This assignment is designed to allow the student to identify and research a topic of the student’s choice in the history of madness. The student must demonstrate the ability to create an historical argument and to use both primary and secondary material in a 3000- to 4000-word essay. This should be narrow enough to allow you to go into depth on a single subject, but it should also allow you to link the subject to larger issues. There is no need to work with a topic we have discussed in class (I will attached the class syllabus though to give an idea of the topics covered) ; so long as the topic is sufficiently related to the field of history of madness, it will be fine (unless there are no sources on the topic). You have complete freedom to work with relevant sources from any time or place (though I should warn you that choosing a very recent topic can make it difficult to think historically about it; you are welcome to pick a near-contemporary topic but be sure to make it a history essay, not a scientific literature review). There is not a specific number of sources that should be used, but you will need to demonstrate that you have read the most important relevant literature. Part of the assignment is to create an historical argument about the subject, based on what you have researched. It might be easiest to phrase it as a question, for example, ‘How did the moral reformers transform the treatment of the insane?’ Historians tend to be fascinated with change over time, so you could look for new treatments or ideas and compare them with what came before. I am not expecting you to create a radically new thesis, just something that reflects a well-researched understanding of the subject.
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