SOC 249: Native Nations of the US,
10-11:30 MW AS 224
Fall 2008
DePauw University
Professor Thomas Hall
 Office:  106 Asbury, x4519, email: thall@depauw.edu
 OFFICE HOURS:  MW 1-2; 4-4:30, & by appt
Third Reaction Paper
last update 11-16-08

**Due in Class Friday December 5, by 5 pm.**
5 point bonus if turned in in class Wed. Dec. 3

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 F08
RP 3, 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.

General:  Sherman Alexie's Indian Killer is a mystery set in Seattle, WA in current times. Two themes run through the novel. One is the issue of Indian identity, especially for Indians raised outside Native American communities. A second theme is the value and control of Native cultures, especially religion. The videos on White Shamanism, In Whose Honor, In the Light of Reverence, and Who Owns the Past, and the article by Wendy Rose on reserve will be useful in addressing these topics, as well as an essay in Churhchill on "Spiritual Hucksterism: The Rise of the Plastic Medicine Men" (355-366) and/or "Indians "R" US: Reflections on the 'Men's Movement," (367-408).

TOPIC A: Indian Killer while primarily a mystery does say or imply a lot about identity of Native Peoples, and the roles of native values, including especially spirituality, in Native lives. What does Alexie's story add to, extend, modify, or contradict in the other accounts we have examined in this course?

TOPIC B: Given the readings and the videos noted above, assess what Indian Killer says about these issues. What does Indian Killer add to these discussions? Does it contradict them in any way?

Send comments or questions to thall@depauw.edu
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