how various historical societies viewed the proper role of the generic individual and the proper role of s
This assignment is an analysis of the relationship between individual and community/society in the modern era: how various historical societies viewed the proper role of the generic individual and the proper role of society, what rights and responsibilities were assigned to each, how these values worked in practice, etc. You must consider the relationship in its historical context – how these were viewed by a particular society at a particular time in a particular place.
You must analyze examples from TWO different nations or cultures (at least one of which must be NON-“western”, i.e., NON-Euro-American) chosen from some point in time between 1500-2000, AND close with a discussion of how you (today) view the relationship in your society compared to the historic views you analyzed and what ideas of value you have drawn from this examination. This mean your paper will examine the relationship between individual and community from at least three different perspectives — two historical (#1-2) perspectives PLUS your own perspective of your own contemporary society (#3).
How you define the concepts “individual” and “community” and what historical examples you choose are up to you, BUT DO NOT focus on the impact one “great” individual had on a society (i.e., no Columbus or Akbar or Kangxi or Napoleon or Cixi or Gandhi or Hitler, et al.) and DO NOT just string together summaries from class materials.
Talk to me if you do not understand what this assignment asks for.
CRITERIA FOR EVALUATION:
a concrete thesis statement (relevant to the assignment as given above) as part of your introduction;
accurate and detailed analysis of each historical example, exhibiting a thorough knowledge of BOTH the theme and how it played out in each different historical context [NOTE: this will be the bulk of your paper];
intelligent and rational incorporation of a minimum of TWO OUTSIDE sources of historical scholarship relevant to your analysis [NOTE: You can and SHOULD use your textbook, readings and class notes as support material, but none WILL COUNT towards meeting this particular requirement];
your own conclusions and reflections about the assignment theme in history and its relevance to you;
a bibliography or works cited page [NOTE: You can and SHOULD use your textbook, readings and class notes as support material, but those WILL COUNT towards meeting this particular requirement]; AND
the technical quality of your writing.
ADDITIONAL NOTES:
All papers must be a minimum of seven (7) full pages. If you choose to do a cover/title page, it does not count towards your total.
Pages must be typed in a 10-, 11- or 12-point font with normal (one-inch) margins. (No billboards or haiku, please.)
Use the reference formatting suggestions below OR Chicago Manual of Style / Turabian OR MLA OR APA style for footnotes/endnotes (yes, citations are required since you’re using sources) and for bibliography/works cited page (together these are your scholarly apparatus). Whichever style you choose to use, your use of it must be correct and consistent.
All papers MUST be typed in a double-spaced format, with pages numbered and stapled, per the guidelines in the Ironclad Rules section of your syllabus.
Please bear in mind the University’s policy on academic dishonesty (plagiarism) and the Honor Pledge as stated on the syllabus. Plagiarism will result in a ZEROgrade for this assignment.
NOTES ON YOUR SCHOLARLY APPARATUS:
Whether you prefer to use footnotes or endnotes, just be sure to use your chosen bibliographic style — whether APA or MLA or Chicago — consistently and correctly. The same goes for your bibliography/works cited page.
