This is for my Hist 1306 Course, not my upper level courses. That said, this guide does show you how to write a paper, it’s just that it uses only one source.
These Are Your Instructions For Writing Your Term Paper
To write your paper, you must chose one of the primary source document readings that have been assigned for this class. You may chose a reading from any week, it doesn’t matter. I suggest you take a look at the Primary Source Document Readings Index, examine the titles and short descriptions (underneath each title, in italics), and chose one that seems interesting to you. You may also decide your wish to compare or compare and contrast two or three readings. If so, it may be best to ask my opinion first. Some readings, such as the Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. DuBois articles, are easy to compare and contrast. Others would be much, much more difficult.
In this assignment, your paper must be in argumentative, thesis essay format. That means that you are arguing a particular interpretation of the document, and bringing in evidence from the document and elsewhere to prove your argument. You must read my “Composition and Grammar Guide” on Blackboard Vista Homepage to understand this fully. The Composition and Grammar Guide will explain to you what a thesis is, how to write the introduction to a thesis paper, and how to construct the subtopic paragraphs and the conclusion in such a paper. The research guide shows more advanced research techniques, designed to find good secondary sources (books and articles by historians) on a particular subject. It is good to know this information, although you do not have to do such research for this freshman level course.
In essence, for this assignment your thesis question is this: (for the document you have chosen to discuss), what is the historical importance of this document? What does this document show us about life in the U.S. at that time? The answers to these questions will of course depend on the document you have chosen. In some, you may need to explain the argument that the document is making, with regard to some aspect of life in the United States at that particular time. In others, you must show how the document acts like a “window,” to show us a small “slice of life” with regard to some group in the United States at that time. Note that the “Questions” that precede each document are often a good guide to some of the key points of the document that you will likely want to address in your paper. However, sometimes there are simply too many questions in that list to answer all of them in a short, five page paper.
Please note the extremely important “Hist 1306 Model Term Paper,” which is on the home page of the Blackboard Vista website for this course. That is a paper originally written by one of my former students in Hist 1306, which I further improved. It is based on reading 2, “Interview of Juanita Loveless, from “Rosie the Riveter Revisited” (1942-1945), from “Week 8 Primary Source Document Readings.” As my short description in my readings index explains, “This is from an interview of a woman who worked in war-related industries during World War II.”
Read this “Hist 1306 Model Term Paper.” Note how important the introduction is. In the Introduction, the author of the paper gets directly to the point of telling the reader what this paper is about, its broader topic, the profound transformation that occurred in the U.S. in WWII, and how that particularly affected working women. The author then shows how this particular reading, an interview from a woman who worked in a war factory at that time, fits into this broader topic of women working in WWII.
The paper begins,
“After the attack of Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, the United States entered World War II and rapidly experienced profound transformation. Men were daily sent overseas to fight on the front lines. The absence of men left industrial businesses were short handed. The United States was in possible economic danger. The “Rosie the Riveter” campaign kicked off in 1941 to recruit women to join the labor force for the defense industry. Judy Loveless, in “Rosie the Riveter Revisited,” describes her personal experiences and torn thoughts during the war. Through this primary source Loveless explains the pressures to fulfill her duty as an American woman during the war. The article also details the younger generation’s changing outlook on U.S. war efforts during the war. Her 1982 interview provides insight into women’s personal and professional lives in the early 1940s.”
Now the author emphasizes what women were doing, in general, in the war. This author is trying to show how the story of this one woman is representative of millions of American women at that time. Notice also that the author had to do further research to acquire information to strengthen her argument. She obtained this information from the textbook, from Wikipedia, and from good academic websites (especially those that ended in “.gov” or “.edu”).
Here is the paper,
“Loveless was one of the six million women who were employed by factories during the war. Women were recruited to work in factories, plants, ship yards, on farms, and provided logistic support for soldiers. There was an increased amount of stress to carry out government contracts due to the unexpected shortage of man power. Desperate to fill positions and avoid a decrease in production, sex, age and race were ignored during the recruitment process. Women were encouraged to voluntarily join the industrial work force to balance the loss of male personnel. Levels of education were taken into consideration only to determine placement for available positions. Non-high school graduates were given more labor intense positions such as on the assembly line. Job ads did not stipulate pay but promised necessary training with no experience required.”
