Minutemen and their world (book)

HST 109, Spring 2013 – Minutemen and their World Essay

In this assignment, you will write a 700-900 word analytical essay. You are writing about the book Minutemen and their World, but you are using your own judgment and analysis as you do so. Make sure that you draw on several different parts of the book, rather than basing all of your analysis on one or two chapters. Your essay should have an introductory paragraph and a concluding paragraph. Each of your other paragraphs should have a clear topic sentence, which is supported by arguments and evidence within that paragraph. Each essay must include a minimum of three direct quotations from the book, as well as paraphrasing. Your paper must have 1-inch margins, 12-pt. font, and be carefully proofread. You will turn the essay in both by hard copy in class, and by Safe Assignment prior to class starting.

Plagiarism will result in a 0 on the assignment and perhaps an XE in the course.

Choose one of the following questions:

Robert A. Gross discusses changes in Concord’s social and political life in the years before Lexington and Concord. Choose two of those changes. Describe them clearly. Then explain how Gross successfully links those changes to the American rebellion.

Robert A. Gross discusses changes in Concord’s social and political life in the years before Lexington and Concord. Choose two of those changes. Describe them clearly. Then explain how Gross fails or refuses to link those changes to the American rebellion.

Rubric:

An “A” paper will have a clear thesis that answers the question posed, and that is supported by well-chosen evidence from the book. Each paragraph will have an organizing idea and evidence to support and illustrate that idea. There will be no significant errors in grammar, spelling, or organization. The paper will offer insight into Gross’s arguments and the historical events and processes he is discussing.

A “B” paper will have a clear thesis that answers the question posed, and that is supported by well-chosen evidence from the book. Each paragraph will have an organizing idea and evidence to support and illustrate that idea. There may be weakness in the argumentation or evidence of one section of the paper. There may be a few significant errors in grammar, spelling, or organization. If the paper offers insight into Gross’s arguments and the historical events and processes Gross is discussing, such insights can partially compensate for other weaknesses in the paper. However, lack of such insights can result in a solid paper earning a “B” rather than an “A.”

A “C” paper will often either have a fuzzy thesis or a thesis that only partially answers the question, or it will lack sufficient evidence to support that thesis. There may be faulty organization, or significant errors in grammar, spelling, or organization. Some “C” papers simply summarize parts of the book rather than advancing a thesis; good grammar, spelling, and organization cannot turn such a paper into a “B” or an “A,” although they will keep the essay in the passing range.

A “D” or “E” paper will often lack a thesis or will fail completely to support that thesis. There may be a failure to answer the question. (If that failure results from the paper having been written originally for another setting, the problem becomes one of academic integrity.) There may be no or radically insufficient citation of the book. There may be such significant errors in grammar, spelling, or organization that the paper does not communicate the writer’s ideas. The paper may be of insufficient length and depth.