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
9-6-06
DUE in class THURSDAY, September 21

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: do the people portrayed in Louise Erdrich's Tracks resist assimilation into European culture?  How? In what ways do they assimilate? What techniques do they use. How successful, in the long-run, do think they can be using these techniques, tactics, and strategies? [Be sure to specify what YOU mean by long-run].

Topic B: One of the ways that people form their identities are in the ways the divide what is real from what is imaginary. While some areas are clear, others are fuzzy. It is the fuzzy ones that can be socially constructed. How do the people in Tracks make that division? How does their division differ from conventional 21st century middle class division? Is this important to their identity as Indians? How? Why?

Topic C: How do the people portrayed in Louise Erdrich's Tracks maintain and enhance their "Indian" identity? Which ones are conscious or purposeful, and which ones just flow out the way they live their lives? How does religion fit into Indian identity? What factors work to undermine their identity as Indians? Why is maintenance of an Indian identity important to them?

An artist's conception of Misshipeshu, the water spirit/god/monster.

Drawing by Norval Morriseau, Chippewa Artist, from his Legends of My People, the Great Ojibway.Selwyn Dewdney, ed., 1965  Toronto: Ryerson Press, p. 29.

Send comments or questions to thall@depauw.edu
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