Principles of Written Presentation

© Avner Offer, University of Oxford, 2005

http://www.history.ox.ac.http://www.history.ox.ac.ukuk//ecohistecohist//coursebookletcoursebooklet/index./index.htmhtm

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Presentation is communication

• Communication:– With yourself - from ‘mentalese’ to language: ‘can’t

find the right word’– With others: in writing; verbally.– Typical approaches:

–producer orientation: ‘get it done with’

–consumer orientation: ‘get it across’

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Effectiveness• Relevance -- what is the problemwhat is the problem, is it

interesting, to whom, and why?• Rigour -- is it true?is it true? can it withstand scrutiny? will

it endure?• Relevance vs. rigour tradeoff.

– seductive writing• keep them turning the pages.

– defensive writing• don’t be caught out.

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Relevance/Rigour Tradeoff

-

+time

porp

‘Relevance’

[consumer:values:expressive &instrumental]

‘holy grail’

‘Rigour’[producer values]

[Mike Hicks]

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historical argument• Elements

– Narrative - letting story speak for itself. – Objectivity – with what credibility?– Explanation -- cause and effect.

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Structure:Structure:

• Preface: how and why I did it. Keep short.• Introduction:

– What is the problem?– What have others said.– What am I going do with it.

• Sub-Divisions: chapters [short], parts. • Conclusion: I have set out to do this, and I

have done it. • Bibliography. Allows short-form footnotes.

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StyleStyle

• Three levels:– 1. narrative; story. All argument is at some

level a story.– 2. historiography/ Literature.– 3. stage management: Pt 1, Pt 2, Earlier,

Later.– Don’t mix levels.– Try to stay at first level.

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Pace• Flow adjusted to reader/listener’s absorbing

capacity.• Avoid bottlenecks. Slow down for difficult

arguments. Repeat if necessary.• What comes next? Hold attention by means of

anticipation. • Unidirectional. Reader should never have to stop,

look back, or look ahead.• Footnotes: no stopping; no argument, no detail:

only bibliographical refs. But put at bottom.• Read for ‘bumps’ and ‘lumps’, or better, out loud.

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OutlineOutlineSerial

(random walk)Structured(top-down)

1 2 3

a b c

2

3

4

5

1

a b c

Oxford Reference Style• Article reference:• Surname, firstname, ‘Title of Article’, Journal of

References, vol. 28, 3 (1979), pp. 123-456.• Book reference:• Author, Title of the Book (London, 1996), pp. 353-456• Endnote oxford_ao.ens file on

www.history.ox.ac.uk/ecohist/endnote/oxford_ao.zip• Conventions booklet in .pdf format:

http://www.history.ox.ac.uk/ecohist/pdf/THESIS.PDFWeb references: cite full web URL, and download a copy.

You can then write ‘copy available from the author’.

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Citation conventions:• Basic principle:

– The minimal amount of information required for a reference back to the source.

• Full citation first time round• Followed by short citations.• op.cit., loc. cit., idem.. Ibid.• Current preferred system is • Short titles + bibliography. (saves on word-count)

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Do’s and Don’ts• Do

– Give precise page reference, except when the article/chapter/book cited provides unambiguous support for your statement.

• Don’t– reference commonplaces and truisms.– Use footnotes for supplementary narratives.– Break sentences with footnote refs, e.g.The quick1 brown2 fox jumped over the lazy3 dog.4

NotetakingNotetaking and data acquisitionand data acquisition• Full bibliographical title in every record.• Page/folio numbers on margins.• Indicate page-breaks /56/ clearly• Differentiate clearly between paraphrase and quote.• Self-discipline: No shortcuts.

– If you can always trust yourself, save a lot of trouble later.

• Scanning. Scanning pens and scanners. PDF scanning. Abbyy OCR software. Omnipage.

• Digital camera notetaking. Formats. JPEG degrades. • Indexing software.

