English 3450a: What I did/did not know about Anglo-Saxon England
Contents
Instructions
Read Blair’s Anglo-Saxon England, A Very Short Introduction and write a brief essay discussing some aspect of Anglo-Saxon England that intrigues you. This might involve
- something that you already knew something about but that Blair’s account suggests new ideas or approaches
- something you did not know, but found interesting
- something you wish Blair had covered but did not.
Purpose
The goal of this project is to help you begin to refine your interests in the period with an eye towards your final research project. The best work would therefore most likely involve some additional preliminary secondary research on the topic filling in Blair’s account, looking for more information, or countering opinions. At this stage, the work need not (probably should not) be exhaustive. All you need really is to identify an area that might be interesting to look at further.
Rubric
This is a formative exercise and hence will not count again directly against your final grade (unless of course it is the best grade in the category). It is being assigned to help you begin to organise your interests in advance of beginning your final project.
I will be assigning you a grade so that you can use this to assess your own progress. For this project, I will be following my standard essay rubric, though with less emphasis on argument and thesis and more on evidence of engagement and problem definition. I will also be taking into account the preliminary and slightly informal nature of the assignment.
Due date and Length.
- Due: See syllabus for date and method of submission.
- Length: Minimum 2-3pp (i.e. 600-900 words); maximum: 5-6pp (i.e. 1500-1800 words). All page limits are double-spaced.
- Presentation: Please follow my standard style sheet.
