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notices

syllabus

bibliography

study questions

writing guides

topics for the papers

NOTICES

SYLLABUS

Thomas L. Hankins, 104 Smith

Office hours:

	Tues. 9:30-10:30

E-mail: hankins@u.washington.edu
	Our subject will be the Scientific Revolution of the 17th and 
18th centuries with special attention to the life and  work of Isaac 
Newton. We will begin by comparing different historiographical 
approaches to the Scientific Revolution and will see how they provide 
insights into Newton's achievements. This is not a thorough-going 
treatment of the historical literature on Newton's work and 
influence. Rather, here we plan to use this topic to illuminate some 
of the changes in method and approach used by working historians of 
science over this century, with an emphasis on recent work.  We will 
also spend some time in close reading of the original texts.

	This seminar is required for the History of Philosophy and 
Science major. Other students may enroll, but majors will have 
priority. There are no prerequisites, although some background in 
science or the history of science will be helpful.

Class Assignments and Grading:

	Students will read extensively and discuss their reading in 
class. They will write a book report and a substantial research 
paper.

Grading Percentages:

Class participation                        	35%

Book review                      		25%

Research paper                       	40%

Required Reading:

Betty Jo Teeter Dobbs.  Newton and the Culture of Newtonianism.

Richard S. Westfall.  The Life of Isaac Newton.

Steven Shapin.  Leviathan and the Air-Pump.
>br>Mario Biagioli.  Galileo, Courtier.

Carolyn Merchant.  The Death of Nature.

Seminar Schedule:
March 26	The Scientific Revolution- Organizational Meeting

April 2	Gender and Science
			Carolyn Merchant. The Death of Nature.
 
April 9	The Occult Sciences

			Keith Hutchison, "What Happened to Occult Qualities in the 
Scientific Revolution?"

			William Ashworth, "Natural History and the Emblematic World View."

			Thomas Hankins, "Athanasius Kircher and the Sunflower Clock"

April 16	BOOK REVIEW DUE The Social Construction of Science

			Steven Shapin.  Leviathan and the Air-Pump.
			(Your book review is on Leviathan and the Air Pump.)

April 23      Galileo on Falling Bodies -- reading the texts

			Selections from the Dialogue and the Discourses 

			Alexandre Koyre, "Galileo and the Scientific Revolution of the 
Seventeenth Century" (1943).

			Alexandre Koyre. "An Experiment in Measurement" (1953).

			Thomas B. Settle, "An Experiment in the History of Science" (1961).
April 30	Patronage and Organization 
 
			Biagioli, Galileo, Courtier
			
May 7	Isaac Newton as seen by Richard Westfall

			 Westfall.  The Life of Isaac Newton.

May 14	Newton on Force, Space, and Motion-- reading the texts

			Selections from the Principia. 

			Boris Hessen, "The Social and Economic Roots of Newton's Principia" (1931).

			I. B. Cohen, Birth of a New Physics.

May 21	Isaac Newton as seen by Dobbs and Jacob

			Betty Jo Teeter Dobbs.  Newton and the Culture of Newtonianism.

			Newton, Opticks.
			
May 29	RESEARCH PAPER DUE 

(We will give you a list of suggested topics. You can write on one of 
the suggested topics, or you can write on a topic of your choosing as long as you clear it with the instructor.)

BIBLIOGRAPHY

STUDY QUESTIONS

WRITING GUIDES

Guidelines for Writing a Book Review

When you have been assigned to write a book review, also called a critical review essay, you will find it helpful to recall the words of William of Baskerville in Umberto Eco's The Name of the Rose: "Books are not made to be believed, but to be subjected to inquiry." This is what distinguishes a book review from a book report: the purpose of a review is not simply to report on the contents of a book (although this will comprise a small part of the review), but rather to evaluate it and provide a critical commentary on its contents.

Format of the Book Review

The format of a review is generally as follows, although you should always consult your professor of Teaching Assistant about any specific requirements.

1. Introduction: Identify the book you are going to review. The author, title, date and place of publication may be placed at the beginning of the essay in the form of a bibliographic citation. Then state what the author's goal was in writing the book.Why did the author write on this specific subject? What contribution to our understanding of history did the author intend to make?

2. Brief Summary: In the main body of the review, you should begin by briefly describing the content and organization of the book, along with the most important evidence used. Do not get bogged down in details here; this section is only intended to prepare the reader for the critical assessment to follow.