“To further support women joining the work force, the “Rosie the Riveter” campaign was created. The campaign encouraged women to carry out their patriotic duty by working in the defense industry or for the government. Posters were created with the image of the ideal working woman, described as being loyal, efficient, patriotic and pretty. One important poster was created by J. Henry Millbank entitled “We Can Do It.” The poster was a picture of pretty woman flexing her muscles and became a visual icon for this time. With the help of this campaign, from 1940 to 1944, the percentage of women working in industrial related fields increased by twenty percent.”
Now the author of the paper begins to speak specifically about the interview of this one woman. She gives the main points of the interview, being careful throughout the paper in showing us, the readers, how this one woman’s story was representative of the broader trends occurring, that affected millions of women like the interviewee.
Another Way to Look at Writing a Paper–Second Discussion of the Paper
“Loveless’ story was typical for these women. She was the daughter of a farmer who left home at the early age of seventeen. Unable to work in her hometown due to her youth, she moved to California in search of a job. Once she arrived in California, she needed little effort to get hired. Loveless explains that job recruiters approached her multiple times, each time encouraging her to visit their application office. She explained, “I was having people approach me six to ten times a day-RCA Victor wanted me to come work for them; Technicolor said they would train me.” Her first job, at Hughes Aircraft, gave her the economic freedom she desired, although it was redundant and boring.”
Notice how the author of this paper proves that what she is claiming is true, by directly quoting at times the interviewee, or putting the interviewee’s words in the author’s own words (that is called paraphrasing. It is very important that most of the time you paraphrase the information from your sources. Directly quote only when it is very necessary to show the reader exactly how the original source put the statement or idea you are describing).
Notice how clearly the author of this paper deals with the main points of the interview: why the woman (Lovelace) decided to go to work; how the government and business encouraged her to go to work; what the woman did at work; how she felt about the work; why she left work (and returned, and left again); what she thought about the war; what she learned about other types of people that she newly encountered (such as homosexuals); what other people thought about the war; what she thinks about her experiences now, decades later. Notice how the author proves each point with evidence, perhaps paraphrasing (or occasionally quoting) from the primary source, or using statistics or information gathered from other sources.
Finally, the author explains in her conclusion, once again, that the Second World War had a profound impact on America, and on American woman. She makes sure to emphasize how this interview of a former war worker illustrates the sort of new experiences and changes that so many other women were also experiencing:
Here is the conclusion of the paper,
“In conclusion, World War II had an enormous impact on American history. Through Judy Loveless’s interview, we can attempt to understand what life was like for a woman during the war. The pressures of war affected everyone during this time, but Loveless’s interview focuses on women’s roles during the war. The demand to keep production consistently high resulted in women being heavily recruited to join the defense industries. Extreme measures for that time were taken to recruit women to join the workforce. Regardless of skill or race, a woman could be hired and quickly trained to perform expected work duties. The “Rosie the Riveter” campaign contributed to these recruitment efforts, encouraging women to do their patriotic duty and support war efforts. Working in these fields consisted of intense labor, long work hours, and poor working conditions. To maintain war support in the United States, many branches of the service were created for women to join. These branches allowed women to assist in the war effort even from the home front, while men were sent overseas. These efforts to support the war would be something that all women who worked during World War II would carry with them for the rest of their lives.”
So, your paper should be written along these same lines. With my Composition and Grammar Guide, and this Model Paper, I think that you have the tools you need to write a good thesis paper!
Here is the “model” paper, which includes its outline, and an analysis of its composition.
Model Freshman Term Paper Analyzing a Primary Source
When you decide on your thesis, you must find information from your sources to support (prove the truth of) your thesis. (This is like a lawyer finding evidence to support his/her argument in court, proving his/her client is innocent of the crime). As you accumulate evidence, you will notice that there are certain basic categories of proof (lines of evidence). These are called subtopics. Then, each piece of evidence will help prove one particular subtopic. You need to separate out all of your information into these categories. You will then write a topic sentence, which clearly states each particular category (subtopic). This is followed by the evidence for that category (subtopic).
Before you start writing, you should write an outline that shows how your paper will be structured, according to the rules above. First read the paper, and try to notice its structure: introduction (includes topic and thesis); subtopics with topic sentences and evidence; conclusion.
