HISTORY 475 ESSAY TWO

Please answer the one of the following two questions.  The length of your essay should be between five and six typed double-spaced pages (readable 12-point font; one-inch margins all around).  Essays are due in paper at the start of class on Thursday, 18 November.

QUESTION ONE: How effective has federal, state, and local government been in helping Americans obtain the “good life”?

QUESTION TWO: Did Americans get closer to finding true happiness and the “good life” in the decades after World War II?

RULES OF EVIDENCE FOR BOTH QUESTIONS: Answer either question by drawing on Avila’s book, class lecture materials, and at least three of our other class readings so far (up to and including the 4 November readings).  Note: You are welcome to discuss the same reading that you used for your first essay earlier this quarter, but that reading will not count as one of your three readings beyond Avila.  You would still need to draw on three other readings in addition to Avila.  Most importantly, your paper needs to draw extensively on Avila’s book. Avila should be the most important source of evidence for your paper.  No outside research is encouraged, and you need to obtain my permission at least two days in advance to cite outside readings.  So long as you use only our class materials, you do not need a formal bibliography.

OTHER RULES AND TIPS
-The rules for common-sense parenthetical citations that we used for the first essay still apply.
-Remember to review the tips on writing page posted on my faculty website.
-Your essay must include numerous brief quotations from the available readings.  Wherever possible, use a primary source quotation rather than a secondary source quotation.  To find primary sources in Avila’s book, look for places where he quotes from historical actors and use them to help make your case.  
-When you quote from a primary source, be sure to introduce the author and context of the quotation in the essay.  See the my webpage writing tips on avoiding anonymous quotations.
-Although you may converse with classmates on general ideas, this is the equivalent of a midterm exam, and all work (gathering evidence and writing) should be your own.

TIPS FOR QUESTION ONE:
-Remember that different Americans have had different experiences with federal, state, and local government, and those experiences might have also changed across time.  As you gather evidence, look for interesting patterns that will help you develop your thesis.  For instance, have the different levels of government been more effective at helping certain groups of Americans?  Has government been more effective on certain issues, and less effective in other areas?  A good thesis will do more than simply say that government has been effective or ineffective.  You should instead offer a creative synthesis that reveals interesting patterns relating to the role of government.

TIPS FOR QUESTION TWO:
-“True happiness” is obviously a subjective concept.  To answer the question, you should at some point in your essay, most likely in the introduction, briefly explain what you mean by happiness.  One useful approach is to define three to five attributes that you consider essential for living a happy and good life.  These attributes can relate to any aspect of human life (work, emotions, identity, community, etc.).  Then, in your essay, you can explain how closely Americans came to reaching your standard of a happy and good life.