Essay - Expository Essay

Choose one of the prompts below. Write a 3-4-page expository essay on one of the essays or the book read this semester.

Ta-Nehisi Coates' "Between The World and Me"

Ta- Nehisi Coates uses history to illustrate that "America's progress...[is] built on looting and violence" (6). What history is Coates referring to? Based on Coates' evidence, is hemaking a just claim about American history and it connection to the current climate of race relations in America?

Brent Staples'"Just Walk on by: Black Men in Public Space"

Brent Staple's states, "It was in the echo of that terrified woman's footfalls that I first began to know the unwieldy inheritance I'd come into - the ability to alter space in ugly ways" (394). What "unwieldy inheritance" is Staple's referring to? What examples does he use to illustrate his ability to alter public spaces? Is race or gender the reason why Staples has to contort his body in order to make others comfortable with his presence?

Maya Angelou's "Graduation"
Maya Angelou states, "The white kids were going to have the chance to become Galileos and Madame Curies and Edisons and Gauguins, and our boys (the girls weren't even in on it) would try to be Jesse Owenses and Joe Louises" (28). Why does Angelou believe that there are low academic expectations set for black children? How does Edward Donleavy's speech to her graduating class reinforce that belief?

Mike Rose's "I Just Wanna Be Average"
This excerpt is taken from Mike Rose's book Lives on the Boundary. What boundaries does Rose write about here? What acts of classification do these boundaries serve? Use Rose's narrative to illustrate to boundaries Rose had to cross in order for him to achieve academic success.

Zora Neal Hurston's "How It feels to be a Colored Me"
Zora Neal Hurston states, "Someone is always at my elbow reminding me that I am the granddaughter of slaves...Slavery is sixty years in the past. The operation was successful and the patient is doing well, thank you" (187). What is Hurston saying about African American history? Based on Hurston's narrative, does forgetting about the history of slavery allow her to live free in her black body?
Audre Lorde's "The Fourth of July"

The 4th of July is a holiday commemorating the adaption of the "Declaration of Independence". What is the significance of the title of Audre Lorde's essay? What is the connection between the Declaration of Independence and Lorde's personal narrative? What evidence does Lorde use to illustrate the hypocrisy of the "Declaration of Independence"?