Short Paper 2

Due Feb 15

 

 

Paper should be 3 to 5 pages in length, typed, double-spaced, no extra spaces between paragraphs, 12 point Times New Roman font, 1 inch margins, stapled. Please give your paper a title, but no separate title page is necessary.   I expect papers to be polished – that is, grammatically correct with clear writing and paragraph structure. 

 

Using sources and course materials/presentations assigned through (and including) Feb. 15, please address one of the following paper prompts:

 

 

  1. How were “borders” created and enforced in American cities (such as Detroit) in the late 19th-early 20th century, and what were the consequences of those borders during that era?  {a broader version: how does a spatial analysis of social relations in that period add to our understanding?]

   Revision: you may consider borders & “power of place” from any time period, including the present, but make sure to tie it into course readings

 

  1. How have conceptions of race and ethnicity changed over time, and how have these conceptions shaped Americans’ ideas about themselves and about “American-ness”? (if you’d like, you may focus only on the late 19th-early 20th era when teasing out the ideas about “race”)

 

  1. What were the meanings of “Americanization” in the late 19th-early 20th century, and how did the meanings, process, and enforcement of Americanization affect the formation of an American identity(s) in those years?  Revision: if you like, you may compare to some of our more recent “outsider” narratives, e.g. Sharkey Haddad, Richard Wright, Rodgriguez.

 

 

Questions to get you thinking about these topics: Who counted as “American”? According to whom, and by what criteria?  Did access to power/privilege matter?

Can/did Americans (or, people who live in the United States of America) act as true individuals, or did/do they always belong to (or get categorized by) sub-groups (based on race, ethnicity, class, religion, etc.)?  How were/are those identities and differences inscribed into space/place in this vast nation?

 

 

As with the first short paper, use a selection of sources as a “case study” to explore the question you have chosen. Your essay should begin with an introduction paragraph that features a thesis: your concise response to the question at hand. The main body of your essay should develop the thesis by analyzing evidence and expanding on your argument. Each paragraph should begin with a well-crafted topic sentence. Good paragraphing often includes a conclusion sentence that ties the analysis in each paragraph to the thesis.  Avoid too brief and too long paragraphs.

 

Your tone should be formal. Do not use the second person (“you”), and avoid over-use of the first person (“I.”) – unless you are offering testimony about a situation you or a family member faced relevant to other examples from the readings/lectures.

 

Use quotations sparingly. Long block quotes should be avoided.  If you use direct quotes, make sure to work them into your analysis and help readers see their relevance.

 

You may use whatever citation style you feel comfortable with. Please be conscientious about citing your sources, and do not plagiarize ideas or words. 

Please include a Works Cited page.