Henry David Thoreau and Frederick Douglass
Henry David Thoreau and Frederick Douglass1301 Henry David Thoreau and Frederick Douglass Essay PromptsReadings: Henry David Thoreau’s “Economy” from Walden (1854), Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass an American Slave (1845)Potential essay topics. Choose one:? Evaluate Thoreau’s response to the expansion of commercialism in the early andmid19th century United States. What indication do you have from Douglass that heshared concerns about materialism or consumerism?? Slave narratives provocatively asserted- in defiance of white racism- that black men,women, and children were human and that slavery inhumanely repressed their basichuman rights. How does Douglass convey his humanity, and that of his fellow slaves, tohis reading audience? What is your sense from “Economy” of Thoreau’s attitude towardslavery?? Thoreau and Douglass identified urgent problems and offered their own devastatingcritiques of mid19th century American culture. How did these two authors useautobiographical writing to move readers and audiences toward reform?? Surprise me. Develop your own argument using evidence from both of their writings.? 1000 words? 10 or 12 point font? Standard written English? One inch margins? Cite with footnotes in Chicago style, not in parenthetical MLA style.? Your paper must have a main idea/thesis/argument. It cannot be a summary of thereading.? Your paper must be carefully edited. Grammar, punctuation, and spelling count. Nopaper will receive and A if it has more than 5 writing errors.? Cultivate your own voice/style. You will be writing a lot of papers in college, at leastthree in this course, so find your voice. This does not mean the papers are about you.Do not write about yourself.? You must demonstrate understanding and familiarity with both core texts by Thoreauand Douglass. Stronger “A” papers also make reference to course readings fromAmerican Perspectives.? Meet the format requirements? Have a strong main idea? Write clearly and edit your workA papers do these three tasks strongly, B papers may be weak in one area, C papers may be
