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ART HISTORY 408: ART IN ITALY, 1850-2007

PRÉCIS/50-WORD ASSIGNMENTS

Précis assignments: written or typed on a 5 x 7" card or piece of paper.
The point of the exercise is to engage you directly in critical writing as you think large and write small. That is, the assignment will help you make larger sense out of your readings as you clarify and become succinct in your summary. In this instance, less is more. These and other short essays will permit me to get to know you better, and permit you to improve your writing and to shine if you wish to do so. They will be graded simply with a ü, +, or -.
At the beginning, before you start your précis, give full reference to the piece on which you write in proper form, with full name of author, title of article in quotes, underlined or italicized title of journal, volume & number, (month year): pp.
Condense the ideas and contributions of this piece. Don't waste time saying "she said this," "I think that," "according to this scholar": get to the pith of the argument and relate what is said in your own words as if you were writing this selection (you should not use quotes unless one short, key phrase is a main point). Use phrases you understand and can defend, and don't engage in vague language even if the author does. You are not to report on this piece, but to analyze another writer's ideas in a way that will help you think, take notes, and write as a student and scholar.
A grammar book will give you further directions and examples of good and poor précis. To quote from John E. Warriner and Francis Griffith, English Grammar and Composition, rev. ed., New York: Harcourt, Brace & World, Inc., 1965, pp. 413-414:
  1. A précis is a short summary....
  2. A précis gives only the "heart" of a passage. It omits repetitions and such details as examples, illustrations, and adjectives unless they are of unusual importance.
  3. A précis is written entirely in the words of the person writing it, not in the words of the original selection. Avoid the temptation to lift long phrases and whole sentences from the original.
  4. A précis is written from the point of view of the author whose work is being summarized. Do not begin with such expressions as "This author says" or "the paragraph means." Begin as though you were summarizing your own writing.
The 50-Word Assignment
I will sometimes ask you to adopt the 50-word single-sentence format for précis and other assignments. For instructions and examples of good 50-word sentences see the .pdf files on the website of Prof. Charles Cohen in the UW History Department here and here.