| Writing assignment #1, 5 pages, due at the beginning of class on Tuesday, February 6 | |
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Our first writing assignment will take its cue from the Pew Research Center surveys that we examined in week 2. Please briefly interview two people around 20-ish, and two people around 50-ish. I.e., four people across two generations. Be sure to keep them anonymous in your papers, but also be sure to be mindful of some basic demographics: such as class, gender, race, education level, urban/suburban/small town/rural, type of employment experience, and whatever else you feel will help you better understand their particular perspectve. The immediate question to ask is whether they have a generally positive or generally negative impression of “capitalism” and “socialism.” From there, you have to ask follow-up questions. Immediately obvious ones are: What do they think “capitalism” is, and what do they think are its positive and negative elements, and why? Same questions for “socialism.” of course. Where do they think they acquired these perceptions of “capitalism” and “socialism”? Is there anything else out there besides “capitalism” and “socialism”? If so, where did they get those ideas? You want to ask open-ended questions, to see how people respond. I.e., no leading questions. After the interviews, it will be your task to analyze their responses, in light of the other material that we have covered about the cultural inventions of “capitalism” and “socialism” as shorthand concepts with objectified reality status. These two concepts date from the 1920s forward. You might note not only the obvious — that people have different positive and negative impressions, but, more importantly, that people have different notions of what “capitalism” and “socialism” supposedly are, and that they have different routes to acquiring those notions. Any differences might be great, or small — that is for you to analyze. It should be obvious that there is no single right or wrong answer to this question. Rather, you will be evaluated on your ability to develop a forceful yet nuanced argument structuring your analysis, to pinpoint main themes to organize your analysis into coherent paragraphs, and to provide specific evidence from your interviews, the Pew Research Center surveys, the readings, and your lecture notes. Be sure to endnote/footnote the precise source of any quotations, derivative ideas, or uncommon facts. There is no need to do any additional outside research. No interviewee names. This should be anonymous. You can number them #1, #2, #3, #4 in your papers. Have fun with the interviews, and the analysis. |