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History

Developing a Topic

Just as there are many possible topics in history, there are many places to get ideas:

Doing research in history can feel like falling down a rabbit hole. One question might lead you to a source that raises more questions and more sources. This is perfectly normal! If you find yourself falling too far down the rabbit hole, here are some questions that can help you re-focus your research question:

  • What gaps do you see in the research? 
  • Can the question be narrowed down to a specific group of people?
  • Can you find enough material (primary and secondary sources) to support your argument?

Potential Sources

Book Reviews

Book reviews can be found using OneSearch or individual article databases. OneSearch and some article databases provide a limiter for reviews. Alternately, you can add AND review to your search statement. For example:

This Republic of Suffering AND review

Historiography Essays

There is no simple method to find historiographical essays. You can add AND historiography to your search in OneSearch. You may find Historiography as a subject limiter in OneSearch. Often, you will find a chapter in a book is a historiographical essay. For example:

American Revolution AND historiography

Theses and Dissertations

There are two methods to find dissertations. Use OneSearch and limit your results to dissertations. Use the Digital Dissertations database. It's best to try both. Digital copies can be requested using interlibrary loan at no extra cost to you.

Library Help

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