How to Write a DBQ (Document Based Question)
DBQ Pre-write – Prompt: Using the shoes in the class, what types of people can be identified by the types of shoes worn to school.
Paragraph Categories Document #s POV ideas
Thesis Statement: ______
Additional document described AND explained: ______
______
Time management
Read and analyze documents 10 minutes
Pre-write and write 40 minutes
Pre-Writing
Dissect the prompt: (just like in all of the essays)
· What are the task and/or directive words?
· What are the parameters? (Time, place, class, categories, etc.)
· Are there any other key terms are in the prompt?
Planning:
· Read the documents, write summaries in the margin, look for patterns, content and author type. Patterns are often suggested in the prompt. Look for different points of view on the same topic.
· Plan your categories to match the supporting documents.(π Chart)
· A document MAY fit in more than one category.
· A category MUST have more than one document.
Directions: Read through the documents and divide them into at least three groups. Within each group identify AT LEAST one document that could be used to create a POV statement.
Paragraph Categories / Document #s / POV ideasWriting
Thesis: Write a thesis paragraph that sets the scene, addresses the prompt and has categories for analysis.
Body: Use the documents for evidence:
· One body paragraph per category, start each paragraph with a topic sentence
· Documents are not just summarized but are connected to a category (topic sentence). NEVER QUOTE THE DOCUMENTS, summaries gets understanding point.
· Refer to the document by author, title and number.
· Use all of the documents. (you may make one error without penalty)
· Analyze at least 3 POVs correctly. Attempt all POVs that seem reasonable.
· Outside information is NOT required, but can be used to gain credit outside the core score (on the right side of the rubric).
ADDITIONAL DOCUMENTS: The Missing “Voice”
Students must identify one or more additional documents (or voices) that would be helpful in addressing the prompt.
· Whose voice is missing?
· What group, class, gender, etc is missing that is relevant to the prompt?
One thing that the DBQ essay asks you to do is to identify one or more groups who are valid to the prompt but whose voice is NOT heard in the documents provided.
Example: The prompt is about religion in the Middle East and the documents come from Christian, Muslim and Zoroastrian sources. Who is missing?
Example: The prompt is about distinct group roles in society and the documents come from rulers, merchants and farmers. Who is missing?
Some groups to think about:
elite farmers warriors specific religions
women merchants scholars priests, monks, nuns
* Remember that the group must be valid to the prompt and you must EXPLAIN WHY they are valid.
POVs in a DBQ
Why is POV Important? It demonstrates to the reader that the student understands that the document is not a statement of fact, but opinions of events made by people at a particular time and place and often for a specific reason. YOU must point out the reason why the author should be taken seriously.
Types of POV:
1. Authorial – Awareness that the class, occupation, religion, nationality, political position, ethnicity, or gender (CORNPEG) may have influenced an author’s view.
Baldassare Castiglione; Italian author, courtier, and diplomat. He served in the courts of Mantua and Urbino and later served the Pope. His book, The Courtier, describes the conduct of the perfect courtier (aristocrat who serves at the court of a noble).
Employ in everything a certain casualness which conceals art and creates the impression that what is done and said is accomplished without effort and without its being thought about. It is from this, in my opinion, that grace largely derives.
POV: Castiglione explains that being graceful without seeming to work at it is essential for a good courtier, as a successful diplomat and a courtier who had worked for several important nobles; he would know what is needed to be a success in the courts of Italy.
Yuan Ts’ai, a Chinese provincial magistrate (government official) in the Song Dynasty; educated in Neo-Confucian philosophy he mastered the highest exam in the bureaucratic system; from his book titled Precepts for social Life, 1178.
For women who live a long life, old age is especially hard to bear, because most women must rely on others for their existence. Before a woman’s marriage, a good father is even more important than a good grandfather; a good brother is even more important than a good father...
After her marriage, a good husband is even more important than a good father-in-law; a good son is even more important than a good husband
POV: Yuan argues that women must rely on others for their existence. This Chinese provincial magistrate, as a member of the scholarly bureaucracy, was influenced by his Neo-Confucianism training which taught that women are relegated to subservient positions relative to men.
2. Authenticity reliability and accuracy – Examine the author and the type of source to determine WHY it is accurate and reliable. Is the document an official report, Propaganda, Private letter, etc. Is the author an inside or outside observer?
Vespasiano da Bisticci of Florence had a role in the formation of all the great libraries of his time. He left a collection of 300 biographies. He worked for Pope Nicholas V during the formation of his papal library and was a leading Humanist philosopher of the age. The following is from his biography on Cosimo Medici leader of the great Florentine family:
Cosimo became increasingly aware of the fact that if he wanted God to have mercy on him and conserve him in the possession of his temporal goods, he had to turn to pious ways... his conscience [bothered] him about some money which he had come by not quite cleanly. Wanting to lift this weight from his shoulders, he went to talk to Pope Eugenius... to satisfy himself and to unburden his conscience he... spent in all more than forty thousand florins...on the building [Church]...
POV: Da Bisticci’s view of Cosimo de Medici is valid because he was a contemporary, first hand observer of the Medici family and as an insider to the court of Florence and a noted biographer of the day, he would have great insight into the Medici family. Also, being within reach of the powerful family it is not hard to see why Da Bisticci would produce a favorable view of Cosimo.
Zhou Daguan, Chinese envoy and high ranking member of a delegation sent to Cambodia by Kublai Khan. Written in a 1297 report to the emperor, after a year long stay.
