Essay 2 — Race in American Entertainment

Purpose

This essay is a chance to practice stating and defending an argumentative position (i.e., a thesis). As such, it contributes to the following learning outcomes:

• Outcome 1. Read significant texts carefully and critically, recognizing and responding to argumentative positions as part of a literal or metaphorical conversation between authors
• Outcome 2.1. State a defensible thesis for an argument
• Outcome 2.3. Use valid reasoning to draw conclusions from evidence
• Outcome 2.4. Write clearly throughout an argument
• Outcome 2.5. Improve the substance of an argument through revision (only assessed for the final version of the essay)

Background

This essay grows out of our discussions in class of race and racism in “The Gold Bug,” minstrel shows, and modern American entertainment. In terms of the metaphor of writing as conversation, it is a chance to add your thoughts to that conversation. For the most part, that conversation happened in class meetings between September 10 and September 17.

We will also do some readings and have some class discussions of writing ideas that you might use in this essay between September 20 and 24.

Activity

Pick any current piece of American entertainment, and analyze how it supports or challenges my thesis that racist caricatures have been an ongoing element in American entertainment from at least the early 19th century until today.

I’m hoping that you will use a “piece of entertainment” with which you are already familiar; I don’t expect you to have to research it or read other critic’s views on it. I expect that you’ll pick something such as a TV show or episode, movie, song, game, play, performer or performance group, etc. In short, it doesn’t have to be something very big, and you have a lot of flexibility to find something familiar and interesting to you.

In “analyzing” the piece of entertainment you pick, I want you to state your opinion on how it supports or challenges my thesis. You can support the thesis, challenge it, or argue that your chosen work does some of both; your position is, of course, up to you. But you should position your view relative to the ideas about race and racist caricatures that have been presented in class, i.e., position it in that conversation. The body of your essay should explain in a clear and logical way why you hold the view you do and why readers should share it. Your essay should also include enough summary or synopsis of your chosen piece of entertainment that a reader who isn’t already familiar with it can see how your argument relates to it. I expect all of this will require somewhere in the range of 3 to 4 pages (i.e., around 1000 words).

Follow-Up

We will do peer reviews of drafts of this essay during class on the “Peer Reviews of Drafts” date shown above. During that class, be prepared to share the essay electronically with the person you work with in the peer review. Also, please bring your computer to class on that day so you can access other people’s essays.

Between the peer review date and the “Grade Draft By” date, I will meet with you to share my thoughts on the essay and answer questions you have for me. You can make an appointment for this meeting via Google Calendar. Please make the meeting 20 minutes long, and schedule it to finish before 5:00 PM on the “Grade Draft By” date. So that I have time to prepare for these meetings, please share your Google doc draft with me by midnight the evening before the reviews.

Following the peer reviews and meetings with me, you’ll have a chance to revise your draft essay. Share your revision with me by 11:59 PM on the “Submit Final Draft By” date. If your second version is in the same Google doc you already shared with me for the first draft, “sharing” it again just involves emailing me a quick note that the document is ready for me to look at. Then, during the three weekdays following the “Submit Final Draft By” date, I would once again like to have a 20 minute meeting with you to talk about the final version; as with the drafts, please sign up for this meeting through Google calendar.