Rosie the Riveter in World War II
After the attack of Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, the United States entered World War II and rapidly experienced a profound transformation. Men were sent overseas daily to fight on the front lines. The absence of men left industry short-handed. The United States was in possible economic danger. To solve this, the “Rosie the Riveter” was launched in 1941 to recruit women to join the labor force for the defense industry. Judy Lovelace, in “Rosie the Riveter Revisited,” describes her personal experiences and conflicting thoughts while working for the war effort. Lovelace’s interview allows us to better understand changes in women’s personal and professional lives during the war. It also shows the profound importance of women’s work toward the war effort.
Lovelace was one of the six million women employed during the war. Women were recruited to work in factories, industrial plants, ship yards, on farms, to provide logistical support for the military. There was increased stress to carry out government contracts due to the unexpected labor shortage. Sex, age and race were ignored during the recruitment process because employers were desperate to fill positions and avoid a decrease in production. Women were encouraged to voluntarily join the industrial work force. Educational level was taken into consideration to determine placement for available positions. Non-high school graduates were given more labor intense positions, such as assembly line work. Job ads did not stipulate pay but promised necessary training with no experience required.
To further support women joining the work force, the “Rosie the Riveter” campaign was created. The campaign encouraged women to carry out their patriotic duty by working in the defense industry or for the government. Posters were created with the image of the ideal working woman as loyal, efficient, patriotic and pretty. One important poster was created by J. Henry Millbank entitled “We Can Do It.” The poster was a picture of pretty woman flexing her muscles and became a visual icon for this time. With the help of this campaign, from 1940 to 1944, the percentage of women working in industrial related fields increased by twenty percent.
Lovelace’s story was typical for these women. She was the daughter of a farmer who left home at the early age of seventeen. Unable to work in her hometown due to her youth, she moved to California in search of a job. Once she arrived in California, she needed little effort to get hired. Lovelace explains that job recruiters approached her multiple times, each time encouraging her to visit their application office. She explained, “I was having people approach me six to ten times a day-RCA Victor wanted me to come work for them; Technicolor said they would train me.”
Her first job, at Hughes Aircraft, work schedules were demanding and fast paced. High productivity was expected. In addition, women still had to do housework and tend to the children after work. Due to her rigorous work schedule, Lovelace recalls being unable to personally pick up her paycheck. Becoming a factory worker meant physical labor for women at a significantly lesser pay rate than men. Women who were employed during the war were paid $23.00 per week less than men holding similar positions. Lovelace described the working conditions at her first assembly line job as noisy and hot. The noise was so intense that it would later cause women to have hearing problems.
Despite the intense labor, there were benefits to women working during the war. Joining the work force during this time allowed women to learn new skills such as riveting, machine operation, and ship maintenance. Aware that they would not have been exposed to these skills otherwise, women appreciated these opportunities. Also, keeping busy through excessive work helped women avoid focusing on the worrisome events that were taking place in the war overseas.
Lovelace also mentioned that while employed with Hughes Aircraft, she noticed a high turnover of workers, particularly men. She estimated that out of 1500 men employed in her department, there were only 34 left after six months. Men were being sent to war every day at this point. Most of the remaining men had draft deferments. Lovelace also mentioned in her interview that there was also a high turnover of female employees due to service enlistments.
As the war continued, people began to see the disheartening effects of war. Long hours working at the factories took a toll on workers and began to increase their frustration. To avoid the work force but still produce an income, people were illegally purchasing items from Japan to be sold in newly opened convenience stores. The effect of the war on the soldiers also hit home. Lovelace recalled seeing a male friend who was invalided out of the war blind at the age of 21. Some people went as far as to brag that they were able to keep their children out of the war. Workers felt that people taking these measures to avoid their military duties were not fulfilling their patriotic duty and defending the United States’ honor. Like many younger people, Loveless had no interest in the hearing the details of the war. During her interview she recalls not wanting to see any war pictures or even read the newspaper.
Quite a few people were not excited about the U.S.’ involvement in the war. Lovelace remembered hearing some people whisper that if industrial production stopped, then the war would stop. Some workers thought that eliminating production of weapons and transportation would prevent the U.S. from further participating in the war. By the last year of the war, rumors spread that General George S. Patton, who spearheaded the U.S. assault into Germany, was being held back by President Roosevelt and his top advisors, causing the war to linger. However, people who opposed the war, even privately, were in the minority. Most Americans were fully supportive of the U.S.’s involvement in the war.
