Write a critical analysis of one of the readings we have done thus far in class. You may choose any of the readings from either the class, race, or education chapters in Rereading America (11th ed.), excluding the chapter introductions and visual portfolios. Your objective is to reflect critically on the writing: this means you will not merely summarize the reading’s points, but also interpret its meanings and judge its quality and relevance. You should think of your task in terms of three basic questions: (1) What does the reading say, and what does it mean? (2) How (and how well) does it say these things? (3) What is the relative value of this contribution to its broader topic? You should develop and communicate some clear idea(s) about how this reading fits into the larger framework of American culture that is our object of study. As you proceed, you will want to consider these elements of the piece you are analyzing: What are the main points communicated? What are the reading’s strengths? What are its weaknesses? In what context was the work written? On what assumptions does it rest? How does it relate to other readings or ideas we’ve encountered, especially to the topic of the chapter in which it is included? What are some of the implications of this reading, especially for contemporary life? Try not to simply answer these questions one by one as you write, but instead try to integrate them into a cohesive narrative. Remember, you’re trying to communicate ideas about the quality and the significance of the reading you choose. Including direct citations from your text will be a valuable tool in building evidence for your assertions. (See below for information about citations.) Also note that, depending on which reading you choose, you may need to employ different skills: for example, an analysis of Gary Soto’s story “Looking for Work” would proceed differently than would an analysis of Stephanie Coontz’s essay “What We Really Miss about the 1950s.” In either case, though, you would try to describe the contribution that the piece makes to the larger discussion of family, how it does this, how well it does this, etc. Format: The paper should be 1400-1700 words long and double-spaced. Please list the readings that you have used in a ″Works Cited″ page. I included a pdf of the reading If you could use the what we really miss about the 50s by Stephanie Coontz (pages 85-110)
