Graduate History Proseminar: Archives, Writing, and Research in Southeast Asian History

Catalog description

This is a writing intensive seminar for graduate students (MA and PhD) working on topics in Southeast Asian history and society. Students will analyze the relationship of evidence and argument in historical writing; critically assess the methods and possible biases in their own and their peers’ scholarly writing; identify archives and sources relevant to a research topic; discern how to utilize sources responsibly and creatively; understand the methodological issues associated with the use of primary and secondary sources; read and implement relevant translation theory since the majority of students will utilize sources written in Southeast Asian languages; and learn how to professionally present their own work and constructively critique that of their peers. There will be weekly reading, research and/or writing assignments based on each individual’s research topic(s), which will be decided prior to the course in collaboration with the instructor. The majority of the work written in the course will be shared and read by all students.