Research Paper Assignment
Purpose
This paper is designed to increase your knowledge of Jerusalem through the careful and self-directed study of a single site, monument, object, or personage. If done successfully,the argument of your paper will draw upon facts learned and critical skills developed in this class. The assignment, thereby, has the benefit of simultaneously deepening and strengthening your understanding of this place through the format of a traditional research paper.
Description
In this paper you have the option of focusing on either a site within Jerusalem, a monument builtor an object produced within Jerusalem, or a personage who significantly affected the city of Jerusalem. Your paper should include an overview of the scholarship related to your chosen site, monument, object, or personage, with the intent of articulating the major problems (or issues) associated with our understanding of it and of asserting your position related to its meaning or perceived value. Your paper should also include a clear description of your chosen site, monument, object, or personage and an analysis that refers to historical context, primary sources, additional (appropriate and illuminating) cultural material, and relevant course content. Possible paper topics are listed at the end of this document; a PowerPoint with related images is available on D2L under "Content."
Paper Draft
You must submit your paper draft. This version of the paper should conform to the requirements of the paper in terms of form and content. You should think of this as the version of your paper. After all, the closer your paper is to a "version," the more valuable comments on that paper can be and the more you will learn about writing in the process. The grade for the draft is based on the grading rubric detailed below.
Presentation
Devoted to paper presentations. These presentations should be about 5-7 minutes long and based on about 2 (double-spaced) pages of text. During your presentation you should clearly introduce your topic, describing it (8 points), situating it within the appropriate historical context and within the larger tradition to which it belongs, and indicating its importance in terms of understanding Jerusalem. The benefit of this step is two-fold. On the one hand, the rest of the class learns something new or additional about a site, monument, object, or personage. On the other hand, time constraints and an audience force you to clarify your ideas about your topic through the careful selection of content and its strategic presentation.
Paper
The paper should respond to comments received on the "draft."
Getting you started
Two important things to remember: 1) The footnotes, endnotes, and bibliographies of the texts you are reading will also direct you toward additional sources and 2) When using the internet for research, you are looking for scholarly books and articles related to your topic (and newspaper and magazine articles as appropriate); do not use popular, un-vetted web content as a paper source.
Finding books:
--On the DePaul Library catalogue (the "DePaul VuFind Catalog")-here you will find books held in the DePaul Library. There are other ways to perform this search, but this is the easiest.
--On the I-Share catalogue (change your search to "All I-Share Libraries" [in the second field that can be modified by up and down arrows] once in the DePaul Library catalogue)-here you will find books held in local libraries, which can be sent to you at DePaul in 2-3 days. There are other ways to perform this search, but this is the easiest.
--On WorldCat (enter title in quotes on the DePaul Library homepage and switch search area in adjacent field to "Libraries Worldwide")-here you will find books held (largely) in more distant libraries, which can be sent to you at DePaul in apx. 2 weeks.
Finding articles:
--One option for locating articles is to perform a keyword search on Google Scholar. Once you find an article of interest, your next step will involve looking for the journal article either in hardcopy (within the DePaul or I-Share library collections) or in digital form (not all journals are available in digital form and even journals that are available in digital form have only made certain years available in this way). To start your search, go to the DePaul Library homepage and enter the article title in quotes or the author name on the DePaul Library homepage. Click on the item you want and then click on the "Find Fulltext@DePaul" link. Next, click on "Article," if available, (which will allow you to view the whole article and save it or print it, if desired) or "Request via ILLiad" (which will allow you to order the article, a process that usually only takes a couple of days). To reduce the number of hits, check "Search articles only" on the homepage.
--Another option for locating articles is to perform a keyword search in the DePaul Library catalogue (this search can be directed at "DePaul University," "I-Share Libraries", or "Libraries Worldwide" by way of up and down arrows in the field to the right). If you are looking for articles exclusively, click the "Search articles only" box.
Finding images:
ARTstor (available through Library Database List)
Google Images
Books (as a photocopy or scan)
Journals (as a photocopy or scan)
A note on sources:
Remember that, while extremely useful, dictionary and encyclopedia resources typically do not translate into impressive footnotes or bibliographic fill. In addition, as a general rule, websites as sources are right out. Of course, online resources such as JSTOR, which make scholarly journal articles available electronically, should be consulted when conducting research. However, cite the appropriate journal as the article's source when compiling your bibliography, and not the URL.
Possible Paper Topics (You do not need to pick a topic from this list. If nothing here appeals to you, come see me. A PowerPoint with related images is available on D2L under Content.)
King David Hotel (1931).
The Temple of Jupiter (once on the Haram al-Sharif/Temple Mount)
The Temple of Aphrodite (once at site of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher)
The Garden Tomb (an alternative location for the burial of Jesus)
The Tomb of Melisende (Queen of Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem; d. 1161)
The Church of Mary Magdalene (Russian Orthodox; 1888)
Cathedral of St. James (Armenian, 12th c.)
Status Quo in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher (18th c./1929)
The Hurva Synagogue (2010; orig. built in early 18th c.)
Mosque of Omar (1193; not al-Aqsa Mosque)
Second Temple Period Model of Jerusalem (1966)
Ossuaries (burial box)
The Khalidi Library (1899)
Hebrew University (1918)
Rockefeller Museum (1938)
Tomb of Absalom (c. 1st c. CE)
Sultan's Pool (Ottoman reservoir)
Ottoman fountains
Akeldama (Potter's Field)
Mamilla cemetery (11th c.-1927)
Jerusalem International YMCA (1933)
King David Hotel (1931)
A single gate in the Old City walls (Lion's Gate, Herod's Gate, Damascus Gate, New Gate, Jaffa Gate, Zion Gate, Dung Gate; Golden Gate, Hadrian's Gate)
French Hill(neighborhood in East Jerusalem)
David Ben Gurion (first Prime Minister of Israel, d. 1973)
Suleiman the Magnificent (Ottoman sultan, d. 1566)
Saladin (Ayyubid sultan, d. 1193)
Mahmoud Darwish (Palestinian poet, d. 2008)
Simon bar Kokhba (Jewish leader of revolt against Roman rule, d. 135).
Format your assignment according to the following formatting requirements:
1. The answer should be typed, double spaced, using Times New Roman font (size 12), with one-inch margins on all sides.
2. The response also include a cover page containing the title of the assignment, the student's name, the course title, and the date. The cover page is not included in the required page length.
3. Also Include a reference page. The Citations and references should follow APA format. The reference page is not included in the required page length.