What do the "Analytic Entries" need to include?

You'll notice that for each of the three sections of this project (background, literary, current events) you will write an analytic response in addition to the journal postings.  The goal for these is not just to present your findings, but to interpret them.

o Background.  For this essay, we are looking first of all for an engagement with the material you read.  That is, showing that you didn't just skim it, but took the time to understand and think about its contents both in terms of the article itself and your project overall.  You need to demonstrate an understanding of what your topic is, what are the different factors (people, events, documents, etc.) that made it important, and what role it plays in American society overall.  You will need to include information from all of your different sources.  The result will be a critical definition your topic.

o Literature.  This essay is a critical look at the story and the ways in which it uses its various elements (characters, themes, plot, literary devices, etc. ) in terms of your theme / topic.  What is the story suggesting about your topic?  What perspectives is it using?  How does this written expression add to the definition about the theme / topic?

o Current event.  This essay is a clarification of different perspectives and reasons behind the approach, and an explanation of how the theme / topic appears today.  What are the reasonings behind the different perspectives?  What new elements exist today in terms of the theme / issue beyond those included in the background information?

* Note that these essays are not written in the first person - you used that voice in your journal responses.  Now its time to step back and be critcal about what you read.  You will need to use numerous quotations in these postings, representing the research you've done up to this point.

*The length of each of these is roughly approximate to a two-page double-spaced essay.