DBQ Cheat Sheet
The document based question (DBQ) is the most important essay that you will write for the AP examination. It will require you to look through seven documents and make an argument based on those documents to answer a specific question. This essay has a lot of specific components, but if you master it you can guarantee a passing score on the exam. The DBQ counts for 25% of your score on the AP exam.
Paragraph #1 (Thesis)
As is the case with the LEQ, you want to have a statement that answers the question. Make sure to answer what the question asks for (e.g. changes/continuities, comparison – similarities/differences, causes, effects, etc.).
Paragraph #2 (Contextualization)
Contextualization is defined by the College Board as “situating the argument by explaining the broader historical events, developments or processes immediately relevant to the question.” The best way to think about this is to think of an event/process/trend that led into the topic of the question and is connected to it. For example, if you have to talk about the effects of the Civil War between 1861-1865, you may want to talk about a specific event that led to the Civil War and explain why it would generate an effect of the conflict.
When thinking about contextualization try to think of SPICE categories. Think of specific political, social, intellectual, cultural, and/or economic trends in the world that could be related to your question. For example, if you have a question about British politics in 1850 this is a time when there is a lot of industrialization in the world so that may be something you can connect to the question.
Most importantly, make sure that you explain the link between the event you describe and the question. You need to make sure to use the terminology of the question in the link. Always remember to explain the event/process you are thinking about and then explain the link/relevance that it has to the question.
Use this format for contextualization: “From (insert time period of the topic) (discuss a specific issue facing the world or the region of the question). (Explain how this ties into the topic of the question)….”
Sample of contextualization + thesis (from last year’s AP U.S. DBQ on the causes of the women’s rights movement in America after 1940): “Though women finally received the right to vote in 1919, they still yearned for more equality to men from 1940-1975. During this time period, gender discrimination still existed in many aspects of life. For a while, women were happy with their right to vote, but after World War II and the pivotal roles they played at home while their husbands were overseas, women were ready to get rid of traditional gender roles and receive the equality they deserved.”
*Underlined part is link of what was discussed as specific evidence for context (right to vote)
with the topic of the women’s rights movement.
Body Paragraphs
The body paragraphs of the DBQ are just like the LEQ except that this time you are going to use the documents as the bulk of your evidence to prove the thesis rather than coming up with tons of outside evidence to answer the question.
Topic Sentences
Make sure that your paragraphs start off with clear topic sentences that clarify what you are talking about, while also connecting back to the main topic of the question.
Notice how in all of the examples below there is a clear argument and a connection to the prompt about “What were the major beliefs of the Enlightenment.”
Good Examples
“One of the major beliefs of the Enlightenment was religious freedom.”
“A major belief of the Enlightenment was that a political system should be put in place that did not oppress nor be unfair to the people.”
“A major belief of the Enlightenment was that a single person could not run a nation justly.”
Citing Documents
Documents should be presented as statements of opinion, not fact. After all, nearly all of the sources in a DBQ will be written by individuals that are trying to get across a particular message or point-of-view. Presenting them as factual is problematic and will mess with your construction of an argument. Do not quote documents when citing them. Use your own words to communicate the necessary message.
You have to cite all of the documents in the DBQ, so you cannot leave one out. When citing documents, use a parenthetical (Doc. ___) after the sentence you have that explains it.
However, citing them is not enough. You have to analyze them (so go to the section below for how to do that).
Good Examples of Presenting Documents as Statements of Opinion
“Voltaire, a French writer and philosopher, believed that religious toleration would be best for society (Doc 3).”
“Charles de Montesquieu described a political system where executive, legislative, and judicial power would be divided so as to not put too much power in any one part of the government to prevent unnecessary oppression and unfairness (Doc. 2).”
Bad Examples of Presenting Documents as Statements of Opinion (Avoid this!)
“Three branches of government typically struggle together until an absolute ruler takes over (Doc. 2).”
-This is not presented as opinion and it reads awkwardly with the other parts of the paragraph.
“Religious diversity creates happiness and peace between Christians, Jews, and Muslims (Doc. 3).”
-This basically quotes the doc. and does not present it as opinion.
Analyzing Documents
When analyzing documents, you need to connect the argument of the document to your topic sentence and show how it proves it. Most times, this will be done in a second sentence after you have presented the main idea of a specific document (which should be done in your own words).
Hint: An easy way to do this is to make sure that major words or a word of your topic sentence is found in your analysis sentences.
Good Examples of Analysis
“One belief of the Enlightenment is that the Enlightenment could result in equality for Europeans…Mary Wollstonecraft believed that women could achieve equality if they were given better educational opportunities (Doc. 4).”
