacts) 

EGYPT

ABC-CLIO Ancient History

Ancient Egyptian Society and Family Life (Douglas Brewer and Emily Teeter)

Religion in the Lives of Ancient Egyptians (Douglas Brewer and Emily Teeter)

Chapter 10 Egypt: the Black Land and Chapter 11: The Old Kingdom or the Pyramid Age (2575-2134 BC) (Chadwick, Robert. First Civilizations: Ancient Mesopotamia and Ancient Egypt, 2nd Ed., Equinox Publishing Ltd. 2005)

Chapter 12 Funerary practices, rituals, and mummification (Chadwick, Robert. First Civilizations: Ancient Mesopotamia and Ancient Egypt, 2nd Ed., Equinox Publishing Ltd. 2005)

Chapter 13 The Hyksos period and the New Kingdom (Chadwick, Robert. First Civilizations: Ancient Mesopotamia and Ancient Egypt, 2nd Ed., Equinox Publishing Ltd. 2005)

Chapter 14 Akhenaten and the Amarna period (Chadwick, Robert. First Civilizations: Ancient Mesopotamia and Ancient Egypt, 2nd Ed., Equinox Publishing Ltd. 2005)