Your short essay must be four to five pages in length, no more and no less, double-spaced, and formatted in 11 or 12 point font. I will grade your essay for historical argumentation, the use of supporting historical evidence, and concision and clarity of expression and style. The only permitted sources for the essay are Harriet Jacobs, Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl and the course textbook, Faragher, et al., Out of Many. Do not use outside sources of any kind, including internet sources; unattributed use of such sources constitutes plagiarism and will result in a '0' (no credit) for the assignment. Any words that are not your own must be placed in quotation marks. Only short quotations will be permitted. Any quotations must be accompanied by a parenthetical citation, for example: "By the end of the sixteenth century over a thousand European ships were trading furs each year along the northern Atlantic coast" (Faragher, p. 39). Failure to write the essay in your own words and/or the use of excessive quotation will lead to a significant reduction in your grade and/or a failing grade.
Your short essay must be organized around a thesis, that is a central argument, which must be expressed in the last sentence of the first paragraph. All subsequent paragraphs must contribute to and support the thesis. It is often a good idea to write the body of an essay first and to then write the introductory paragraph containing the thesis. Make sure that your essay has a strong thesis before you turn it in.
I expects that your submitted essay will constitute a polished final draft; be certain to put your essay through several drafts in which you revise and refine the essay for concision and clarity, persuasiveness of argument, and smoothness of expression. It is often a good idea to have proofreaders carefully read your essay to catch errors and to make suggestions for how you can make it better. You might also read your essay aloud to yourself in order to catch errors. Prof. Pfeifer will give your essay a poor mark if it reads roughly, as though it had not been carefully revised.
Paper Topic:
What is the case that Harriet Jacobs makes against American slavery in her narrative, and how do her life experiences illuminate race and social structure in the Antebellum American South? Be certain to use Out of Many Chapter 10 The South and Slavery 1790s-1850s to contextualize your analysis of the Jacobs narrative.