Research project.

Your research project for this course will give you an opportunity to take some of the ideas that we will be talking about in class and explore them in greater depth. My only requirements are that the project consider connections between narrative and art in Asia. You might choose to focus on a specific work of art, a specific narrative theme, or the similarities/differences of narrative treatments in China/Japan, Asia/Europe, etc. I encourage you to talk to me about possible project topics. Note that you should turn in a proposal for your paper topic on Wednesday, Feb. 20; this should be no longer than one paragraph, and the point of turning it in is so that I can make sure that you are choosing a manageable topic.

On Wednesday, Mar. 13, you should turn in copies of your annotated bibliography and research worksheets. The annotated bibliography should be a list of the sources found by this date that you plan to use in your paper, with a sentence or two explaining why it is useful in your research. (Of course, it is fine to continue to look for sources after the annotated bibliography is due.) Research worksheets can be downloaded from Canvas; please fill one out for each library database you consult for this paper, indicating your search terms and your results. It is particularly important that you pay attention to your sources. Although looking for information on the internet is very convenient, personal or institutional web pages are not always subject to peer review in the same way as books and journal articles. Therefore, I expect the majority of your bibliography to consist of peer-reviewed books and journal articles (which can sometimes be found in online databases such as JSTOR). You should have five (5) art historical sources (not including the readings assigned for this class) at a minimum, but ideally, you would have more than five, and you would supplement these with appropriate readings on religion, philosophy, history, literature, etc. (depending on what your topic is). Certainly, the more sources you have and the more academic they are the better: part of the point of doing a research paper is to demonstrate the amount and quality of research you did, and this is done through your bibliography.

For the research stage of the project, I suggest that you consult WorldCat, JSTOR, the Bibliography of Asian Studies, and the Art Index (all online databases on the Library’s web page, under “Find Articles”). Note: for these online resources, you must be connected to the HWS campus network. You should also look at the books on reserve for our course at the Library (not only their contents but also their bibliographies), as well as resources that I suggest in footnotes on some of your daily handouts (typically beginning “Want to know more…?”). You may also wish to locate evidence in sources that discuss art, history, literature, philosophy, religion, etc.

You will present your research in two parts.

Part I will be an oral presentation in class between April 29 and May 6. Your presentation should be approximately 10 minutes long and should include images. This will give you a chance to receive feedback on your work. It will also give you an opportunity to polish your oral presentation skills. See pp. 3-4 for tips on oral presentations.

Part II will be a research paper in which you present your argument and your conclusions. Your paper will be due either Sunday, May 12, at 12:00 noon, if you are a graduating senior, or else on Tuesday, May 14, at 10:00pm. The text of the paper, not including illustrations and bibliography, should be 3000-4500 words in length. If you need more information about how to write an art history paper, I recommend looking at Sylvan Barnet’s A Short Guide to Writing about Art. (The 2008 edition is in the reference section of the Library.) If you have further questions about writing research papers, you might visit the HWS Writes website.

Breakdown of grades for research project (percentage of final course grade):
Proposal: 1%
Annotated bibliography: 4%
Oral presentation: 10%
Research paper: 20%

Format for written work:
One of the things you will learn in an art history class is the importance of presentation. This applies to your written work as well:

1. Type all work in a 12-point font.
2. Double-space.
3. Leave one-inch margins on all sides.
4. Number your pages.
5. Put your name and the date on the first page.
6. Check that your spelling, grammar and punctuation are correct—these are crucial to effective communication of your ideas. Your grade will drop if you have excessive errors.
7. If you cite another source, you may use either parenthetical references or footnotes. (See A note about cheating and plagiarism below.) Make sure that you follow a standard documentation style, ideally the one found in the Chicago Manual of Style (which is what art historians most typically use).
8. Include a picture with a caption if appropriate.

You can submit written work via Canvas. Please upload a Microsoft Word document (.doc, .docx), Rich Text Format file (.rtf), or a PDF file (.pdf): these are the only formats that Canvas will accept. Alternatively, you can turn in a stapled hard copy to me during the class period. PLEASE NOTE:  I do not accept papers via e-mail.