Lovelace never was a rabid supporter of the war. Her initial enthusiasm for war work did not last. Due to prolonged and harsh working conditions, Lovelace developed psoriasis and it spread to most of her body. She quit the aircraft industry after about one year. However, her exit from the war workforce would only be temporary. When her brother was injured in the war, her sense of obligation to help out in the war arose again, and she returned to work making small parts for tanks. Lovelace felt like a racehorse working in the factory, running up and down the mile long plant. Lovelace hated her job and after three months left industry altogether. She concluded that she would never have worked in the war industry had she known how disagreeable it would have been. In her opinion, most women who had working experiences similar to hers felt much like she did but would not openly admit it.
Still, wanting to make an effort to contribute to the war effort, she purchased war bonds. Bonds were issued by the U.S. government and assisted in the financing of the war efforts. Lovelace remembered that most working women claimed to be motivated by their sense of patriotism or by having a family member actively serving in the war.
In conclusion, through Judy Lovelace’s interview, we can understand what life was like for a working woman during the war. Their experiences had a profound impact on their outlook on the world. The demand to keep production consistently high resulted in women being heavily recruited to join the defense industries. Regardless of skill or race, a woman could be hired and quickly trained to perform expected work duties. The “Rosie the Riveter” campaign contributed to these recruitment efforts, encouraging women to do their patriotic duty and support war efforts. War-time work meant intense labor, long work hours, and poor working conditions. However, this work was essential to allowing women to assist in the war effort even from the home front.
Here is the outline for this paper:
Notice how each element is indented, depending on the role it plays in your argument (your paper). Also, I include a very short summary of each element. If you are doing a research paper, you need to include the citation information with each piece of information. All of this will be in your own words, because it is your own, unique argument.
Introduction:
Topic: Paper on women workers in WWII
Thesis [part a]: Lovelace interview shows changes in women in the war
Thesis [part b]: Women greatly helped war effort
[Subtopic 1: Women recruited for war work.]
Subtopic 1[a]: Industry recruited women for war work
Transition to subtopic 1[a]
Topic sentences: Industry recruited women for war work
Evidence 1: All types of women recruited for work
Evidence 2: Women also volunteered for work
Evidence 3: Education determined job
Evidence 4: Non-high school grads worked heavy labor
Evidence 5: Jobs trained the women
Subtopic 1[b]: Govt recruited women for war work
Transition to subtopic 1[b]
Topic sentence: Govt recruited women for war work
Evidence 1: Govt recruiting posters
Evidence 2: “We Can Do It” poster (indented b/c subset of ev. 1)
Evidence 3: Nos. of women in work increased
Subtopic 1[c]: Lovelace particular case
Transition to subtopic 1[c]
Topic sentence: Lovelace’s particular case
Evidence 1: Farm girl moved to California
Evidence 2: Needed job
Evidence 3: recruiters wanted to hire her
Evidence 4: quotation on recruitment (indented b/c subset of ev. 3)
Subtopic 2: Lovelace’s particular job
Transition to subtopic 2
Topic sentence: Lovelace’s particular job
Evidence 1: too busy to pick up pay check
Evidence 2: Women paid less than men
Evidence 3: Bad working conditions
Evidence 4: Noise deafens some women
Subtopic 3: Benefits of working for women
Transition to subtopic 3
Topic sentence: Benefits of working for women
Evidence 1: Learn new skills
Evidence 2: War brings special opportunity to learn skills
Evidence 3: Work helps avoid worrying about the war
Subtopic 4: Men leave factories for the front
Transition to subtopic 4
Topic sentence: Men leave factories for the front
Evidence 1: Statistics for men leaving
Evidence 2: remaining men had draft deferment
Evidence 3: high turnover of women as well
Subtopic 5: Bad effects of the war
Transition to subtopic 5
Topic sentence: Bad effects of the war
Evidence 1: Long hours causes frustration
Evidence 2: Some people buy illegal goods to not work
Evidence 3: Soldiers returning home with severe injuries
Evidence 4: Some people brag about keeping sons out of war
Evidence 5: Anger over men with draft deferment
Evidence 6: Lovelace no interest in war events
[Subtopic 6: Some people against the war]
Subtopic 6[a]: Some people who didn’t like the war: (Isolationism)
Topic Sentence: Quite a few people didn’t like the war
Evidence 1: Some people say end war through end industrial production
Evidence 2: End production of war industry to end war
