Hamilton Tie-in Assignment
In Topic 6 you and your classmates considered Li n-Manuel Miranda's choice of Alexander Hamilton as an archetypical American. For this assignment choose one person about whom you have learned this summer session who you think is an archetypical American and explain what "American" characteristics you think they embody. choice must appear in "Out of Many, A history of american people".
• You may not choose Alexander Hamilton. Rather, for this assignment, I want you to find your own Hamilton!
• Your assignment should be at least 500 words
• Your choice must appear in Out of Many and/or in one of the assigned primary or secondary sources But a lot of interesting historical figures- from lesser-known people like Phyllis Wheatley or James Otis to even well-known people, like Pocahontas, Thomas Jefferson, Frederick Douglas, or Abraham Lincoln - only get brief coverage in the assigned reading due to time-constraints So, for this assignment I want you to do a bit of additional research. In your essay, in addition to drawing on information from the assigned reading, also incorporate information from one good-quality Internet source. The website you use must end in .edu (= associated with a college or university), .gov (= associated with the US government), or .pbsorg (= associated with PBS). I highly recommend getting your website approved by me before you write your essay. (Email me at any ti me to check.)
Other Important Information about the Extra Credit Assignment
• You may choose a wel I -known figure, but don't be afraid to get creative and think outside-the-box (I ike Tony Horwitz did in his chapter on Cabeza de V aca)! What is essential is that you carefully think about what it means to be American and then show how your choice embodies the "American" characteristics you have identified. So, your extra credit assignment should have a main argument (= a thesis statement), and that argument should be supported throughout your paper with historical evidence.
• Before I write your Final Exam Study Guide at the end of Week 5 I will look through the extra credit assignments I will incorporate some of your choices into the Final Exam Study Guide and at least one of your choices will appear on the final exam itself.