How to Write a BA Thesis On Writing, Editing, and Publishing A Poet’s Guide to Poetry Jacques Barzun Mary Kinzie Tricks of the Trade Doing Honest Work in College Howard S. Becker Charles Lipson Writing for Social Scientists The Chicago Guide to Writing about Howard S. Becker Numbers Jane E. Miller The Craft of Translation John Biguenet and Rainer Schulte, Mapping It Out editors Mark Monmonier The Craft of Research The Chicago Guide to Wayne C. Booth, Communicating Science Gregory G. Colomb, and Scott L. Montgomery Joseph M. Williams Indexing Books Glossary of Typesetting Terms Nancy C. Mulvany Richard Eckersley, Getting into Print Richard Angstadt, Walter W. Powell Charles M. Ellerston, Richard Hendel, A Manual for Writers of Term Papers, Naomi B. Pascal, and Theses, and Dissertations Anita Walker Scott Kate L. Turabian Writing Ethnographic Fieldnotes Tales of the Field Robert M. Emerson, Rachel I. Fretz, John Van Maanen and Linda L. Shaw Style Legal Writing in Plain English Joseph M. Williams Bryan A. Garner A Handbook of Biological Illustration From Dissertation to Book Frances W. Zweifel William Germano Getting It Published William Germano How to Write a BA Thesis a practical guide from your first ideas to your finished paper Charles Lipson The University of Chicago Press chicago & london Charles Lipson The University of Chicago Press, Chicago 60637 The University of Chicago Press, Ltd., London is professor and © 2005 by Charles Lipson All rights reserved. Published 2005 director of Printed in the United States of America undergraduate 14 13 12 11 10 09 08 07 06 05 1 2 3 4 5 studies in political ISBN: 0-226-48125-5 (cloth) ISBN: 0-226-48126-3 (paper) science at the University of Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Chicago. Lipson, Charles. How to write a BA thesis : a practical guide from your first ideas to your finished paper / Charles Lipson. p. cm. — (Chicago guides to writing, editing, and publishing) Includes bibliographic references and index. ISBN 0-226-48125-5 (cloth : alk. paper) — ISBN 0-226-48126-3 (pbk. : alk. paper) 1. Dissertations, Academic—Authorship. 2. Academic writing. I. Title. II. Series. LB2639.L54 2005 808⬘.042—dc22 2004026816 o The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of the American National Standard for Information Sciences—Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ansi z39.48-1992. To my sons, Michael and Jonathan contents i. getting started How to Read This Book 3 1 Introduction 9 2 Useful Nuts and Bolts 12 ii. framing your topic 3 Taking Effective Notes and Avoiding Plagiarism 37 4 Refining Your Topic, Writing a Proposal, and Beginning Research 66 iii. conducting your research 5 What Is Good Thesis Research? 89 6 Using Case Studies Effectively 99 7 Every Thesis Should Have a Thesis 110 iv. writing your best 8 Planning and Prewriting: How Do They Help Your Thesis? 123 9 Writing Your Best 143 10 Effective Openings, Smooth Transitions, and Strong Closings 159 11 Good Editing Makes Good Writing 177 12 Presenting Information Visually 192 v. working your best 13 Working Efficiently 233 14 Overcoming Problems 244 vi. scheduling and completing your thesis 15 Thesis Time Schedule 267 16 Tips and Reminders 275 17 Frequently Asked Questions 282 18 What to Do When You’re All Done 292 vii. dealing with special requirements 19 Thesis Defense and Second Readers: Questions and Answers 301 20 A One-Semester Thesis 304 viii. citing your sources and getting more advice Appendix 1: Best Sources for More Help 311 Appendix 2: Footnotes 101 317 Appendix 3: Advice for New Faculty Advisers 390 Acknowledgments 395 Index 397 i Getting Started