History 482B    Spring 2011    Final Exam Essays
Due via turnitin.com by 10pm on Thursday, 9 May

Please answer in two separate essays, each one 3 to 4 typed, double-spaced pages (about 300 words per page).  

QUESTION 1:
To what extent have American women’s experiences with popular culture resulted in oppression and unhappiness?  (When it comes to experiences with pop culture, consider everything from fashion styles to the mainstream media.)
    Answer this question by drawing extensively on the Douglas book.  Your essay should also draw on Escobedo’s article, at least one other assigned class reading, and any relevant lecture material.  However, the main source of evidence in your paper should be Where the Girls Are.

QUESTION 2:
To what extent do you agree with the following statement: “The United States is guilty of cultural imperialism.  Since the second half of the 20th century, Americans have exploited other peoples by exporting the American mass culture industry around the world.  White Americans have also harmed other groups by appropriating those groups’ cultural traditions.”
    Answer this question by drawing extensively from at least four of the following eight readings: R&M Chapters 4, 5, and 6, Petterson, Watson, Condry, Kun, and Seago.  I also encourage you to refer to any relevant lecture material.

SPECIAL QUESTION OPTION:
You are welcome to propose an alternative question that will replace one of the above questions for your exam.  To qualify for this option, you must email me your question for my approval by 5pm on Friday the 3rd.  I might then suggest modifications to the question.  Your proposed question should also indicate the class readings that you will use to answer the question.  Also mention which of the above questions you propose replacing with your new question.  As a general rule, your question must draw on at least three or four different class readings.  To receive credit for this option, you absolutely need to get my final approval for your question.

OTHER RULES AND TIPS:
As you develop your argument, be sure to consider important opposing points of view.  Try to weave into your analysis evidence that establishes those opposing points of view, while still explaining why you see your main interpretation as the more valid one.

To incorporate enough evidence from the various readings while still keeping to the page limit, you will need to work hard gathering evidence, finding brief quotations from the readings, develop a creative argument, and expressing that argument in concise prose.

Just like the midterm essay, be sure to provide a parenthetical page citation for each specific reference that you draw from the class materials.  For the sake of convenience, you can use common-sense abbreviations for our readings, such as (RM, 22) for page 22 from Rubin and Melnick’s book, and so on.  For specific information that you gathered from a class session, create a simple parenthetical citation that refers to the date of the class session: e.g. (class, 4/21).  As a general rule, you do not need to provide a citation for information so generic that one could find it anywhere.  For instance, the claim that “Coney Island had lots of amusement parks” requires no citation, but a more specific claim about the nature of those amusement parks does require one.

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 to include a bibliography.

• Don’t forget to read the tips on writing on my personal faculty webpage before starting the project.  Also remember to review the syllabus comments on plagiarism.  Always put the words of other writers in quotation marks and provide a page citation.  You can also paraphrase (i.e. put the idea into entirely your own words) and provide a citation.  It is not enough to change just a few words of someone else’s writing; this is still plagiarism.

• Although you may converse with your classmates on general ideas regarding this assignment, this is the equivalent of a midterm exam, and all work (gathering evidence and writing) should be your own.

• There is no single “right” or “wrong” answer for this assignment.  You should try to develop a thesis that is thoughtful, original, balanced, and well-supported by evidence and clear writing.