Robert E. Leel; America’s past
Preparation
For this assignment you will select a person in America’s past who lived all or most of their life BEFORE 1865. To familiarize yourself with the person’s life, and the society, culture, politics, etc. he/she lived in, you need to read at least one book on your chosen historical figure. The book should be a biography or an autobiography. Encyclopedias are not an adequate source. Read at least one primary source written by the person you have chosen. Examples of primary sources are: 1. An autobiography. 2. A published diary. 3. A book of published letters. 4. An essay, speech, sermon, etc. written by your chosen person. Your selected historical figure CANNOT be Frederick Douglass, who is the subject of one of our assigned readings.
Writing
Write a four-to-six-page (more if you wish) profile of your subject. The essay should begin with a brief biographical sketch of the person’s life (one page maximum, NOTE: biographical sketch, title page, and bibliography are NOT included in the 4-6-page total). Then imagine that you have interviewed your subject during the latter years of his/her life. Summarize your subject’s views on the following questions: 1. What challenge(s) did you have to overcome to achieve your goals? 2. What do you view as your greatest contribution? 3. What is the most serious problem facing the United States (or colonies, Indian tribe) and her people? For this last question, frame it in the latter part of your subject’s life, but do not go past 1865. All of the questions should be addressed as if they were asked during your subject’s life span. Essays can be written in the traditional third person format (where you describe the person’s life), or they can be written in a journalist’s interview style where the subject’s answers are based on how you think they would answer. PLEASE REFRAIN FROM EXCESSIVE QUOTING, I WANT YOUR OWN WORDS.
Format
The essay should include a title page, the brief biographical sketch, and a listing of your sources. A typed and double-spaced essay should then follow. Please use footnotes or endnotes to cite your source(s) when you quote or paraphrase the author. APA, Chicago, or another standardized format is appropriate. Again, keep quoting to a minimum and use your own prose as much as possible. Here is a sample list of sources for either Sarah or Angelina Grimke, two potential subjects for your essay among many, many others in American History:
Primary Source
Sarah and Angelina Grimke. Edited and Annotated by Larry Ceplair. The Public Years of Sarah and Angelina Grimke. New York: Columbia University Press, 1989.
Secondary Source
Lerner, Gerda. The Grimke Sisters from South Carolina: Rebels Against Slavery. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1967.
Sample Solution
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