IN THIS CHAPTER
Summary: Learn how to write a short history essay of high quality in response to the thematic essay questions.
Key Ideas
• The thematic essay questions test your ability to use your knowledge of European history to make a historical argument.
• Choose the two questions (one from each group) based on your ability to make and support an argument.
• Apply the five-step process to writing a short history essay of high quality to the thematic essay questions.
Introduction
The thematic essay questions test your ability to use your knowledge of European history to create a historical argument. The keys to success are choosing properly the questions you will answer and following the five steps to a short history essay of high quality.
Characteristics of the Thematic Essay Questions
You are allowed to read the thematic essay questions during the 15 minute reading time, but there are 10—12 documents to read for the DBQ, so you will probably not be able to do anything more than glance at the thematic questions. That means that you will have 35 minutes to choose your questions, compose your answers, and write your essays. The good news is that both the authors and the readers of the exam know that you only have 35 minutes and they adjust their expectations accordingly.
The two thematic essays together contribute only 55 percent of the free-response score (the DBQ essay by itself is worth 45 percent of the free-response score), so do not rush through the DBQ to get to the thematic essays. It is also important that you divide your time roughly equally between the two thematic essay questions; a few additional lines on one of the essays will not add much to your score, but an essay that is too short will hurt your score.
Like those for the DBQ, the directions for the thematic essay questions are straightforward and instructive:
Directions: You are to answer TWO questions, one from each group of three questions below. Make your selections carefully, choosing the questions that you are best prepared to answer thoroughly in the limited time permitted. You should spend five minutes organizing or outlining your answer. In writing your essays, use specific examples to support your answer.
The instructions then conclude by telling you where in the test booklet to write your answers and to remember to indicate in the appropriate place which questions you have chosen. Notice that the directions can be summarized in two crucial directives: Choose well and write a short history essay of high quality.
The key to choosing properly is to understand that you are not looking for the “easiest” questions to answer; each of the questions you encounter on the exam will take an equal amount of knowledge and effort. The key (as the directions indicate) is to recognize the questions for which you are best prepared to respond. Thinking about the five-step process to writing a short history essay of high quality, that means that you should look at each question and ask yourself: “To which of these can I quickly write a clear thesis and three topic sentences that I can illustrate and support with several specific examples?”
Applying the Principles of the Quality History Essay to the Thematic Essay Questions
Once you have chosen your question, simply follow the five-step formula to constructing a short history essay of high quality:
Step 1: Find the action words in the question and determine what it wants you to do.
Step 2: Compose a thesis that responds to the question and gives you something specific to support and illustrate.
Step 3: Compose your topic sentences and make sure that they add up logically to your thesis.
Step 4: Support and illustrate your thesis with specific examples.
Step 5: If you have time, compose a one-paragraph conclusion that restates your thesis.
And remember these writing guidelines:
• Avoid long sentences with multiple clauses. Your goal is to write the clearest sentence possible; most often the clearest sentence is a relatively short sentence.
• Do not get caught up in digressions. No matter how fascinating or insightful you find some idea or fact, if it does not directly support or illustrate your thesis, do not put it in.
• Skip the mystery. Do not ask a lot of rhetorical questions and do not go for a surprise ending. The readers are looking for your thesis, your argument, and your evidence; give it to them in a clear, straightforward manner.
Now, review the Suggestions and Possible Outline of a Response to the Thematic Essay Questions Exercise in Chapter 3 and notice how it was produced by following the five steps to outlining a quality history essay.
Scoring of the Thematic Essays
Like the DBQs, the thematic essays are scored on a point system but, again, there are no tricks to the scoring and that best way to get the highest score is to simply write a short history essay of high quality. If your essay answers the question with a clear thesis, and develops and supports your thesis with paragraphs made up of clear topic sentences and specific examples, you will get the maximum amount of points.