3. Critical Assessment: Evaluate the book's contribution to our understanding of history. There are several things you should look for:
a) Identify the author's central argument, or thesis. The thesis is not the topic of the book but the specific argument that the author has made about her or his subject. Sometimes, the author states the thesis in the book's introduction, sometimes in the conclusion. Feel free to read these sections of the book first to determine the author's main argument. Knowing the main argument will help guide you through the rest of the book. Finding the central argument or arguments can be like finding the forest in the trees: it requires you to step back from the mass of information to identify larger themes. Sometimes a book, such as a general historical survey, lacks an explicit argument or thesis.
b) Identify the author's perspective, point of view, or purpose. This can be approached in a number of different ways. Ask yourself whether the author has a particular emphasis, such as economic, social or intellectual history. Is the book informed by a religous or political ideology? If the book describes a conflict, does the author, either explicitly or subtly, favor one side over the other? Does the author state the purpose of the book in the introduction or conclusion?
c) Look at the author's evidence: what sources did he or she use? A history of European witch trials based only Inquisition records would be one sided. This does not mean that any conclusions from such evidence would be invalid, but the author should demonstrate an awareness of any limitations imposed by the sources used.

4. Conclusion: Assess the organization and style of the book. Is it well-organized and clearly written? Does the style or the content of the book recommend it to a specific readership? Offer a final evaluation of the book: How valuable is it? How important is it to read this book?

On Writing Research Papers

"What is my subject?" is probably the first question which a student must consider. Unfortunately, when working on an essay, this is rarely the first question that one can answer. Certainly, one should begin with a general theme for the research paper perhaps "Newton's Physics" or "The Chemical Revolution." The key is to find a narrow topic, which will permit a detailed discussion within the span of the essay. A subject such as "Galileo's Life and Work," for example, is probably too complex to treat adequately in a thick volume, let alone a term paper. "Galileo's Concept of Inertia" or, better yet, "The Role of Experiment in the Formulation of Galileo's Concept of Inertia" present more reasonable titles.

"How does one arrive at such a precise subject?" The actual process which a person might follow in order to find a topic is too circuitous to schematize. Luck, flashes of brilliance, hours of concentrated thinking, dream visions, and mystical experiences all entail potential steps in the psychology of writing. Superficially, however, one must do some reading. The library catalogue, textbook bibliographies, and suggestions from instructors provide an initial pool of secondary sources. You will probably want to start with a few of these, as a stimulus for formulating questions and as a guide to reading primary sources. When reading, it is crucial to take notes (some people find note cards indispensable) and to read critically.

The ability to "read critically" is hard to define and even harder to learn. Ask questions while reading: "What is the author trying to show?", "Does this make sense?" and "Does the author present compelling evidence for this argument?" The puzzling, confusing, and intriguing issues which arise from your reading may help you to find a topic. The contemporary historian, Robert Darnton, advocates this kind of hungry and inquisitive stance while reading documents. He claims that the strangeness and distance which we might feel when reading a source may lead us toward understanding.

The perception of that distance may serve as the starting point of an investigation, for anthropologists have found that the best points of entry in an attempt to penetrate an alien culture can be those where it seems to be most opaque. When you realize that you are not getting something, a joke, a proverb, a ceremony, that is particularly meaningful to the native, you can see where to grasp a foreign system of meaning in order to unravel it.

Darnton's discussion is couched in anthropological terms; yet, he provides a striking suggestion. This approach offers the challenge of reading documents through the eyes and with the conceptual framework of their authors (Darnton's "alien culture") and to come to terms with how certain individuals looked at the natural world in the seventeenth century, for example, rather than the way we do today. The goal of this reading and questioning and puzzling is to find an original theme for discussion. It is almost impossible to write an essay on a subject which nobody has ever considered, but one should strive to offer a new way of looking at even the most traditional topics. This can involve an analysis and discussion of the claims of the historians you read, as well as a fresh look at primary sources. Above all, try to put yourself into your paper. Make certain that its pages reveal your own imaginative survey of the subject. Do not be content with merely recording the words of historians who have preceded you. Think through their explanations, challenge them, transform them, make them your own. The art of composition defies simple description. Any writer will benefit from the elegant, witty and concise treatment of the matter in The Elements of Style, by William Strunk and E. B. White. Another classic study is A Dictionary of Modern Usage, by H. W. Fowler.

History Short Essay Rubric

As with most disciplines, History has certain conventions and demands that it imposes on students. The most common assignment to students in introductory History courses is the short essay. This type of assignment usually demands that students understand a historical source in its historical context. This type of writing resembles, but is distinctly different, from the writing called for in other related disciplines. To help you understand the basic requirements of these assignments, the History Writing Center has prepared this short rubric. Thesis: The essay must propose and prove an arguable point or interpretation. A thesis is not a repetition of the topic or question assigned, but is a positive and definite statement which one can argue both for and against. The quality of the thesis will affect the overall impact of an essay. You should develop a thesis which answers an important question about the characterization or interpretation of a period, or that clarifies or deepens our understanding of an important piece of evidence. Evidence: You must supply evidence in support of your thesis. Remember, though, that evidence will not stand alone as support for one's thesis. Evidence must be introduced and explained, and should be matched in the paper with a balance of analytic discussion. Simply pointing out a fact does not tell the reader what its significance is. Direct quotations are nice, but they should be used sparingly. When using a direct quotation, special attention must be given to analyze its relevance to your the thesis. Citations: You must cite the source of any idea, interpretation, or fact used in your work. Structure and Style: You will be evaluated on the quality of your writing. The essay should have an introduction which delineates the subject and thesis, a main body of paragraphs which flow well, and a conclusion which reaffirms the main point. The more clearly and eloquently you express your main point, the easier it will be to convince the reader of your point of view. Clarity is paramount. Your reader must be able to follow you through each step of your logic to understand what you are trying to prove. Jumping from one point to another without discussing how they are related will disorient the reader. Also, be careful with historical narrative. Holding back details for more dramatic impact will probably dilute the clarity and force of your thesis. You should also restrict historical background material to what is necessary to understand your thesis. Anything else will needlessly bore the reader.