Evidence 3: Some people thought Roosevelt wanted longer war
Clarification statement; evidence for subtopic 6
Subtopic 6[b]: Lovelace’s own dislike of the war
Topic Sentence: Lovelace’s own dislike of the war
Evidence 1: Lovelace’s initial enthusiasm did not last
Evidence 2: Lovelace gets illness
Evidence 3: Lovelace quits job
Transition for clarification of chronology: Lovelace goes back to work
Evidence 4: Lovelace feels like a racehorse
Evidence 5: She never would have worked in war industry if possible
Evidence 6: She believes most women felt the same
Subtopic 7: People motivated by Patriotism
Transition to subtopic 7
Topic sentence: Lovelace wanted to support the war
Evidence 1: Lovelace bought war bonds
Evidence 2: Other women motivated to work by patriotism
Conclusion
Transition
Re-affirmation of Thesis part a: Lovelace’s interview helps us understand women’s life
in WWII through Lovelace; war work profoundly impacted women
Re-affirmation of subtopic 1a: Recruiting women for war industry
Re-affirmation of subtopic 1b: Rosie the Riveter campaign helped recruitment
Re-affirmation of subtopic 2: War work unpleasant
Transition
Re-affirmation of thesis part b: women greatly helped the war effort
Here is a colored diagram of the paper, showing its structure. In this particular paper, the thesis has two parts; the first subtopic happens to have three parts, necessitating three paragraphs [one paragraph for each part of the first subtopic]; the sixth subtopic has two parts; and the conclusion has two parts (note that the conclusion is by necessity a re-affirmation of the thesis):
Color Code Key:
Topic of paper = gray
Thesis = blue
Transition from one paragraph/subtopic to the next = purple
Subtopic = Topic sentence = yellow
Evidence for the topic sentence (subtopic) = green
Also note that one of the best aspects of this paper is how smoothly and naturally the author incorporates her research on women in general working in the war with the particular example of Lovelace, one helping to prove the other.
[This whole first paragraph is the introduction, which contains the topic of the paper and the thesis]:
[topic of paper]After the attack of Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, the United States entered World War II and rapidly experienced a profound transformation. Men were sent overseas daily to fight on the front lines. The absence of men left industry short-handed. The United States was in possible economic danger. To solve this, the “Rosie the Riveter” was launched in 1941 to recruit women to join the labor force for the defense industry. Judy Loveless, in “Rosie the Riveter Revisited,” describes her personal experiences and conflicting thoughts while working for the war effort. [thesis part a]Lovelace’s interview allows us to better understand changes in women’s personal and professional lives during the war. [thesis part b] It also shows the profound importance of women’s work toward the war effort.
Loveless was one of the six million women employed during the war<–this transitions from discussing one person, Lovelace, to working women in general] Women were recruited to work in factories, industrial plants, ship yards, on farms, to provide logistical support for the military. There was increased stress to carry out government contracts due to the unexpected labor shortage.<–[these are the topic sentences of this paragraph; it is also subtopic 1 [subthesis]; it is emphasizing industry recruiting women into the workforce [call it subtopic 1a]] Sex, age and race were ignored during the recruitment process because employers were desperate to fill positions and avoid a decrease in production.<–[evidence 1 for topic sentences/subtopic 1a] Women were encouraged to voluntarily join the industrial work force.<–[evidence 2 for topic sentences/subtopic 1a] Educational level was taken into consideration to determine placement for available positions. <–[evidence 3 for topic sentences/subtopic 1a] Non-high school graduates were given more labor intense positions, such as assembly line work. <–[evidence 4 for topic sentences/subtopic 1a] Job ads did not stipulate pay but promised necessary training with no experience required. <–[evidence 5 for topic sentences/subtopic 1a]
To further support women joining the work force,[transition uniting this paragraph to the paragraph above, which is subtopic 1a. The new paragraph has a slightly different focus (govt campaign to get women into the workforce); call it subtopic 1b] the “Rosie the Riveter” campaign was created. The campaign encouraged women to carry out their patriotic duty by working in the defense industry or for the government. [topic sentences] Posters were created with the image of the ideal working woman as loyal, efficient, patriotic and pretty. <–[evidence 1 for topic sentences/subtopic 1b] One important poster was created by J. Henry Millbank entitled “We Can Do It.” The poster was a picture of pretty woman flexing her muscles and became a visual icon for this time. <–[evidence 2 for topic sentences/subtopic 1b] With the help of this campaign, from 1940 to 1944, the percentage of women working in industrial related fields increased by twenty percent. <–[evidence 3 for topic sentences/sutopic 1b]
