selection of primary source
due: 10 September

From the list provided at the end of the syllabus, choose three primary sources you would be willing to work on for your anthology project. (Click here to view that list.)
       On the due date, you should come to class with a ranked list of those three primary sources typed on a piece of paper. Remember to put your name on that list. I will assign every student as high-ranking a choice as possible.
      Criteria for grading this assignment: no criteria; just turn this in on time.

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I cannot stress this enough: As soon as you know your primary source assignment, order your book through interlibrary loan (if necessary). You should probably put a rush order on the interlibrary loan request.
       Once you have your book, read, or at least skim, the entire text. Find 20-25 pages of that text that best meet the following two criteria (in order of importance): [1] clearly address an issue in gender and science, and [2] make interesting reading.
       You may find that the best 20-25 pages are not consecutive, and that you would like to piece together pages from several places in the book. This is fine. Just make sure that a reader can still follow the flow of the text. If not, you will need to write short explanatory paragraphs that can be inserted where the cuts were made. Attach these paragraphs to the photocopied text and mark those places in the main text where your explanatory paragraphs will go.
       In any case, photocopy the pages you wish to include, neatly marking out any paragraphs that you do not wish to include in the excerpt.
       To the front of these photocopied pages, attach a half-page explanation of why you chose this particular material from the primary source. Your explanation must be rooted in knowledge about the author and what aspects of this person’s work have come to matter historically. (For example, if you read in a biographical entry on the author that a particular argument of hers became famous, the selection(s) you make from the primary source should include that argument.)
       If the book includes any images that you think should be included in the anthology, photocopy those as well and attach them to the end of your 20-25 page selection.
       Staple all your pages together and hand them in on the due date above.
      Criteria for grading this assignment: intelligence and appropriateness of editing choices (is this really the most exciting and important part of this book? does your excerpt clearly relate to gender and science? does the excerpt make sense on its own?); grounding of your selection in knowledge about the author and her/his historical importance; legibility of copies.

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Write a 2-3 page introduction that prepares the anthology reader for the main text they are about to read. (Your introduction may be no longer than 4 pages.)
       When writing this introduction, think to yourself: what do I need to tell the reader about this text and its author so that the reader is equipped to understand them? Your introduction should include at least the following: basic biographical information about the author of the piece; discussion of the significance of the author and his/her work (and especially this text); some historical context for the text (what was happening in this time period that helps us understand the text more clearly); how the text you provide fits into the larger whole of the book you have excerpted it from.
       List the sources that you used to write your introduction at the end in bibliographic form:

• For books: Author last name, author first name. Title. Place: Publisher, Year.
• For articles: Author last name, author first name. “Article Title.” Journal Title Volume # (Year): Pages.

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Provide a list of about 4-7 articles and/or books that a reader of this anthology might refer to for more information about the author of your main text, the subjects the main text discusses, background information, etc. Many, if not all, of the sources you list in this bibliography will be ones you used in the research for writing your introduction.
       Follow standard bibliographic form (see above).
       With some of the sources you include in your bibliography, the book/article title alone may not make it immediately clear to a reader what the source is about. For those sources, include a brief note after the bibliographic reference explaining what the source is about and what information it provides about the author/subject of your text. This shouldn’t take more than a couple of brief sentences.
      Criteria for grading this assignment: providing readings that help the reader follow up on a variety of aspects of your primary source selection; scholarly quality of readings suggested (e.g., no internet sources); clear explanations of those readings that require it.

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Listed below are (in order) what you should include in your anthology project draft. Bring TWO copies of your draft, one for me and one for another student in the class. (Also, keep a copy for yourself, on the very off-chance that the copy you bring to class gets lost.)
       Your draft should indicate that you have dealt with the comments I have made on previous versions of the introduction, main text, and bibliography of further readings. You will also need to have added any necessary footnotes to the main text. (See note under “3. revised bibliography of further readings” below.)
      Criteria for grading this assignment: appropriate use and quality of footnotes (when necessary); your serious attention to my comments on earlier drafts; whole document (introduction, excerpt, explanatory footnotes, bibliography) makes sense as a unit when read from beginning to end.

What you should hand in on 12 November: 2 copies of:

1. revised introduction
2. main text

Include the excerpts from the text you have chosen. (Photocopies are fine.) If you think any explanatory footnotes are necessary, hand-write a footnote number in the text itself, and include a typed page at the end with the footnotes.

On some of your bibliographies, I have put asterisks next to one or more of the sources you’ve listed. Those that have asterisks are sources that I think might require some explanation. (For example, it’s not immediately clear to the reader what the book or article is about, or how it relates to the text you’ve excerpted.) In the version of your bibliography that you hand in with the draft, after each source that I’ve marked with an asterisk include a brief note in explaining what the source is about and how it provides information about the author/subject of your text. This shouldn’t take more than a couple of brief sentences.

I want to see what you have done to respond to my comments on previous drafts.

Write a constructive, careful critique (about 2 pages) of another student’s draft. Bring two copies of your critique: one for me and one for the student whose draft you read.

• Read the entire draft, including the introduction, the excerpt itself, and look over the bibliography of further readings.

• Ask yourself the following questions as you read (and keep notes):
• Is the student’s writing clear in both content and form (grammar, spelling, etc.)?
• Does the introduction give you appropriate preparation for the excerpt that follows, and does it otherwise provide the kind of information you would want to know as a reader?
• Do the excerpts stand alone as a coherent document? In other words, does the editing of this text make sense?
• Do the footnotes (if any) make sense? Are there enough footnotes provided to make the main text clear?
• Do the readings listed in the bibliography of further readings seem appropriate and adequate?

• In the form of a letter to your fellow student, write out your comments on the above questions (or any others you think are appropriate). Be sure to include suggestions as to how the student might improve their anthology project to meet your criticisms. (There is no page requirement, but you should probably write about two pages.)

• And though I doubt I need to tell you all this, remember to write your critiques constructively.
• Offer suggestions for improvement rather than just pointing out flaws.
• Criticize the writing, not the author.
• Remember that you do your fellow student no favors if you offer her/him no criticisms at all.

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Turn in a cleaned-up, revised version of your full anthology project, having taken account of my and the other student’s comments. If there are any major comments that you have chosen to ignore, attach a brief explanation of why you decided to do this.
      You should also attach the following: your graded draft and the student critique of that draft.
      Please also send your final introduction and bibliography of further readings to me as an e-mail attachment (only use this method if you use Microsoft Word). If you do not use Word, please turn in with your final project a disk containing these files saved in a convertible format. I will return the disk to you by campus mail.
      Criteria for grading this assignment: all the criteria above + your serious engagement with my comments on final draft and your classmate’s critique.

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