100S Final Essay Assignment
Context: Over the course of this semester, we have discussed various forms of monstrosity, paying particular attention to the way that our culture defines a “monster.” This discussion has expanded to include the concept of “othering” and the manner in which our society projects its fears onto people or groups of people in order to define “us”, what is “human,” and what is “normal” as “not them.” This assignment will ask you to apply what we have learned about making monsters of others to a discussion of racial profiling. You will read, analyze, and respond to the article “Just Walk on By” by Bruce Staples, ultimately considering his claims in light of the Trayvon Martin case. You will analyze the racial profiling of these men in terms of what we have learned about our society’s process of “monsterizing” and “othering” individuals and groups.
Purpose: Some of the goals of this course are: to develop the skills to understand and utilize academic vocabulary, to summarize and analyze in clear writing the rhetoric of others, to read college-level texts actively and purposefully to understand the thesis and supports, and to engage ideas critically and discover ideas for writing. This assignment will ask you to apply these skills in analyzing Staples’ argument in light of the Trayvon Martin case and our discussion of othering and monstrosity. You will ultimately make a claim that connects racial profiling to the patterns we have seen in our course readings of society making monsters of individuals and groups. You will consider the damaging effects of this process, drawing upon Staples’ language and claims, as well as the details of the Trayvon Martin case to support your claims.
Process: Begin with an intro. that sets up your critical conversation: what sources are contributing to this discussion? You must reference Staples and at least one reading from class on othering or monstrosity that you can connect to the topic. You must consider at least one counter argument to your position and form your argument out of the debate. Your thesis should make a claim about the connection between othering and making monsters and racial profiling, ultimately considering the damaging effects of these processes in our society.
In your body paragraphs, you will closely analyze the language used in Staples’ argument terms such as “victim” in the first sentence, phrases such as “unwieldy inheritance,” and entire sentences, such as “That first encounter, and those that followed signified that a vast unnerving gulf lay between nighttime pedestrians -- particularly women -- and me”). How does his argument relate to our course readings on othering and monstrosity? How does his language illustrate the damaging effects of these processes? How do Staples’ main ideas and the main concepts of our course then relate to the Trayvon Martin case? Why does our culture feel the need to set up these harmful “us” vs. “them” systems? How are othering labeling people as monsters, and racial profiling contributing to these systems? **You must provide sufficient, cited evidence from the texts (quoting and paraphrasing) to support your claims, as well as your own examples.
Requirements
· Must address Staples’s claims and demonstrate that you understand them
· Must cite Staples’s essay and one other source that we have read in class
· Must consider at least one counter-argument from your position and form your argument out of the debate, rather than assuming all audiences will agree with you
· Must put forward a reasonable and identifiable thesis and support it with appropriate evidence
· Must use terminology and phrases that contribute to the overall goals of your paper and are accessible to college-level students and instructors
· Final draft must be 800 - 1,000 words (4-5 pages), double-spaced and must be in MLA format. (The word count does not include your Works Cited page.)
· Peer Review is 11/13, and the Final Paper is due in class on 11/25.