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ARCHAEOLOGY ESSAYS
ESSAY TOPICS
Essay questions will be assigned for each unit by the unit coordinator at the beginning of each semester. Contact the coordinator of the unit if you have queries about the questions.
ADVICE FOR ESSAY WRITING
In writing your essay the objective should be to produce an original, well-researched and thoroughly referenced argument. The more these qualities are evident the higher the mark you will get. Note that an essay should not merely be a collation of views in the literature. Summarizing the literature is not creating an argument and does not illuminate the subject. You must be creative in the sense that you advance an argument about the literature, grounded in the published body of knowledge but making a new statement about it. Of course the argument must be clearly and stylishly written to transmit this new statement.
The following checklist indicates the sorts of features that will get your essay a high mark. Print out and use this checklist for your essays. Make sure you can answer yes to all of the questions.
CHECKLIST FOR YOUR ESSAY
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Questions to ask |
Yes/No |
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1. Is my essay thorough and intellectually convincing? |
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a. Have I answered the essay question? |
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b. Is there a clear and powerful argument running through my essay and leading to my conclusion? |
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c. Have I dealt adequately with all major models and all prominent publications relevant to this topic? |
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d. Have I cited evidence to substantiate all of my interpretations? |
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e. Does my essay have an effective introduction and conclusion? |
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f. Have I developed my own perspective and displayed originality in my argument? |
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2. Is my essay technically correct? |
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a. Is my essay the correct length? |
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b. Have I included an abstract? |
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c. Is my essay neatly typed on one side of each page with a large (>3cm) margin? |
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d. Have I avoided plagiarism by adequately referencing all information obtained from other people? |
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e. Have I corrected any spelling mistakes (did I run the spell checker)? |
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f. Are my references in the Harvard style? |
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g. Are all the references in the text also in the bibliography? |
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REFERENCING IN ESSAYS (INCLUDING CITING WEB PAGES):
Some pointers for referencing in bibliographies are available from:
Bibliographic citation: an introduction (http://www.itc.glam.ac.uk/lrc/LRCINFO/CITINTRO.HTM)
or
Harvard citation and referencing guide (http://www.lmu.ac.uk/lss/ls/docs/harvfron.htm)
Do not using the Oxford system (involving footnotes) - it is not acceptable for archaeology essays.
For information on how to cite from the web try:
(i) Electronic References and Scholarly Citations of internet Sources. http://www.gu.edu.au/gint/WWWVL/OnlineRefs.html
(ii) How to cite Information from the World Wide Web http://www.apa.org/journals/webref.html.
(iii) Web Extension to American Psychological Association Style (WEAPAS). Proposed Standard for referencing Online Documents in Scientific publications. (Revisiom1.4.1.2) http://www.beadsland.com/weapas/
(iv) Referencing the Informal Education Homepage. http://www.infed.org/hp-refer.htm
You are visitor to this site.
Author: Peter Hiscock, Dept. Archaeology and Anthropology
Feedback: peter.hiscock@anu.edu.au.
Date Last Modified: 11-May-00
URL: http://artalpha.anu.edu.au/web/arc/resources/papers/courses/essays.htm
