SOC 249: Native Nations of the US,
TR 10-11:50  OL 215
Fall 2006
DePauw University
Professor Thomas Hall
 Office:  106 Asbury, x4519, email: thall@depauw.edu
 OFFICE HOURS:  TuTr 1-1:50; W 11-12; & by appt
First Reaction Paper
10-4-06
DUE in class THURSDAY, November 2

Write a 4 to 5 page (1200-1800 word), typed, double-spaced, essay on ONE of the topics below. Be sure to consult the general instructions, How to Write Essays for Professor Hall.  Paper form: NO Cover pages or binders Name, course, paper, & topic in a top corner: 
Your Name
Soc 249 F06
RP 1, TOPIC X, where X = topic letter
Page 1

If you do not know how to set running headers, you may write it in by hand!

References: For references to class texts you need only put author and page in parentheses [e.g., "blah, blah, blah...." (Erdrich, p. 133)]. For references to material OUTSIDE OF  COURSE TEXTS use " blah, blah, blah,....." (Smith & Wesson 1938, p. 45) and a bibliography at the end (NOT on a separate page (for more details on references see Formats).

Remember: Essays are FORMAL exercises, no slang, no contractions, correct spelling and grammar are required. In your FIRST draft, work at getting your ideas on paper. In your SECOND draft, work on getting the argument in order. In your THIRD draft work on grammar, spelling etc. Keep the introduction, BRIEF, get right to the point. Write it last! 

*** NO Bibliography for course books ***
** Label Your Topic**

Note: the answer to "WHY" is the heart of each essay. That is, logic and evidence, not position on the issue, is the key factor. Try to think of arguments FOR & AGAINST your position, and state why those FOR it are more persuasive. To answer the why part you need to pull your own assessment out of what you have read. The answer is not "in the book on  page xxx," rather, it is in your interpretation what you read. That is, these are thought questions, NOT research questions.

You are free to talk and discuss the topic with each other, but you must write your own essay.

Topic A: How does Susan Power's The Grass Dancer add to or change the various accounts of the events portrayed in Incident at Oglala? What does this account add to our we have read about recent Lakota history and relations with American society and culture in general?

Topic B: What new insights into White - Indian relations do you gain from Susan Power's The Grass Dancer? What insights does her account give you into discussions of Indian identity? Does her novel suggest any ways to rethink the identity issue? If it is widely read, could it help contemporary Indian - White relations? Why or Why not?

Send comments or questions to thall@depauw.edu
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