Antebellum+Reformers+2008

Community Connections 2008: Antebellum Themes Then and Now

How do historic patterns in the way we confront issues of race, class, gender, identity, and sustainability affect disadvantaged populations in the U.S. today?

In this Community Connections paper, we are asking you to make connections among the themes you’ve been studying in your U.S. History course and the work of your group. Please craft a polished analytical essay that approaches the question above in the following ways:

Part I First, choose one of the following issues to focus on for your essay: 1. Race 2. Class 3. Gender 4. Identity 5. Sustainability

Explain your sense of how, in the antebellum period (1820-1860), people felt the impact of that issue and were limited by the social, economic, or political structures they inherited from the Framers’ generation. How did “the system” created by the Framers in the 1780s affect your chosen issue 50 years later in the antebellum period?

Part II Second, read Thoreau’s “On Civil Disobedience” PLUS the antebellum primary source designated for your group. Look for how the impact and limitations you identified in Part I were combated by social reformers during the antebellum period. Using a minimum of two quotations from each of the documents (at least four total), explain how the authors express their own agency during this time period. In other words, how, why, and in what ways did the authors see themselves as able to change or have an impact on the patterns you’ve identified?

Part III Still focusing on your chosen issue of race, class, gender, etc., compare the patterns you described in Parts I and II to describe a similar pattern that you see playing out with the population you’re studying in your Community Connections group. What inherited structures are people fighting against now – things created in the past that live on now in ways that no longer serve the original purpose, are outdated, or otherwise inhibit society? In what ways are modern people limited by those inherited structures? What specific people or circumstances have you encountered in your Community Connections group that suggest the complexity of the issue you’re dealing with?

Part IV Now bring it all together to connect how we can address these issues now. How do you think society can and should respond to these historic patterns and modern realities? How do the authors of the two documents (Thoreau + the one for your group) point the way to how concerned people today could express their agency to achieve a better outcome? In other words, what is the connection of your group’s work to the perspectives explored by the two documents and the antebellum era of social reform, and what should we as a society do about it?

What will I be graded on? You will be graded based upon five major factors:

1. Ability to describe the limitations placed upon the group by the structures in place. Have you given solid historical details that show exactly how the SYSTEM during the early 19th century intentionally or unintentionally restricted the experience of groups or individuals? Do you incorporate readings and themes from class to explain how the systems existed in the first place?

2. Use of the documents. Did you choose at least four quotations from the Thoreau and your assigned document (two from each) that best exemplify the manner in which a person fought against the system? More importantly, did you explain HOW (in detail) the documents show the manner in which that person fought against the system?

3. Connecting to your group’s work. How insightfully did you identify and describe a modern pattern related to your Community Connections group that connects to the historical patterns you described? Is your discussion rooted in an analysis of inherited structures? Do you incorporate specific references to experiences had and people you met through your Community Connections group this fall? Is there a CLEAR line drawn between the history you studied and the experience in the Community Connections group?

4. The role for activists. Did you relate the historical struggle born out in parts I, II, and III to your experience in Community Connections? Have you created a realistic, thoughtful answer to the questions regarding the way people should respond to the patterns that you’ve described? Have you shown an ability to analyze and develop an answer to a problem?

5. Mechanics. Was your paper proofread for spelling / grammar / etc.? Did you quote each document at least two times? Did you properly cite your sources?

Papers are due Monday, December 15 in U.S. History.