Note: Analysis was earned in the same sentence as clarifying the main point of the document
because the writer connected the argument of equality into what Wollstonecraft’s argument was.
“A major belief of the Enlightenment was the advocacy for a type of government that promoted liberty and individual freedom, even for those who had not previously had freedom. Charles de Montesquieu writes in The Spirit of the Laws that there are three branches of power in a government: legislative, executive, and judicial and that to place all three in the same person would result in no liberty among individuals (Doc 2). De Montesquieu was campaigning against the concept of an absolute monarchy, as he believed that such a person of power could not fairly judge and rule all individuals, which would take away the freedom of the people.”
Note: Analysis is from the words liberty/freedom connecting to the document.
You must analyze all of the documents present in the DBQ, with one error permitted if you misinterpret or fail to tie a document to your argument.
Sourcing Documents
You know those HIPP exercises that we have been doing this year? Well, this is where all of those skills come in handy. For at least four of the documents for a DBQ you have to explain their historical context, audience, purpose, or point-of-view.
To rehash the HIPP skills:
Historical Context: Connecting the document to specific historical events in order to explain how it fits into that historical period. For example, if you get a source from 600 CE, what is happening around that time period that is related to the source?
Audience: Who is this source being written for and why do we know that? Make sure this is not broad! (e.g. You cannot say “This document was written for Chinese people”).
Purpose of the Author: What was the writer of the document trying to accomplish? Try to identify the endgame of the author here. Why did they write this document? Typically you can think of concepts such as informing others, persuading others to take a specific action, to influence a specific movement, for propaganda, to regulate something in society, or to record something important. You have to make sure not to simply restate what the document means, though, which is a common error here. Make sure your statement of purpose is also specific and is not vague!
Point-of-View: You have to go beyond the basic identity of the author and explain why they would write what they did based on who they are. So for example, why would a tax collector in Rome complain about people not paying their taxes? Why would a football coach complain about his athletes not studying a playbook (e.g. they’d lose the game if they did not!)? Why would a feminist complain about the lack of equal pay (e.g. they hate women being discriminated against and how men are taking advantage of women in the workplace)?
When sourcing documents, which you have to do five times, this should happen right after you analyze the document. So discuss how a specific document proves the argument of your paragraph and then explain the HIPP for that document.
Example of Analysis and Sourcing (Taken from last year’s AP U.S. DBQ on women’s rights): “First, discrimination in the workplace led to a call for women’s rights. The advertisement “Victory Waits on Your Fingers” demonstrates that women were needed as stenographers in the 1940s and were entering the workforce in larger numbers even if they were still confined to tasks normally deemed appropriate for women (Doc. 1). This demonstrates the need for women to enter the workforce to help the U.S. win World War II…”
*Italics are the topic sentence
*Part that is not underlined or italicized is the citation/analysis part.
*Underlined part is the sourcing (this person used historical context)
Outside Information
At least once in the essay you have to include a piece of outside information that is not found in the documents. This means that you have to explain a specific example with at least two sentences that supports the argument of a specific paragraph. You want to put this explanation of outside evidence at the beginningof a paragraph, using the phrase “For example…” This is a clue to the reader that you are going to discuss outside evidence.
However, I would highly recommend that you do more than one piece of outside information to give yourself a “backup.”
Example of Outside Information (Taken from last year’s AP U.S. DBQ on women’s rights): “One cause for the women’s rights movement of the 1960s was discrimination in the workplace. For example, women demanded an Equal Rights Amendment to the Constitution that would prevent employers from not hiring them because of their gender. This helped women file lawsuits against employers for sexual harassment.”
Conclusion
You should aim to have a conclusion for the DBQ. This conclusion should be a restatement of your thesis argument.
Recap of the Format of a DBQ
Paragraph #1: Thesis
Paragraph #2: Contextualization
Paragraphs #3-5 (may also be #3-#4 depending on prompt): Arguments that prove the thesis
1-Topic sentence
2-Piece of outside information
*This should appear in at least ONE argument of your DBQ
3-Explanation of document that ties to that argument and connect it to argument
4-Source that document via a HIPP category
*Repeat steps 2 & 3 for as many documents as needed
Paragraph #6: Conclusion
As you can see by the format above, the first two paragraphs are worth two points on the rubric. The body paragraphs are worth five points (for analysis of documents, HIPP, outside evidence, and argument development).
Overall, this essay has several complicated steps. You have to have outside information to do the DBQ successfully, so you have to know history. However, with practice you can master this essay style. It is a specific type of on-demand writing and you have never had to do it before. If you struggle that is okay, but if you practice this continually and learn from mistakes you can get better and ace this portion of the AP exam.