PROJECT WORK TIME

DUE TOMORROW:  2-3 potential thesis statements for your Op-Ed.  Research notes for 2 supporting sources and 2 opposing sources.  (Please turn in your op-ed analyses by tomorrow as well.)


Concessive Review:  Write a practice concessive thesis statement on any topic.

• Example:  Even though Effi is one of the strangest Jedi in the galaxy, her use of the force makes Animas a safe and happy place.

Good thesis statements...

• ...make a debatable claim about the topic.
• ...do not state the obvious or something factual.
• ...are specific and focused.
• ...are clearly and eloquently stated.
• ...can be backed up by solid evidence.
• ...avoid the first person (NO:  “I think…” “I believe”).

Project Launch

Starter #30:  Give me some feedback on the Edmodo "seminar" assignment.  Describe what you liked about it as well as what you might change.  Comment on your learning during the assignment:  was this an effective way to develop your perspective on the topic?

TURN IN COMP BOOKS!!


Project Launch
1.  Rhetoric and Ideology Project Guidelines
2.  Op-Ed Article Guidelines
3.  Op-Ed Rubric
4.  Oral Project Rubric
5.  Research Notes and Source Analysis



TOPIC BRAINSTORM
1.  Review the ideologies we have studied so far.
2.  In small groups, come up with a robust list of topics (political issues) that would make for good Op-Ed material.


Analysis of Op-Ed
1. Read two Op-Ed pieces from reputable news sources and answer the questions on the handout.
2. Suggested sources for Op-Ed examples

• Time
• The Economist
• The Durango Herald
• http://www.realclearpolitics.com/
• http://www.nytimes.com/pages/opinion/
• http://www.bostonglobe.com/opinion

Starter #29:  React to this quotation by Nobel Laureate economist Milton Friedman.  Do you agree or disagree with his statement?

• “The real problem with government is not the deficit. The real problem with government is the amount of our money that it spends..” ― Milton Friedman

What do we know about welfare?



Crash Course:  The New Deal

What do we mean by trickle-down economics?

Discuss the assigned documents with your group.

Populist Platform:

Make sure everyone in your group understands the document.  Answer the following:

1. We learn from Herrick that rhetoric “is a response and invites a response.”  What situation(s) are the Populists responding to?

2. Discuss the ideology contained in the Populist Platform.  What is the main message (thesis)?

3. What are the best points that the Populists make?  How do they use rhetoric effectively?

4. What connections can you make to the current political dialogue that you hear?

5. Have any of these Populist demands been met since this time period?

6. What questions does your group have? 

“Wealth”

Make sure everyone in your group understands the document.  Answer the following:

1.  What situation is Andrew Carnegie responding to?

2. Discuss the ideology contained in Carnegie’s rhetoric.  What is the main message?

3. What are the best points that he makes?  How does he use rhetoric effectively?

4. What connections can you make to the current political dialogue?

5. Who do you think is Carnegie’s “imagined audience”?

6. What questions does your group have?

Brainstorm Google search terms for this assignment.

Check out this cool resource on effective google searches.


Crash Course:  The Great Depression

Starter 28:  Do you think income equality is desirable?  Would our society be better off if no one were rich and no one were poor?  What are the advantages of living in a competitive society?


Crash Course:  The Progressive Era


WORK TIME
Readings and paragraph summaries are due tomorrow!
Edmodo
Conferences with me?

Pop Quiz!
1.  How were certain men able to amass large fortunes in the latter part of the 19th century?
2.  Why did resistance movements like Populism develop?  What changes did they want to see in society?


Homework Share
1. Share the paragraphs you wrote with a partner.
2. Each partner should write two sentences of response to the written paragraphs.  You may respond in any way you see fit:  ask questions, add omitted information, respond ideologically.
3. After you have read each other's paragraphs, discuss the biases in each secondary source as well as the answers to quiz questions.  What questions do you still have?


Crash Course:  John Green on Gilded Age Politics


Inquiry:  The Ideology of Wealth, Redistribution, and the Income Gap
Readings:  Carnegie's The Gospel of Wealth and The Populist Party Platform


HOMEWORK
See handout for due dates associated with this week's inquiry.  (Hint:  Carnegie and Populists due Wednesday!)

Starter #27:  Interpret this political cartoon.  What ideological position is the artist trying to represent?

Discuss the image.  What do we already know about Standard Oil and John D. Rockefeller?

Questions of the Day:

1.  Why were certain men in the 19^th century able to amass immense wealth?

2.  Who were the Populists?  What did they believe?  Why were they able to gain millions of supporters?

Film excerpts:  The Rockefellers
1.  Describe John D. Rockefeller's ideology concerning the acquisition of wealth.
2.  Do you see the film as biased?  Neutral?  Deconstructed?  Why?  Give evidence from the film to support your answer.


Who were the Populists?

Mary Elizabeth Lease:  Speech to the Temperance Union (1890)
Discussion:

• Why do you think speeches like this were appealing to certain audiences in the 1890s? 
• What images and rhetorical devices did she use to excite her audience? 
• What ideological economic position does she espouse?
• Does her rhetoric remind us of anything that we hear in political discourse?

Brief Mini-lesson on Populism


HOMEWORK:
See yesterday's post for weekend homework