TCW, C9 pg 133
In a humanities class (e.g., English, history,
and theater arts), your study and writing likely focus on various types of
texts, broadly understood: primary texts, such as poems, novels, historical
records, and philosophical essays, as well as secondary sources (books and
periodical articles). Such study is largely concerned with the world of ideas,
whether creative, historical, or theoretical. Your writing will likely have the
character described below.
Humanities study aims to understand more deeply
some aspect of human experience and humanity’s place in the world, whether that
aspect of experience relates to the artistic and imaginative, the historical,
the spiritual, the linguistic, or the world of ethics. As a result, writing in
the humanities tends to be thesis-driven, focused on a central idea that is
explored through coherent analysis and argument.
In humanities courses, you will likely write
essays and research papers of this sort: interpretive analyses and arguments on
a specific topic, theoretical studies of key concepts in the discipline, and
book reviews or broader bibliographic surveys. Here are typical forms:
• Analysis of a Text or Art Work: Such a study closely examines a
specific work in order to understand more fully what it means, how it
communicates, and so on.
• A Review of the Literature on a Topic: This form of research
writing identifies and synthesizes the studies that have been published on a
specific issue or question.
• A Book, Film, Music, or Performance Review: Applying general
criteria for excellence, reviews evaluate the quality, impact, strengths, and
weaknesses of a specific text or art work.
Examples: “Latin American Music: A Diverse and
Unifying Force” (page 206), “Wikipedia and the Meaning of Truth” (page 244),
“Ah, the Power of Women” (page 283).
As the forms of writing above suggest, the
humanities involve the careful “reading” of primary texts, artifacts, and
events. In addition, humanities projects involve a careful investigation of
past scholarship on a topic so that the writer can add his or her voice to the
ongoing discussion or dialogue. With their focus on “reading,” the humanities
value skills of interpretation—sensitivity to the primary text, thoughtful use
of evidence from the text, attention to the textual context, awareness of
theoretical frameworks for understanding texts, insightful theses about texts,
and the rhetorical skills involved in analysis and argument. In such research,
the following resources maybe especially helpful:
• “Analyzing Texts, Documents, Records, and Artifacts” (pages
432-433)
