It seems best to allow an extension for the submission of the Biographical Essay title & bibliography, originally due this Tuesday. Please do bring a draft of this to class, which you can share with the class as a whole, and in regard to which, perhaps, receive helpful feedback.
The assignment itself will be due at noon, on Thursday, Feb. 10. Please submit a hard-copy to the Humanities office, unless particular circumstances prevent this (contact me, if so). I will have extended office hours that day (1:30-4:30 pm) for those who may wish to discuss their project.
What is expected?
To quote the syllabus:
The Biographical Essay affords the chance to examine in-depth the life and legacy of a medieval figure, whose importance is in some respect related to the theme of the course (Héloïse, Abelard, St. Thomas Aquinas, St. Anselm, Hildegard of Bingen, St. Francis, etc.). Since this is an upper-level humanities course, you are expected to make use of a number of sources for your essay, including primary sources. In other words, you should plan to have recourse to period writings pertaining to your chosen topic. A great variety and number of such writings can now be accessed through the internet, via sites such as Paul Halsall's Medieval History Sourcebook.
Of course, the library remains the best place to begin… A choice of topic and initial bibliography for this assignment (3-5 primary sources, along with at least three secondary sources) are due on February [10], while the assignment itself is due on March 8. It should run 1750-2000 words, and be formatted according to the Chicago Manual of Style.
For the choice of topic and initial bibliography I need to see evidence that work has been done to ensure that the sources listed will prove of use to the chosen topic. This "check & balance" is intended to help those of you who are not used to writing research papers to "stay on track."
Please, therefore, do the following:
1) Write a 1-2 sentence DESCRIPTION of your paper topic, in addition to your proposed title This should summarize the goal of your Biographical Essay.
2) ANNOTATE your bibliography, i.e., write a short sentence (point form is acceptable) after each entry, explaining why you have chosen this source (book section, article), and how it will pertain to your topic
I trust that these simple measures will be worthwhile to your overall research...