A note about cheating and plagiarism:
I will not tolerate any form of academic dishonesty. Not only does it destroy the trust that I have in you to do your best, but also it is unfair to the other students, and obviously you will not learn anything if you resort to cheating. If I find that you have cheated on an assignment, you will receive a zero for the assignment and I will contact the Deans and/or the Committee on Standards about your case. I follow the recommendation of the Committee on Standards; if it also finds evidence of cheating or plagiarism, the recommendation is usually failure of the course at a minimum. See the Colleges’ Principle of Academic Integrity and General Academic Regulations and the Handbook of Community Standards, pp. 38-40.

Now, just in case you are not clear about what plagiarism is: plagiarism is the use of someone else’s words or ideas without giving that person credit.  In application, this means that in your writing assignments, you need to cite your sources. When quoting directly from a text—say, five words or more in succession—you need to put those words in quotation marks and include a parenthetical reference or footnote citing the source. When rewriting a passage from a text in your own words, you don’t need the quotation marks but you do still need the parenthetical reference or footnote. If you don’t understand exactly what constitutes plagiarism, or how to use parenthetical references or footnotes, please ask me. I would prefer to explain what it is and how to avoid it before it happens rather than after.

Tips for Oral Presentation

Preparation:

1. Think about how to make your research accessible to everyone else. By the time of your presentation, you may know more about this material than anyone else in the room.
2. Check Artifact (our Visual Resources Collection ) and ARTstor to see if there are digital images of the works you are discussing, at least two weeks before your talk. If there aren’t, you can have digital images made from books, but this must occur in consultation with both Kathryn Vaughn (Visual Resources Curator) and me, and the process requires two weeks.
3. Write a draft of your talk, with notations about where the images go. This draft should state clearly what issue you are addressing or what argument you are making. Make your draft as engaging as possible — remember that what is appropriate for formal written work often does not work for oral presentations.
4. Decide whether you will use the presentation function in Artifact (you need a student account for this) or whether you will make up a presentation using other software such as Microsoft Powerpoint.

The presentation itself:

1. Decide whether you will read your paper aloud or work from a bulleted list or index cards. Both methods have advantages and disadvantages. If you are reading your paper, you are better able to control the length of your presentation (5 double-spaced pages equal 10 minutes if you are reading at an appropriately leisurely pace), but your presentation may be less lively, and you will need to take steps to prevent that in the draft itself. With a bulleted list or index cards, you may not be able to judge the length of your presentation so precisely and you may need to practice more, but your presentation will probably seem more spontaneous and engaging. (Note that art historians presenting their work orally usually read their papers.)
2. Practice your talk, with the images, more than once. Use a recording device so you can hear how your talk sounds, or get a friend to serve as your audience and ask for his or her feedback.
3. Identify each image you show. Make sure you have something to say about each image; do not use images as wallpaper. You should be very familiar with your material, especially the visuals.
4. Do not plan to pass around photocopied images or images in books instead of projecting your images on the screen; this would make it impossible for your audience to follow your presentation.
5. If you think it would be helpful, make a handout that serves as an outline of your talk (even just a list of images).
6. Speak slowly and don’t hesitate to repeat important points.
7. Speak loudly. The projecting equipment is noisy.
8. Breathe and try to relax. Remember everyone else presenting, and likely everyone in the audience, has been or will be in your shoes. (If you are shy, like me, you might think of yourself as developing a “performance persona.” The earlier you can do this the better.)

Oral Presentation Self-Evaluation

These questions are designed to help you improve the quality of your oral presentation and to assist you in all your future presentations.

1) What issue did you address in your presentation?

2) Why was the topic you chose to work on of particular interest to you?

3) Did you consult with your instructor about your topic before you began?

4) How did this consultation take place? Did you make an appointment with your instructor for a consultation during regular office hours or was it a few rushed questions before or after class?

5) How much research did you do on your topic? How wide-ranging was your research?

6) Did you check whether the images you wanted were available in the Visual Resources Collection or ARTstor? If they weren’t, did you arrange to have digital images made?

7) Did you practice your talk orally, with the images, before presenting it?

8) Did you speak up and make your points clearly?

9) What would you do differently when you do your next presentation?