Herman Athur, Freedom's Forge: How American Business Produced Victory in World War 2

Information You Should Provide/Questions You Should Answer: Read the questions and instructions carefully then give complete answers or responses. 1. General Information. Provide the following information: A. Book title. Book titles are always either underlined or italicized. Examples: Reconstruction: America's Unfinished Revolution or Reconstruction: America's Unfinished Revolution B. Author. C. Publisher and year first published. D. General content or what the book is about (3 to 5 sentences of basic information such as who, what, when, and where). 2. Preface. In a few sentences, summarize the Preface. If the book has no Preface, then summarize the Introduction. If the book has neither a Preface nor an Introduction, see your instructor about the manner in which you should respond to this instruction. 3. Thesis. List and discuss each of the primary points the author tries to prove or establish in the book. The author is trying to show (or prove) something (i.e., the author's thesis) to his/her readers. The author's thesis is the proposition or main idea the author asserts (or tries to establish or prove) in his/her book. The author may have more than one thesis. The author usually states the thesis (or theses) in one or more of the Introduction, the first chapter, the Conclusion, and the final chapter; but sometimes the thesis (or theses) is (are) never explicitly stated by the author. Your response may begin with something like, "In this book, the author tries to show that …” and then discuss the one or more points the author tries to prove about the subject of the book. 4. Analysis of Individual Chapters. Provide the following information for each of any three, non-consecutive chapters from the book (provide all of the information for each chapter before beginning any information for a subsequent chapter): A. State the chapter number and title. Enclose the chapter title in quotation marks. The following is an example: Chapter 1: "Franklin's Early Years" B. In one short paragraph, summarize the chapter. A good summary gives the reader basic information, such as WHO, WHAT, WHEN, WHERE, and WHY. Think of how you would summarize the plot of a movie to a friend who has not seen the movie. C. State the main idea the author is trying to get across in the chapter. What does the author try to show or prove in the chapter? The chapter title and/or the conclusion at the end of the chapter will often be helpful. Your answer may begin, "In this chapter, the author tries to show that …." Example: "In this chapter, the author tries to show that Abraham Lincoln freed the slaves (with the Emancipation Proclamation) because of political, not humanitarian, reasons." D. In your own words, restate the facts or argument that the author uses to prove or supportthe main idea. In other words, what does the author argue or write to convince you that his/her main idea is correct? E. What type of source or evidence would make the author's argument or main idea more convincing? Do not say something such as, "the argument is convincing enough". For a chapter in a book about slave life, an example might be as follows: "If the author had letters or diaries written by slaves, his argument about slave life would be stronger." F. State one primary source described in a footnote from the chapter (The Ohio Historical Society defines a “primary source” as a "source created by people who actually saw or participated in an event and recorded that event or their reactions to it immediately after the event.” In contrast, a “secondary source” is defined as a "source created by someone either not present when the event took place or removed by time from the event.").Examples of “primary sources” include a diary, a letter, a piece of legislation, a tax record, a deed, a business ledger, and a newspaper article. Your statement might look like this: "Custer Defeated at Little Big Horn," The New York Times, April 14, 1876. or Jennifer Jones, ed., Diary of Anne Frank, 4th edition (New York: McGraw-Hill, 1977). G. State one secondary source described in a footnote from this chapter. Your statement should be in the proper form for a footnote (i.e., author, title, publisher, place and date of publication). Your citation should look something like this: Michael Smith, Witchcraft in the Later Middle Ages (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1980). or Julia Juarez, "Mayan Hieroglyphs Decoded," Journal of Latin American History (June 1994), 366-396. 5. Sources. A. List five of the periodicals cited by the author in his/her bibliography or footnotes. Periodicals are newspapers, magazines, and professional journals. Just list the periodical by name. You do not have to provide a detailed description. Periodical titles are italicized, so look in the footnotes and bibliography for items that are italicized and find the items that are newspaper titles, magazine titles, or professional journal titles. Here are some examples: The Journal of Economic History Southwestern Historical Quarterly The New York Times The Wall Street Journal National Review Remember that book titles are also italicized, so learn to distinguish between books and periodicals. Periodicals will usually have a volume number or date, but not a publisher's name. Books will have a publisher, publication place, and publication date. B. List three types of primary sources (not specific or individual primary sources, but types of primary sources) the author uses (e.g., letters, diaries, journals, interviews, legislation). C. If you were writing a history book about some period in the past, why would your book benefit from your use primary sources (letters, diaries, etc.) from that period? D. If you were writing a history book, what might be a problem in using primary sources? 6. List 3 books that deal with the same subject matter as the book you read. Give author, title, place of publication, publisher, and date of publication, just as this information would appear in a footnote. You can use the "subject search" feature of the library's computerized card catalog to find these books. 7. List 3 articles (at least one article must be from a scholarly journal, and the other articles may be from scholarly journals, magazines, or newspapers) that deal with the same subject matter as the book you read. Do not include book reviews. Give author, title of article, publication in which article appears, date of publication, and page numbers, just as this information would appear in a footnote. You can perform a subject search in an on-line database to find articles. 8. Your Opinions and Comparisons. A. Do you agree or disagree with your book's main points or conclusions? In other words, does the author maintain (or prove) his/her thesis (or theses) to your satisfaction. Explain or justify your answer. B. What do you like best about the book? What do you like least about the book? C. Do you believe the author shows (or may show) a bias in presenting his/her subject matter? Explain or justify your answer. In this question, “bias” means not just a preference or inclination, but a preference or inclination that inhibits impartial judgment. D. List 3 facts that you learned from the book. An example of a "fact" is: "George Washington was the only president unanimously elected.” List facts, not "opinions" or “interpretations.” An example of an "opinion" (or "interpretation") is: "George Washington was the best military commander of all time." E. Would you recommend the book to someone else? Why or why not? F. If you had to write a book on a historical topic, what topic would you choose? Why?