History: Writing a History paper

How to write an essay:  Essay writing is a crucial part of any student’s historical training. You may be asked to write on different topics and themes in a wide range of formats. Because we can approach historical problems from many perspectives, the types of questions that direct your essays will vary. Nevertheless, all historical essays share some basic structural factors:

• an introduction with a clear thesis statement
• the body of the essay • a conclusion 
• outside of tests and exams, footnotes or endnotes

The outline: Before starting to write the essay, it is best to have at minimum a rudimentary outline to guide you. Your outline should identify your thesis statement and the main points and evidence that will support it, organized logically.
 

The introduction: Your introduction should usually be no longer than one paragraph and should attempt to guide the reader into the question at hand by doing the following:

• Focus your attention on the topic at hand, either through a general comment about its relevance, or a specific example designed to draw the interest of the reader. Regardless, the point is to draw the reader into the topic.
• Narrow the introduction into the question that will be discussed in your essay
• Provide the argument—also known as a thesis statement— you will be developing in the rest of the essay. The thesis statement should almost invariably be the last one or two sentences in your introduction.

The body of the essay: The body will consist of as many paragraphs as there are main points supporting the thesis statement. You should think of each paragraph as a building block in the argument supporting your thesis. Even if you have multiple sub theses, these building blocks should be logically sound and support your larger thesis. Follow these steps:

1. Begin with a topic sentence stating the major premise the paragraph will discuss. Although it might seem counterintuitive to write with topic sentences, they provide a signpost to the reader and are crucial in ensuring that you stay on topic.
2. Expound the specific evidence supporting the premise. For evidence, you may draw from well-known facts, secondary, and primary sources. If you come across evidence in your readings that appears to contradict your argument, you still need to pay attention to it. In fact, it is a sign of a strong essay if the writer discusses and refutes secondary material, interpretations, and even primary source material that pose views and opinions that might originally appear to contradict or weaken the author’s thesis.
3. Continue by demonstrating the validity of the thesis through various premises supported with primary and secondary evidence.

The conclusion: This conclusion should briefly recap the arguments and provide the reader with a sense of the implications that the study presents.

• Start with a narrow focus on the essay’s main arguments
• Move into a wider focus that may include historiographical and/or methodological implications.