Thesis guidelines

The thesis of an essay is the main historical point that its writer is trying to prove. A history essay can be no better than its thesis. If the argument that the writer is making is ill-reasoned, historically inaccurate, or simply unclear, no amount of literary finesse can save it. The examples below show how one can develop a thesis, from an initial idea to a full historical argument. Following the examples are some guidelines on how to most clearly state a thesis in an essay. Assignment: How and why did Anne Hutchinson pose a threat to the established structures of power and authority in Puritan Massachusetts? Not a thesis: In this paper I will discuss how Anne Hutchinson posed a threat to the established structures of power and authority in Puritan Massachusetts. Also not a thesis: Anne Hutchinson posed a threat to the Puritan leadership in the Massachusetts colony. These will not work because a thesis is not merely a general subject for a paper or a restatement of the question, but should instead be a specific point that one could either argue for or against. A rough draft thesis: Anne Hutchinson posed a threat to the power and authority of the Puritan leadership because she was a woman, a popular preacher, and because of her religious convictions. A second draft thesis: The leaders of the Puritan community in Massachusetts not only felt uneasy about Anne Hutchinson's role as a public figure, but were further threatened by her belief that individuals could communicate directly with God. This is more specific than any of the attempts above, but it still lacks analysis. The writer needs to delve beneath the facts of this case and ask "why?" A good thesis: While many Puritan leaders were uneasy about the involvement of women outside the traditional female sphere, Anne Hutchinson's preaching that every individual had the ability to communicate directly with God posed a threat to the ecclesiastical hierarchy in Massachusetts which based its power and authority on its role as mediator between the congregation. This is a workable thesis because it offers an explanation for how events came to pass as they did. It would be easy enough to show that people were threatened by Anne Hutchison. Your task as an historian is to find out how and why that was so. Thesis Statements A short essay should contain a thesis statement in its first paragraph. The thesis statement lets the reader know, as soon as possible, what argument the paper will make. A thesis statement may require more than one sentence to make. In deciding where to place the thesis statement and how to introduce it, consider what a typical UW student would need to know to understand your thesis. A good thesis statement will probably have these characteristics:

It is clearly and forcefully supported by the rest of the paper, and all of the evidence pertains to it.

It is precise, and can be understood on its own, before one has read the essay.

It is precise, and not so general and vague that it does not express an arguable position.

Topics for the Paper

HIST 390 - Paper Topics - Spring 2001

Here are some suggested topics for you research papers.  We will add 
more topics as we think of them.

1. The Leibniz-Clarke Correspondence


-Samuel Clarke was a supporter of Newton and he argued for Newton's
natural philosophy in an exchange of letters with Leibniz.  Newton was
probably telling Clarke what to write.

2. Newton's experimentum crucis


-In his first optical paper of 1672 Newton described a "crucial
experiment" that confirmed his theory of light, but nobody on the
Continent could duplicate the experiment!

3. Newton's Arianism


-Newton did not believe in the Trinity, which would have made him a
heretic if others had known about it.  He managed to stay out of trouble
(barely), but his friends did not.  Could his religious beliefs have
affected his natural philosophy?

4. Galileo and Newton on Motion 


-Newton finished what Galileo began, but he did not fully accept
Galilean relativity and he reintroduced the forces that Galileo and
Descartes had tried to keep out of mechanics.

5. Galileo and the Church


-Pope John Paul recently apologized to Galileo (a bit late to help
Galileo), but what did he apologize for?  Had Urban VIII had any
alternative when he sent Galileo before the Holy Office? 

6. Galileo and the Arsenal at Venice


-Galileo built many instruments (mathematical "compass," telescope, 
"pulsilogia," thermometer, microscope?, barometer?).  The Arsenal at 
Venice, which he praised in the opening of his Discourses on Two New 
Sciences, was probably the world's largest engineering organization.  
What role did technology play in Galileo's science?

7. Newton and the Whig alliance


-At Trinity College Newton took a leading role in opposing the 
Catholic policies of James II.  He also served as a member of Parliament.  
Was Newtonian science "Whig" science?