In Cambodia, women attend to trade. Even a Chinese who arrives there and takes a woman will profit greatly from her trading abilities. They do not have permanent stores, but simply spread a piece of mat on the ground. Everyone has her own spot.
POV: Zhou Daguan, a Chinese envoy to Cambodia indicates that women played a vital role in Cambodia’s market place economy. His comments accurately describe these roles because he observed them for more than a year. He has little reason to report falsely to his superiors in China.
3. Tone – Examine the text of a document to determine its tone. (Satire, irony, fear, anger, sadness, etc.)
Leonardo Da Vinci, artist, inventor and practical engineer. Although his ideas were often seen as outlandish by the people of his day, modern engineers have found most of his plans to be sound and feasible even in his own day. The following is from a letter Da Vinci wrote to the Duke of Milan:
...I can also make a kind of cannon which is light and easy of transport, with which to hurl small stones like hail, and of which the smoke causes great terror to the enemy, so that they suffer heavy loss and confusion... When it is impossible to use cannon I can supply in their stead catapults, mangonels, trabocchi, and other instruments of admirable efficiency not in general use—In short, as the occasion requires I can supply infinite means of attack and defense.
POV: Da Vinci explains to the Duke that he is capable of inventing a variety of weapons. The confident, boastful nature of Da Vinci’s letter to the Duke is understandable when you consider that he was trying to sell himself and his abilities to the Duke.
Nicolaus Copernicus, a Polish astronomer, was the founder of the heliocentric ordering of the planets; challenging the beliefs of the Catholic Church. From his book, Revolutions of the Heavenly Bodies, published in 1453 when Copernicus was sure he was dying. (In fact he died 6 hours after receiving the first copy of the book.)
“I can easily conceive, most Holy Father, that as soon as some people learn that in this book which I have written concerning the revolutions of the heavenly bodies, I ascribe certain motions to the Earth, they will cry out at once that I and my theory should be rejected. ...I am aware that a philosopher's ideas are not subject to the judgment of ordinary persons ... For it is the duty of an astronomer to compose the history of the celestial motions through careful and expert study.”
POV: The tone of confidence in Copernicus’ “Revolutions...” is understandable because he was sure of his scientific method; also, being on the verge of death, he had very little to lose in challenging the Church.
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Discussing POV without using the word BIAS
The author is ______because…
credible
reliable
accurate
believable
representative of the (times) (class) etc
The writer is ______
a contemporary of...
an admirer of...
an outsider so\an insider to the situation so...
a direct observer...
a government official...
a member of the (elite) (lower class)... etc
…the source of the document is a ______therefore…
newspaper
private letter
speech
court record
government document (map) (chart) (graph) (picture)
A Better Way to Say “Said”
While there is nothing wrong with the word “said” there are better ways to convey tone and POV when writing the DBQ. Some AP teachers call these the “wonderful verbs.” You want to use a verb that denotes some kind of analysis of the author. Consider these:
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Implies confesses
Suggests
Contends
Declares
Remarks
Reports
Affirms
Hints
Maintains
Proposes
Comments
Observes
Implores
Responds
Insists
Writes
Alleges
Asserts
Admits
Discloses
Insinuates
Reveals
Demands
Explains
Emphasizes
Proclaims
Insists
Acknowledges
Concedes
Replies
Divulges
Argues
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AP World Generic DBQ Rubric
Historical skills and knowledge required to show competence. / Expanded Core
Historical skills and knowledge required to show excellence.
1. Has acceptable thesis. 1 Point
2. Understands the basic meaning 1 Point
of all documents.
(may misinterpret one document)
3. Supports thesis with appropriate 2 Points
evidence from all documents.
(Supports thesis with appropriate (1)
evidence from all but 1 document)
4. Analyzes point of view in at least 1 Point
two documents.
5. Analyzes documents by grouping 1 Point
them in 2 or 3 ways, depending
on the question.
6. Identifies and explains the need for 1 Point
one type of appropriate additional
document or source. / Expands beyond basic core of
1-7 Points. The basic core of a 0-2 Points
score of 7 must be achieved
before a student can earn
expanded core points.
Examples:
§ Has a clear, analytical, and comprehensive thesis.
§ Shows careful and insightful analysis of the documents.
§ Uses documents persuasively as evidence.
§ Analyzes point of view in most or all documents.
§ Analyzes the documents in additional ways – groupings, comparisons, syntheses.
§ Explains why additional types of document(s) or sources are needed.
Subtotal 7 Points / Subtotal 2 Points
TOTAL 9 Points
DBQ for Dummies: It’s like a matching game that you played as a kid.
Thesis: Sort the documents into groups that match. Write an intro paragraph that mentions the prompt and those groupings.
Body paragraph 1: Look at the first group of matching documents
Create a topic sentence that matches the group
Explain how each document relates to the topic sentence
Include any POV analysis for documents that you used in the paragraph
Body paragraph 2: Look at the second group of matching documents
Create a topic sentence that matches this group
Explain how each document relates to the topic sentence
Include any POV analysis for documents that you used in the paragraph
Body paragraph 3: Look at the third group of matching documents (if you have a third group)
Create a topic sentence that matches the final grouping
Explain how each document relates to the topic sentence
Include any POV analysis for documents that you used in the paragraph
Conclusion: Write a concluding paragraph that mentions the prompt, groups that you wrote about and the missing voice
Practice DBQ: Africa and Meso-America
Prompt: Evaluate the achievements of the African empires, kingdoms and cities and the Meso-American empires, kingdoms and cities before the arrival of the Europeans. What additional document (voice) would be useful in creating a clearer picture of African and Meso-American societies?