English 1028 . . . Essay #2 . . . Spring 2004

·        Assignment genre: Short Research Paper

·        Audience: Generally educated readers with an interest in things Native American

·        Purpose: To write clearly and effectively in relation to a topic suggested below

·        Format: Essay; formal exposition with required research

·        Length: 3-5 pages

·        Special instructions: Your essay must contain at least 5 quotes gathered from your research; include an MLA-formatted citation for the materials used. Be sure to avoid plagiarism at all costs!

Choose or adapt one of the topic suggestions below, research it, and write an essay of 3-5 pages in which you introduce the topic in some interesting way, state your idea(s) in a clear thesis, and write a clear and well organized paper on your chosen topic.

®    Choose a tribal ceremony or ritual and explain how it takes place and what it means or what it does. This can be the ceremony or ritual of a single tribe or it might take place more broadly, across pan-Indian cultures. You might choose from Sun Dance or Rain Dance, the use of song in ceremony, traditional burial rituals, traditional marriage rituals, and so on. You might also discuss particular musical instruments and/or styles or particular singing styles.

®    Explore the role(s) of elements such as pollen or corn meal or feathers or body decoration in Native American life. Do such things have a practical purpose? Are they used solely for spiritual purposes? Are they used for a combination of practical and spiritual purposes?

®    Look into and explain the methods used by mission schools as they attempted to assimilate tribal peoples into the dominant American culture. You might also look into and explain the purposes of agencies such as the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

®    Explain the ways that Native American people are attempting to retain or reclaim their traditional cultures and languages.

®    What does casino gambling do for those tribes that have them?

®    Explain how groups such as those involved in the New Age movement or those with conservationist/ecological interests view and use Native Americans and their cultures.

®    Research and explain an event such as Wounded Knee "II" (1973) or a congressional act/treaty such as the Indian Removal Act of the 19th century or the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act of 1971. Many other events and legislative acts are out there to write about.

Schedule

Feel free to e-mail me with questions or concerns between now and your conference

Draft of your introduction and sketch of content due at your conference, February 23-25

Complete draft for peer review due Wednesday, March 10

Final draft to be graded due at the beginning of class on Friday, March 12