… Loveless’ story was typical for these women…. [topic sentence/also a transition to go from working women in general to the experiences of one particular woman, Lovelace, call it subtopic 1c] She was the daughter of a farmer who left home at the early age of seventeen. Unable to work in her hometown due to her youth, she moved to California in search of a job.<–[evidence 1 for topic sentence/subtopic 1c] Once she arrived in California, she needed little effort to get hired. <–[evidence 2 for topic sentence/subtopic 1c] Lovelace explains that job recruiters approached her multiple times, each time encouraging her to visit their application office.<–[evidence 3 for topic sentence/subtopic 1c] She explained, “I was having people approach me six to ten times a day-RCA Victor wanted me to come work for them; Technicolor said they would train me.”<–[evidence 4 for topic sentence/subtopic 1c]
Her first job,[transition to new subtopic=her experience of poor conditions on the job] at Hughes Aircraft, work schedules were demanding and fast paced. High productivity was expected. In addition, women still had to do housework and tend to the children after work. [topic sentences/subtopic 2 [subthesis 2] Due to her rigorous work schedule, Loveless recalls being unable to personally pick up her paycheck.<–[evidence 1 for topic sentence/second subthesis, Lovelace’s own situation, also relevant to working women in general] Becoming a factory worker meant physical labor for women at a significantly lesser pay rate than men. Women who were employed during the war were paid $23.00 per week less than men holding similar positions.<–[evidence 2 for subtopic 2/women workers in general, also relevant to Lovelace’s own situation] Loveless described the working conditions at her first assembly line job as noisy and hot.<–[evidence 3 for subtopic 2/Lovelace’s own situation, also relevant to women workers in general] The noise was so intense that it would later cause women to have hearing problems.<–[evidence 4 for subtopic 2/women workers in general, also relevant to Lovelace]
Despite the intense labor,[transition from paragraph on difficult work experiences to benefits of working, women workers in general, but also relevant to Lovelace’s situation] there were benefits to women working during the war. [topic sentence/subtopic 3]Joining the work force during this time allowed women to learn new skills such as riveting, machine operation, and ship maintenance. [evidence 1 for subtopic 3] Aware that they would not have been exposed to these skills otherwise, women appreciated these opportunities. <–[evidence 2 for subtopic 3] Also, keeping busy through excessive work helped women avoid focusing on the worrisome events that were taking place in the war overseas. <–[evidence 3 for subtopic 3]
Loveless also mentioned [transition] that while employed with Hughes Aircraft, she noticed a high turnover of workers, particularly men.<–[topic sentence/subtopic 4/Lovelace’s situation in particular, also relevant to women workers in general] She estimated that out of 1500 men employed in her department, there were only 34 left after six months. <–[evidence 1 for subtopic 4/ Lovelace’s situation in particular, also relevant to women workers in general] Men were being sent to war every day at this point. Most of the remaining men had draft deferments. <–[evidence 2 for subtopic 4] Loveless also mentioned in her interview that there was also a high turnover of female employees due to service enlistments. <–[evidence 3 for subtopic 4/also, transition to the next paragraph/ Lovelace’s situation in particular, also relevant to women workers in general]
As the war continued[transition], people began to see the disheartening effects of war.<–[topic sentence/subtopic 5/women workers in general, also including Lovelace’s own experiences] Long hours working at the factories took a toll on workers and began to increase their frustration. <–[evidence 1 for subtopic 5] To avoid the work force but still produce an income, people were illegally purchasing items from Japan to be sold in newly opened convenience stores. <–[evidence 2 for subtopic 5] The effect of the war on the soldiers also hit home. Loveless recalled seeing a male friend who was invalided out of the war blind at the age of 21. <–[evidence 3 for subtopic 5/also note the transition [shift] from discussion of working people in general to Lovelace’s particular case] Some people went as far as to brag that they were able to keep their children out of the war. <–[evidence 4 for subtopic 5] Workers felt that people taking these measures to avoid their military duties were not fulfilling their patriotic duty and defending the United States’ honor. <–[evidence 5 for subtopic 5] Like many younger people,[reminds us that Lovelace is a particular example of working women in general] Loveless had no interest in the hearing the details of the war. During her interview she recalls not wanting to see any war pictures or even read the newspaper. <–[evidence 6 for subtopic 5]