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Organization of Bibliography• Primary vs. secondary sources.• Evidence (primary) vs. discussion (secondary)

– Archival.– Unpublished.– Periodical.– Official.– Printed primary.– Secondary.

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TYPOGRAPHY & LAYOUT

• A statement in writing is a bid for attention• Communication of:

– credibility– workmanship– respect for the reader

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Path dependency

• Laserprinter layout simulates ‘legacy systems’:– Hot metal printing.

• Typographical heritage. Subtle works of applied art. Carved in miniature in hard steel.

– The typewriter.• Thin typewriter fonts, designed to maximize impact

of finger stroke on inked ribbon.• Monospace.• Size of page: A4, Letter page.

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Typewriter: Fixed Pitch

Courier [12 pitch, elite][USA]Elron Monospace [10 pitch,Pica][UK]

• America wealthier, hence larger pitch• requires wider paper.

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Typewriter conventions:

• Underlining = italics.• Double spacing. Two spaces after full stop.

• Large page (Letter/A4)• Spaces between paragraphs. • A recognizable idiom: informality, draft status,tentativity.

• Otherwise not to be used.

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Typesetting Modes

Proportional Serif font:

• Times New Roman(also known as ‘Dutch’)

Proportional Sans serif font:

• Helevetica (Arial)• proportional fonts: more letters per inch

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Zxg FONT SIZE IN POINTS

AdgxX-HEIGHT

LEADING (vertical height)

BASELINE

Point = 1/72nd of an inch (height)Pica = 1/6th of an inch (length)

Basic typographical terms

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Aesthetics of typesetting

• Evolution for readability.• Book format: quarto, octavo.• Justification. • Font size, leading, line length.• Adapted for A4:

• e.g. 32 picas = 12pts+4pts leading

line length (picas) = line height (points) x 2

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A4 not inviting to read….

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University conventions:

• Double spacing advisable for drafts.• University regulations:‘If your word processor and printer produce

output which imitates letterpres then the layout may be that of a well-designed book’

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12 pts Times New Roman, 16 pts. leading, 32 picas

1. Introduction: Impeachment of the Poor Law Commissioners

In his classic 1963 paper, ‘The Myth of the Old Poor Law and the Making ofthe New’, Mark Blaug accused the authors (Nassau Senior and EdwinChadwick) of the 1834 Poor Law Report of more or less drawing a straight linefrom a set of unwarranted (Malthusian-cum-Benthamite) assumptions to aforgone (Malthusian-cum-Benthamite) conclusion: they had ‘… deliberatelyselected the facts to impeach the existing administration [of the Poor Law] onpredetermined lines’ (p. 177). The accusation of what can only be calledprofessional malpractice was further sharpened by the apparent fact that thePoor Law Commissioners failed to account for ‘the special problem ofstructural unemployment in the countryside’, but merely established the truth oftheir conclusions – ‘the more the Old Poor Law relieved poverty, the more itencouraged the poverty it relieved’ (p. 151) – by presenting ‘picturesqueanecdotes of maladministration’ (p. 177).

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Explanation• The longer the line, the larger the space between

the lines.• Keep it simple:

– Don’t mix fonts on page.– Serif for readability– Sans serif for graphics– Times New Roman (Stanley Morison, 1930) is highly

recommended.– Devise standard layout, and stick to it.

• Text justified. First paragraph flush, next indented. Indent 1 pica.

• Verbatim text – justified, indented both sides, no quotes [smaller font?]

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GRAPHICS

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Graphics

• Convey pattern information, not quantitative information.

• Bring out pattern, do not congest graphic.• Keep it simple.• As small as possible on the page• On the screen: make it large enough to see• Characters at least 20 points on screen.

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Also: scanning

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Figure 3. Household Production as Percent of GNP, 1945-1990

0

10

20

30

40

50

1945 1950 1955 1960 1965 1970 1975 1980 1985 1990

USA

Australia, GCI

UK, GNP

USA, TISA