It is easy to make assumptions about what your instructor expects for the research paper assignment. Unfortunately, those assumptions may get in the way of writing a good paper, and sometimes they are very wrong. If you received a handout describing the assignment, it may answer the questions below, but if not, make sure you ask them before you begin.
This list is a work in progress- please suggest your own additions.
Before sitting down to write a paper for a class, it is important you know exactly what it is you are supposed to do. The first step to writing a successful paper is reading the assignment carefully and paying attention to the clues it gives you about task, structure, and style.
Overview
What, in a nutshell, is this assignment asking you to do? Try to paraphrase your assignment out loud or explain it to a roommate or family member. Think about why your professor is invested in having you think through this question or problem. How does the assignment fit into the overall goals of the course and the sequence of assignments? How important is this paper for your grade? What are you trying to prove about what you’ve learned by writing it? If, for example, you’re working on the first of three papers, all of similar length and scope, then you can infer that your instructor really wants you to master this format in order to present your knowledge. If this assignment differs from others, think about what new skills or modes of inquiry you’re being asked to try out—and why.
Key Terms
Paraphrasing your assignment is an excellent way to identify any key terms that are confusing or will require some serious thought as you begin working on the assignment. The exact language of your prompt is often as specific and important as the language in, for example, the instructions manual for filling out your taxes. You are responsible for understanding what you’re being asked and responding accordingly. Circle or highlight the terms that seem most important for you to understand before you begin working on the paper. What meaning do they have in the context of your course? Refer to your class notes to think about how your instructor has already used these words in the past. After you’ve spent some time thinking about the language of the prompt, get in touch with your instructor for any necessary clarification.
Audience and Style
For whom are you writing this paper? The answer might seem obvious: you’ll submit your work to an instructor, who will, in all likelihood be the only person to ever read it. But part of the bigger picture of academic writing is entering into a conversation within a preexisting community of thinkers. Imagining such a community for yourself is one of the best ways to avoid feeling like you’re simply regurgitating information from class when you write a paper. Ask your instructor to clarify what kind of readership he or she has in mind for the assignment. For example, your instructor might ask you to envision either a readership of researchers, with some degree of expertise in your topic, or, alternatively, a readership of a magazine such as the New Yorker—fairly literate and generally informed, but with no specific training in the field. Obviously, these two audiences will place quite different demands on both the style and content of your writing.
Evidence
Knowing what kind of evidence you’re being asked to use is a crucial step in determining how much time and work your paper is going to require. If you’re simply being asked to work closely with texts you’ve already read (and perhaps discussed) in the context of the course, you know that you won’t have to spend much time going to the library to hunt down, evaluate, and analyze additional source materials. If you’re being asked to use “outside sources,” budget your time accordingly and ask a lot of questions about what kind of sources you might want to use. If you are having difficulty locating appropriate sources, ask the GSC College Librarian for help. Remember to keep track of citation information for all sources you draw upon.
As a little extra instruction on assignments...
Assignments usually ask you to demonstrate that you have immersed yourself in the course material and that you've done some thinking on your own; questions not treated at length in class often serve as assignments. Fortunately, if you've put the time into getting to know the material, then you've almost certainly begun thinking independently. In responding to assignments, keep in mind the following advice.
Understanding some key words commonly used in assignments also may simplify your task. Toward this end, let's take a look at two seemingly impenetrable instructions: "discuss" and "analyze."
1. Discuss the role of gender in bringing about the French Revolution.
"Discuss" is easy to misunderstand because the word calls to mind the oral/spoken dimension of communication. "Discuss" suggests conversation, which often is casual and undirected. In the context of an assignment, however, discussion entails fulfilling a defined and organized task: to construct an argument that considers and responds to an ample range of materials. To "discuss," in assignment language, means to make a broad argument about a set of arguments you have studied. In the case above, you can do this by
A weak discussion essay in response to the question above might simply list a few aspects of the Revolution—the image of Liberty, the executions of the King and Marie Antoinette, the cry "Liberte, Egalite, Fraternite!"—and make separate comments about how each, being "gendered," is therefore a powerful political force. Such an essay would offer no original thesis, but instead restate the question asked in the assignment (i.e., "The role of gender was very important in the French Revolution" or "Gender did not play a large role in the French Revolution").
In a strong discussion essay, the thesis would go beyond a basic restatement of the assignment question. You might test the similarities and differences of the revolutionary aspects being discussed. You might draw on fresh or unexpected evidence, perhaps using as a source an intriguing reading that was only briefly touched upon in lecture.
2. Analyze two of Chaucer's Canterbury Tales, including one not discussed in class, as literary works and in terms of sources/analogues.
The words "analyze" and "analysis" may seem to denote highly advanced, even arcane skills, possessed in virtual monopoly by mathematicians and scientists. Happily, the terms refer to mental activity we all perform regularly; the terms just need decoding. "Analyze" means two things in this specific assignment prompt.
Second, you need to consider the two tales critically to arrive at some reward for having observed how the tales are made and where they came from (their sources/analogues). In the course of your essay, you might work your way to investigating Chaucer's broader attitude toward his sources, which alternates between playful variation and strict adherence. Your complex analysis of kinds of humor might reveal differing conceptions of masculine and feminine between Chaucer and his literary sources, or some other important cultural distinction.
Analysis involves both a set of observations about the composition or workings of your subject and a critical approach that keeps you from noticing just anything—from excessive listing or summarizing—and instead leads you to construct an interpretation, using textual evidence to support your ideas.
Some Final Advice
If, having read the assignment carefully, you're still confused by it, don't hesitate to ask for clarification from your instructor. He or she may be able to elucidate the question or to furnish some sample responses to the assignment. Knowing the expectations of an assignment can help when you're feeling puzzled. Conversely, knowing the boundaries can head off trouble if you're contemplating an unorthodox approach. In either case, before you go to your instructor, it's a good idea to list, underline or circle the specific places in the assignment where the language makes you feel uncertain.
Copyright 1998, William C. Rice, for the Writing Center at Harvard University
