Process Paper
Process paper
My topic is Bleeding Kansas. I chose my subject because I thought it was very interesting that it was like a preview to the Civil War. My research question is, why did violence erupt in Kansas?
For my research process, I identified narrower questions within my main research question. I think that Nicole Etcheson’s Bleeding Kansas: Contested Liberty in the Civil War Era is a very valuable resource. In order to collect more sources, I looked in the bibliographies of the books I already had and found helpful. I found an interesting primary source, Border Ruffian Code in Kansas. The name John Brown also came up in many sources I read, so I got a biography about him. I also found newspapers from Kansas at this exact time. I wanted to find out specific instances of violence and how it occurred, and War to the Knife: Bleeding Kansas was very useful in this. I also read a scholarly journal article about this book. I also read a scholarly journal analyzing Bleeding Kansas from a more emotional and cultural standpoint by Christopher Phillips. Additionally, I looked into political and legal issues in Kansas, using sources such as Race and Politics: "Bleeding Kansas" and the Coming of the Civil War.
My thesis statement is: “In the mid 1850s, controversies over the presence of slavery in the middle territories resulted in violence in the Kansas territory. These violent actions, known as Bleeding Kansas, began when popular sovereignty was introduced to Kansas through the Kansas-Nebraska Act. Though the act was intended to diffuse the tension in the country over slavery and allow the voters to decide, it caused people both in favor and opposed to slavery to flow into Kansas to influence the vote, such as border ruffians and abolitionists. Because of the political unrest existing in the territory, and the tense atmosphere of the country at the brink of a civil war, violent and passionate actions began.” My main arguments are derived from my thesis, and are: how the influx of individuals migrating to Kansas effected the situation and violence, how the different political parties caused issues and ferocity, and finally how the general state of the country impacted Bleeding Kansas. I wanted to make sure that my thesis answered my research question, why did violence erupt in Kansas? I also want my arguments to be different from each other but centered on the answer to that question, stated through my main arguments in my thesis. When writing my paper, I ran into some organizational issues. I restructured when I gave pieces of information with regard to context. Since I had to return my library books, I had to find new Internet sources to supplement missing information I had encountered, but not clearly written, from my books. I also added some information where evidence was lacking, or where clarification was needed. I am proud of the final essay, and I think it addresses my research question and thesis.
My topic is Bleeding Kansas. I chose my subject because I thought it was very interesting that it was like a preview to the Civil War. My research question is, why did violence erupt in Kansas?
For my research process, I identified narrower questions within my main research question. I think that Nicole Etcheson’s Bleeding Kansas: Contested Liberty in the Civil War Era is a very valuable resource. In order to collect more sources, I looked in the bibliographies of the books I already had and found helpful. I found an interesting primary source, Border Ruffian Code in Kansas. The name John Brown also came up in many sources I read, so I got a biography about him. I also found newspapers from Kansas at this exact time. I wanted to find out specific instances of violence and how it occurred, and War to the Knife: Bleeding Kansas was very useful in this. I also read a scholarly journal article about this book. I also read a scholarly journal analyzing Bleeding Kansas from a more emotional and cultural standpoint by Christopher Phillips. Additionally, I looked into political and legal issues in Kansas, using sources such as Race and Politics: "Bleeding Kansas" and the Coming of the Civil War.
My thesis statement is: “In the mid 1850s, controversies over the presence of slavery in the middle territories resulted in violence in the Kansas territory. These violent actions, known as Bleeding Kansas, began when popular sovereignty was introduced to Kansas through the Kansas-Nebraska Act. Though the act was intended to diffuse the tension in the country over slavery and allow the voters to decide, it caused people both in favor and opposed to slavery to flow into Kansas to influence the vote, such as border ruffians and abolitionists. Because of the political unrest existing in the territory, and the tense atmosphere of the country at the brink of a civil war, violent and passionate actions began.” My main arguments are derived from my thesis, and are: how the influx of individuals migrating to Kansas effected the situation and violence, how the different political parties caused issues and ferocity, and finally how the general state of the country impacted Bleeding Kansas. I wanted to make sure that my thesis answered my research question, why did violence erupt in Kansas? I also want my arguments to be different from each other but centered on the answer to that question, stated through my main arguments in my thesis. When writing my paper, I ran into some organizational issues. I restructured when I gave pieces of information with regard to context. Since I had to return my library books, I had to find new Internet sources to supplement missing information I had encountered, but not clearly written, from my books. I also added some information where evidence was lacking, or where clarification was needed. I am proud of the final essay, and I think it addresses my research question and thesis.