American Studies 335
New England
Roger Williams University
CAS 228
Tuesday and Friday, CAS 228
Fall Semester, 2006
Michael R. H. Swanson, Ph. D.
Office: CAS 110
Hours: T, Th, 11:00 - 12:30
W, 5:30 - 6:30, F, 1:00-2:00
Phone: 254 3230
Due: Thursday, December 14, Via Blackboard
Preview Period Through Friday, December 8
Length: c. 5 pp. Typed
Sources:
Nylander, Our Own Snug Fireside
Hansen, A Very Social Time
Directions:
As we have seen, communities of all kinds were central in the lives of New England men and women from colonial times throughout the 19th century. I would like to have you reflect on this in a thoughtful essay which
- A. Identifies the various kinds of communities (families, neighbors, congregations, etc.) with which New England Men and Women identified,
- B. Considers the various functions (social, emotional, practical, community control) which these communities filled,
- C. The environment (such as the house and the important rooms in it) in which these communities functioned,
- D. The mechanisms by which these functions were fulfilled (including such things as gossip, as well as organized occasions of one sort or other) and
- E. Compares this with your sense of community today. In your judgement what endures from those times, what has been lost, and in what ways are we better (or worse) off for the changes.
Consider this an informal paper (I don't need a bibliography or a formal footnoting system). However, I do encourage you to demonstrate you've read and understand the concepts in our sources by referring to them as often as appropriate. Body notes {last name of author, plus page number, all in parentheses} is all that is necessary to document a quotation or near paraphrase. i.e., (Hansen, p. 88)