[Subtopic 6: Some people against the war]
Quite a few people were not excited about the U.S.’ involvement in the war.<–[subtopic 6[a] /women workers in general, also Lovelace in particular, not liking the war. This paragraph ] Loveless remembered hearing some people whisper that if industrial production stopped, then the war would stop. <–[evidence 1 for subtopic 6a] Some workers thought that eliminating production of weapons and transportation would prevent the U.S. from further participating in the war. <–[evidence 2 for subtopic 6a] By the last year of the war, rumors spread that General George S. Patton, who spearheaded the U.S. assault into Germany, was being held back by President Roosevelt and his top advisors, causing the war to linger. <–[evidence 3 for subtopic 6a] However, people who opposed the war, even privately, were in the minority. Most Americans were fully supportive of the U.S.’s involvement in the war.<–[important clarification of the general meaning of the above subtopic in terms of the broad picture of the domestic front in WWII; it is also a statement foreshadowing subtopic 7]
[Lovelace seems not to have realized it, but what she was describing was the Isolationist Movement—Americans who thought that the US should have no part in the European war. This was a highly organized movement that spread its ideas through anti-war “propaganda.” It is the subject of many books by historians, and is itself a fascinating US history paper topic]
Loveless never was a rabid supporter of the war.<–[topic sentence/subtopic 6b /Lovelace in particular as an example of subtopic 6] Her initial enthusiasm for war work did not last. <–[evidence 1 for subtopic 6b] Due to prolonged and harsh working conditions, Lovelace developed psoriasis and it spread to most of her body. <–[evidence 2 for subtopic 6] She quit the aircraft industry after about one year.<–[evidence 3 for subtopic 6] However, her exit from the war workforce would only be temporary. When her brother was injured in the war, her sense of obligation to help out in the war arose again, and she returned to work making small parts for tanks.<–[transition for necessary clarificationmake chronological order clear.] Lovelace felt like a racehorse working in the factory, running up and down the mile long plant. Lovelace hated her job and after three months left industry altogether.<–[evidence 4 for subtopic 6] she concluded that she would never have worked in the war industry had she known how disagreeable it would have been.<–[evidence 5 for subtopic 6] In her opinion, most women who had working experiences similar to hers felt much like she did but would not openly admit it.<–[evidence 6 for subtopic 6/working women in general and Lovelace in particular]
Still,[transition to subtopic 7] wanting to make an effort to contribute to the war effort,–[Topic sentence], she purchased war bonds.<–[evidence 1 for subtopic 7] Bonds were issued by the U.S. government and assisted in the financing of the war efforts. <–[clarification of evidence 1] Loveless remembered that most working women claimed to be motivated by their sense of patriotism or by having a family member actively serving in the war.<–[evidence 2 for subtopic 7]
Conclusion [re-affirmation of the validity of the thesis]]:
In conclusion,[transition] through Judy Loveless’s interview, we can understand what life was like for a working woman during the war. Their experiences had a profound impact on their outlook on the world.<–[re-affirmation of thesis part a] The demand to keep production consistently high resulted in women being heavily recruited to join the defense industries.<–[re-affirmation of subtopic 1a] Regardless of skill or race, a woman could be hired and quickly trained to perform expected work duties. <–[re-affirmation of subtopic 1a] The “Rosie the Riveter” campaign contributed to these recruitment efforts, encouraging women to do their patriotic duty and support war efforts. <–[re-affirmation of subtopic 1b] War-time work meant intense labor, long work hours, and poor working conditions. <–[re-affirmation of subtopic 2] However[transitional word], this work was essential to allowing women to assist in the war effort even from the home front.<–[reaffirmation of thesis part b]
[The author obviously considers subtopics 1 and 2 to be critical to proving the thesis, and thus re-affirms those subtopics.]
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