Tuesday, April 9, 2013

Thesis Proposal Due Thursday

This is a reminder that the final draft of the Thesis Proposal is due in class this Thursday. There will not be a peer-edit of these documents, so you will only need to bring one hard copy to hand in.

(#6) DQs on Martin Luther King, Jr.

Please answer the following questions after reading and listening to Martin Luther King, Jr.'s speech "I Have A Dream."
  1. King’s “I Have a Dream” speech compares the situation of African-Americans in 1863 to their situation in 1963. What are the differences? What are the similarities? 
  2. King refers to a check or a promissory note that was given to African-Americans. What is that promissory note? How does he develop the check image? 
  3. King’s speech is a call to action. To what kind of action? What do African-Americans want? Significantly, what kind of action does he warn against? Why? 
  4. The most quoted sentences of this speech repeat the phrase “I have a dream.” What are the elements of that dream? How does it relate to the “American Dream”? 
  5. King takes the phrase “let freedom ring” from the patriotic song “My Country ‘Tis of Thee.” Why is this important? How does he expand on this phrase? 
  6. How does King tie this phrase to the words of an “old Negro spiritual”? Why is this significant? 
  7. King was a Southern Baptist minister. What aspects, themes, images of his speech might be representative of Southern religious sermons?
  8. Of what aspects of American culture is King’s speech critical? 
  9. Did the speech lead to transformations in American culture? Explain your answer.

Presentation and Research Project Rubrics Posted

The rubric for the Presentations and Research Project are now posted on the Schedule, Readings, and Rubrics page. I distributed a hardcopy of this document in class today, yet should you need to retrieve another copy you can do so by clicking on the link on the aforementioned page.

Monday, April 8, 2013

(#5) DQs on Malcolm X

Please answer the following questions after reading and listening to Malcolm X's speech "The Ballot or the Bullet."

  1. Malcolm X calls himself a “Black Nationalist.” What does this mean? List a few of the characteristics of this ideology. 
  2. Why is Malcolm X so skeptical about whether white politicians and white liberals can be trusted to help the cause of Black Americans?
  3. Is Malcolm X advocating for violence or is he merely predicting it, should voting rights not be successfully implemented? 
  4. Consider the following passage from the Declaration of Independence: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, that whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government.” Does Malcolm X agree with this passage? Explain your answer.
  5. Consider the following statements, and then determine which one most accurately summarizes Malcolm X’s thesis in his speech: (a) Whites have systematically exploited and duped Blacks throughout American history; therefore, Blacks should use either the ballot or the bullet to organize and overthrow this system of exploitation. The goal of this political revolution should be a free society that genuinely protects everyone’s rights. (b) Whites have already organized themselves as a “nation” or race that merely looks out for its own interests; rather than integrate into this organization, Blacks must do the same things in their own community by maintaining separate political and economic institutions.