Major Works for Extension History

[tasiakuz]

Hey guys! I just wanted to check in on how everyone is coming along with their major works just so I compare where I am at.
Currently I have only written synopsis, introduction and first paragraph, having til the end of the school holidays to finish.
How are you all staying motivated, any tips? Also would love to know what everyone is doing theres on.

[cmbarnes]

Hey guys! I just wanted to check in on how everyone is coming along with their major works just so I compare where I am at.
Currently I have only written synopsis, introduction and first paragraph, having til the end of the school holidays to finish.
How are you all staying motivated, any tips? Also would love to know what everyone is doing theres on.

I've finished my major work, and handed it in on June 25th.
If I'm being honest, I was really lazy with mine until the few weeks before it was due. I would only ever work on it when each part was due, however I was somehow way ahead of my class. The only way to really stay motivated is to be passionate about your topic. The more I wrote, the more engaging I found it. The topic for my thesis was ‘Terrorism, Freedom Fighting and Martyrdom’, looking at the power of pejorative language to achieve a political purpose, incorporating a post-structuralist approach. This really allowed me to explore the historiography rather than just the history of my subjects. I looked at the Anglo-Irish conflict, and the impact of propaganda in exploiting the nature of the Irish fight for freedom. What topic did you focus on?

If you dedicate small blocks of time very few days, and make sure to have all your preliminary research completed then you should be able to smash it out before the end of the holidays. Make sure to communicate with your teacher and get feedback wherever possible.

[jamonwindeyer]

I've finished my major work, and handed it in on June 25th.
If I'm being honest, I was really lazy with mine until the few weeks before it was due. I would only ever work on it when each part was due, however I was somehow way ahead of my class. The only way to really stay motivated is to be passionate about your topic. The more I wrote, the more engaging I found it. The topic for my thesis was ‘Terrorism, Freedom Fighting and Martyrdom’, looking at the power of pejorative language to achieve a political purpose, incorporating a post-structuralist approach. This really allowed me to explore the historiography rather than just the history of my subjects. I looked at the Anglo-Irish conflict, and the impact of propaganda in exploiting the nature of the Irish fight for freedom. What topic did you focus on?

If you dedicate small blocks of time very few days, and make sure to have all your preliminary research completed then you should be able to smash it out before the end of the holidays. Make sure to communicate with your teacher and get feedback wherever possible.

Congrats on submission!! 

[cmbarnes]

Congrats on submission!! 

Thank you! Definitely a relief to have it done

[sudodds]

Hey guys! I just wanted to check in on how everyone is coming along with their major works just so I compare where I am at.
Currently I have only written synopsis, introduction and first paragraph, having til the end of the school holidays to finish.
How are you all staying motivated, any tips? Also would love to know what everyone is doing theres on.

Our Major work is due around the same time as you I've pretty much finished everything today, but I was about where you were when you posted this (I think I may have had a second paragraph up as well but I can't remember). Motivation wise, I just tried to do as much as I could in blocks (like 4 or 5 hours). I know that for a lot of people that isn't the best idea, but for me that just seems to work because as soon as I take a break I can't motivate myself to start again. My questions based around dialectics and the "interpenetration of opposites", my argument being that the Discipline of History is experiencing this dialectical shift into its "opposite," from a "truth" based discipline to one now more focused on subjectivity through analysing the role of the linguistic turn and the "bottom up" historians, using Bill O'Reilly as a case study. What was yours about? (btw cmbarnes yours sounds so interesting! Good luck!)

[cmbarnes]

My questions based around dialectics and the "interpenetration of opposites", my argument being that the Discipline of History is experiencing this dialectical shift into its "opposite," from a "truth" based discipline to one now more focused on subjectivity through analysing the role of the linguistic turn and the "bottom up" historians, using Bill O'Reilly as a case study. What was yours about? (btw cmbarnes yours sounds so interesting! Good luck!)

Thanks, yours too. I'm sure you'll do great, good luck!

[jelin_queen]

Congratulations guys

[sudodds]

Congratulations guys

Thanks! Have you handed in yours yet? What was it about

[samsclaire]

does anyone have tips for outline the actual Major Work? I've got a paragraph on a major issue, then with historians and smaller points underneath. is that right?
(my focus question: to what extent was repression evident or expressed in Soviet agricultural policy? relate to the policy for the first-five year plan)

[sudodds]

does anyone have tips for outline the actual Major Work? I've got a paragraph on a major issue, then with historians and smaller points underneath. is that right?
(my focus question: to what extent was repression evident or expressed in Soviet agricultural policy? relate to the policy for the first-five year plan)

Hey samsclaire!

By an outline do you mean a bit like an essay plan? If so I'd say that that is probably a pretty good way of going about it - I'd also make sure that you have some historiographical concepts floating around in there as well. I was more of a write now think later kinda gal, rarely ever had a plan in mind, just wrote and re-wrote and re-wrote until I was happy. I felt like in extension having a strict plan for me didn't really work, as my ideas often changed through writing and further research. Not to say that having a plan is a bad thing! Just that there is not much else I can really suggest haha.

On the topic of historiography, just an observation on your question - I think it's a bit too "history". What do I mean by that? Well the major work isn't meant to be a history essay, it is meant to be a historiography essay. You're not looking at the hows and whys of history, but the hows and whys of the interpretations of history, thus in a historiography essay whether repression was evident or not is irrelevant - what is important is what the historians say about repression and why they say what they say. With that is mind, if I were you I'd probably want to revaluate my question to include more explicit reference to historiography (if you need any help with this let me know!). You can still keep it in the general topic of soviet agricultural policy, most people have a case study - just make sure that the overall focus of your essay is historiography and not history.

Susie

[Davian Thule]

For anyone in the future... don't leave it to the night before like me.

[sudodds]

For anyone in the future... don't leave it to the night before like me.

Oh boy! Yeah definitely not something I'd recommend! Do you still feel like it went okay though? What was your topic?

[Davian Thule]

I'm doing it right now, It's due tomorrow and im stuck for words and ideas, procrastination is at an all time high, and I'm really struggling. I went well for my proposal scoring 17/20 (I literally handed it in 1 min before it was due) but I wont be so lucky here. My question is -
How did the nature of the foundation of America in 1776 shape the nation’s Ideology and Democracy?

Any help you can provide would be amazing, and I'd be in your debt.

[sudodds]

I'm doing it right now, It's due tomorrow and im stuck for words and ideas, procrastination is at an all time high, and I'm really struggling. I went well for my proposal scoring 17/20 (I literally handed it in 1 min before it was due) but I wont be so lucky here. My question is -
How did the nature of the foundation of America in 1776 shape the nation’s Ideology and Democracy?

Any help you can provide would be amazing, and I'd be in your debt.

Ah okay! Hmmmmm unfortunately I'm not very knowledgeable content wise on the topic that you have chosen. However, what I always recommend structure wise is to either break it up by historiographical concepts - eg. impact and understanding of postmodernism, objectivism, reductionism, Orientalism etc. etc. - OR by the syllabus. Just above all else make sure that you are writing historiography and NOT history. Don't go into crazy detail about the actual nature of the foundation of America, but more so the various debates and interpretations of the foundation What does one historian say, and why does they say it? What methodologies did they use to formulate their conclusion. Some historiographical and philosophical concepts (I assume given my admittedly limited knowledge of the topic - these just typically work well for American history) you could have a look into could be;
- White Mans Burden (can also link to Orientalism)
- Manifest Destiny
- Isolationism and Imperialism
- Social History (History from the Bottom Up)

Hope this helps!

Susie

[Davian Thule]

That really helps, I appreciate it