Long Essay

Long Essay Order Description Section 3: Long essay (45 points) Respond to ONE of the two prompts provided below. Be sure that your answer is centered on a specific argument or claim that responds to the prompt. It is likely that several paragraphs will be necessary to thoroughly address all aspects of the question. Plan out your response before you begin to write, and remember to use examples from lectures (including PowerPoints) and assigned readings to support your claims. These open-ended questions provide you with a wide berth to draw on the readings and lectures that were the most interesting and meaningful to you. 1. Although this class is called “American Studies for the 21st Century,” we spent a great deal of time exploring the 20th, the 19th, and even the 18th and 17th centuries. Why is this so? Use a specific set of texts from this class to explain how the past can inform the present. 2. Over the course of this semester, we’ve discussed the ways in which concepts like race and ethnicity are simultaneously “constructed,” on the one hand, and deeply meaningful within American society, on the other. What does it mean for these concepts to be deemed “constructed”? Why are these constructed concepts so meaningful and potent in American society?