Skip to main content

Essay Contest

    ALL JUNIORS (and those seniors who choose to) are required to write a 500-word essay for the Congressional Seminar National Essay Contest. The essay is for a grade (extra for seniors) and should be typed, double-spaced, and formatted according to MLA.

    The essay question for this year:
    "If you were a presidential candidate, what domestic issue would you consider the most important, and what would you do about it?"

    The most discussed domestic issues, in my estimation, are the economy, the energy "crisis", the health care "crisis", immigration, and the pro-life/pro-choice debate. You are welcome to tackle any other domestic issue, but please limit it to one. In your paper, you will establish the issue (or problem) and provide solutions. The information you use should be documented (discussed in class next week), and a logical place to start is the candidates themselves.

    The presidential candidates still in the mix:

    Of course, there are other candidates (i.e. Ron Paul, and Dennis Kucinich), and you can look those up if you'd like.

    IN FACT, try out this handy candidate calculator to see which candidate best matches your opinions on the issues (here's another)!

    DUE DATE: Wednesday 1/16

    Popular posts from this blog

    O Brother, A Response Paper

    Hello Freshmen... Your assignment for the weekend is to write a 250-word (one page) response paper on O Brother, Where Art Thou . Please type and format according to MLA. You may choose from the two topics below: (1) Respond to the lyrics of one song from the film. Using your lyric sheet (or the internet ), connect the lyrics of one song to the movie's characters/setting/events. In other words, explain how the lyrics are relevant to the film. (2) Choose one of the historically relevant elements of the movie and look up an article on Wikipedia . Print out the article; then, summarize it and connect it to the movie's characters/setting/events. Be careful not to plagiarize the article, which should be stapled to your reponse. Ideas discussed in class include The Great Depression, con artist, chain gang, Populism (George Wallace, Huey P. Long, W. Lee O'Daniel), Ku Klux Klan (William Joseph Simmons), and George "Babyface" Nelson.
    Read more

    Monty Python & The Holy Grail

    Before you start scoffing and claiming that I am merely killing time until midterms, hear me out. Okay, it's true that this is a perfect time to NOT start anything new, and I do have grading, of course; however, there is more merit to this than you may realize. First, Monty Python -- the British comedy troupe -- has become inextricably associated with all that is "British" in the minds of many. Their educated humor and sharp-minded wit have helped to define what we think of as British comedy, certainly. Their biting satire has taken aim at the British government (and our own), and Britain's monarchy, institutions and social customs. In a sense, their humor (like Shakespeare's) is timeless; no period of history is safe from ridicule (or illumination), and no taboo is too taboo. Second, the movie is a send-up of everything we've studied so far regarding the Middle Ages. They touch on Arthurian Lit and the Grail quest motif (of course), and also feudalism, k...
    Read more

    Senior End-of-Year Schedule!

    Seniors, the end is near, and there are a few assignments left to schedule. Here is a list of everything due in the next two weeks: Career Update - a one-page addendum to your research paper, updating your plans for college and beyond. Be sure to include what you originally planned and if that's changed. Whether plans have changed or not, please explain why and what steps you've taken towards reaching your goal -- i.e. where you've decided to attend and what major you've declared. This is due WEDNESDAY 4/24. Letter to Future Self - this is an OPTIONAL assignment, but I encourage you to take it seriously. As discussed in class, this letter will be sent to you in about five years. Think about what you'd like to tell yourself five years from now. For example, maybe it would be interesting to reflect on your plans at the time, what values you held dear, what you wanted to remember. In addition, you might think about your current likes/dislikes related to pop cultur...
    Read more