Sample Papers Provided by Writing Center Tutors
Ethnography Sample
“This is a sample ethnography (new tab) for ANTH 195: Doing Anthropology with Professor Luis Vivanco. It received an A. Throughout the course of the semester I performed field research on campus to see how students engaged with reusable water bottles in order to fully understand the materiality of my proposed object (the reusable water bottle). I assert that the value instilled by college students in the reusable water bottle is twofold: it is both a functional tool for ensuring hydration as well as a platform for personality representation.
Ethnography is qualitative research that provides a detailed, in-depth description of everyday life and practice within a certain community or culture. The ethnographer must go beyond reporting events to interpret what they mean for the community being studied. Essentially, it’s looking at the world around you to interpret larger meanings.
I have annotated this paper to illustrate key features of ethnographic writing, and anthropological papers more broadly. The structure of anthropological reports, especially ethnographies, is malleable to the writer’s needs; there is no formulaic approach. It just has to be sensible, have assertions supported by academic quotations or field data, and make a clear point. I included bolded headers for each section to organize my writing-this is not necessary in the field, but an option.”
-Erin Lucey, UVM Writing Center Tutor
Service Learning Sample Outline
“Some anthropology classes (as well as classes in other disciplines) are offered as service learning classes. This means that in addition to normal classwork there is a service-learning component, which most often involves volunteering in your community. Service learning is extremely helpful in that it allows you to connect relevant readings and discussions in the classroom to social spheres in your own community or world. These classes are often writing intensive and may require you to keep a journal and write, reflections, essays and papers which integrate and connect class readings, class discussions, outside scholarly resources, past experiences and your service learning experience.
I took a service learning class for which I worked with a group of four other people throughout the entire semester. As a group we would plan activities and complete our service learning hours together. During the semester I completed a lot of individual writing pieces, but for the final project we were assigned a large group paper. As a group we had to come up with a research question and then form a thesis statement and argument in response to the question, both of which had to connect to our service learning and class material. Because it was a fairly long paper that five different people were working on, our professor required us to complete and submit an argument-based outline (new tab). This outline laid the foundation for the paper, helped the group stay organized and made it easier to divide up the work. While not all professors will require you to write and turn in an outline, they are extremely helpful. Professors are more likely to require you to hand in an outline if it is a group project.”
-Halle Apelgren, UVM Writing Center Tutor
Mock Thesis Proposal
“This mock thesis proposal (new tab) was written for ANTH 288: Anthropology of Global Health with Professor Jeanne Shea. The course focused on how to write a proposal in preparation for students to complete a senior thesis. While I do not know if I will use this specific area of study as my actual thesis (and thus if the proposal will come into play), this proposal includes all the elements of a thesis proposal, as defined in this class. This proposal received an A. The proposal I wrote is about Alzheimer’s care in Vermont, focused on how to provide better resources for the informal caregivers (usually family members) of individuals who have dementia or Alzheimer’s. Besides a mock interview, none of the researching has been conducted yet, as is the case in a proposal. This writing, then, utilizes language such as “I will” and “I plan to.” A timeline of completing the proposal is also included at the end. For more information on proposal writing, refer to the section “Proposal Writing” under the “Getting Started” tab, and as always, be sure to check in with your Professor or thesis advisor if you have specific questions about an assignment.”
-Genevieve Winn, UVM Writing Center Tutor