PART I:  Explore Your Emerging Political Platform

In a multi-page paper, examine your political ideology, trace your roots of socialization, respond to national news stories, and forecast your political future.   Organizational Overview                                                 Section One:  Introduction to the political spectrum

                                               
Thesis:  Articulate your ideology

 

                                                Section Two:  Trace your roots of political socialization

                                                                                               

Section Three:  Demonstrate your ideology through news analysis 

                                               

Section Four:  Conclude, and forecast your political future

                                               

Section Five:  MLA Works Cited

 Section One:  Introduction (1-2 pages)

Explore the fundamental differences between liberal and conservative thinking in American politics.  Consider how liberals and conservatives differ with regard to core values like property, opportunity, equality, freedom, security, privacy, as well as the purpose and scope of government.  Transition into a brief introduction of your personal journey of self discovery and conclude this section of your paper with a thesis statement in which you attempt to identify your own political ideology.  This section of your paper should answer the question, “What am I?” or “Where do I fit on the political spectrum?”  Feel free to use the traditional political labels we’ve studied in class; or, if that feels too restrictive, develop a new set of language to describe your political beliefs.  Either way, be careful your creativity does not surpass your clarity.

 Section Two (1-2 pages)

Building off your thesis statement, explore your roots of socialization.  In other words, go back and trace the most influential social forces that have combined to shape your ideology.  Include key aspects of your upbringing, demographics, major life experiences, and your current social circle.  This section of your paper should answer the question, “How did I get here?” or “What shapes my politics?”  Don’t shy away from serious self-evaluation.  You haven’t honestly explored this topic until you’ve asked the hard question:  “Are these my beliefs, or am I just (1) borrowing them from my parents, or (2) pretending to believe in them to look cool around my friends?” 

      Section Three (3-5 pages) 

Provide evidence to support your thesis by discussing your response to three national political news stories from this year.  This section of your paper should answer the question, “How did I react to the big news events of the year?  Your goal here is to demonstrate your ideology by demonstrating the way you think, the way you filter news events through your unique political lens.  I will  have a particular interest in this section of your paper because here you’ll show me whether you’re really able to apply your ideology in a specific context.  To help your reader, divide this section into three sub-sections (one for each news story) and include all of the following in each sub-section:

  

 

Summarize, Analyze, & Evaluate a News Event

Keep in mind this paper is all about expressing your emerging ideology, so you’ll want to choose stories that pull your political leanings to the surface – stories that invite a liberal or conservative reaction.  Before you start writing, make sure I  approve your choices.   It would be a shame to have you turn in a paper about Anna Nicole Smith in a year of so many more important political events. 

 

Begin by briefly summarizing the event and the way it played out in the media.  Most likely, your reader already knows about the event so save your ink here.  Just be sure to provide parenthetical citations to give credit to the reputable news source where you retrieved the information.   Next, analyze and evaluate the story and/or the media’s coverage from a personal standpoint.  Try to answer the questions “What happened, what does it mean, and how do I feel about it?” Discuss the elements of the story/coverage that surprised, disgusted, disappointed, inspired, infuriated, alarmed, or satisfied you, etc.  Discuss the developing consequences of this story after the event, and the political ramifications for the participants.  Discuss what impact, if any, this event may have on the upcoming presidential election.  Discuss alternative outcomes you would have wished for, or make predictions about future outcomes.  Choose one or all of these, or develop your own; but at the very least, make your unique political voice evident in these discussions.    

 Embed your Favorite Political Cartoon

Research each news story until you’ve uncovered the perfect political cartoon.  It may be one that mirrors your reaction to the story, or just the opposite.  Once you’ve found it, embed it (digitally through cut-and-paste, or physically cutting and pasting a photocopy) in your text wherever you deem it most appropriate.  The function of the cartoon is to illustrate your main idea, NOT TO BECOME THE MAIN IDEA OF THE SECTION.  Should you choose to briefly explain or discuss the cartoon, be sure that it’s done in a way that enhances your analysis/evaluation as opposed to simply explaining a joke that is already obvious to the reader.  Think of it like this:  the summary, analysis, and evaluation are the meat and potatoes of this sub-section and the cartoon is the seasoning.  You will be evaluated on your ability to not only choose the right flavor, but also measure in just the right “pinch.”

    

Don’t get in a hurry with the cartoon because there’s a lot of detail here I will be looking for.

 

·        Shrink the image so that it occupies a maximum of 1/3 of the entire page.

·        Provide the artist’s name in parentheses to the bottom right of the image.

  

·        Give credit to the source of the cartoon in your MLA Works Cited page, making careful note of the original publication as well as the website that you copied it from. 

·        For an electronic source, all you’ll need is www.politicalcartoons.com, but you’ll also have luck searching through back issues of The Week.

 Section Four:  Conclusion (1 page) 

Provide an appropriate conclusion to the paper by first revisiting your thesis and your most salient points of self-discovery.  Then, conclude your paper by forecasting and answer to the question, “How might my political beliefs shape my future?”  You have a range of options to consider for this section because you are all such different thinkers; just bring the paper to its appropriate conclusion.  Depending on your level of optimism about the future, you might discuss the degree to which your ideology inspires/discourages/isolates you in your community/campus/world.  Perhaps you’re going to become an activist, a candidate, a working stiff, a couch potato non-voter, a missionary, or a soccer mom; whatever the case, discuss how the budding political platform of your teenage years might evolve to influence the future you.  

 Section Five:  MLA Works Cited

You’ll use this as a way to give credit to the print/Internet sources in Section Three of your paper.  Refer to any reputable MLA reference, or utilize the resources provided by our eager and capable library staff. 

 Titles & Formatting

Your finished product must reflect careful planning and construction.  It must have a title (on a separate title page) that appropriately reflects your thesis, and sub-heading at the outset of each section that direct the reader on the shifting topics.  The title and sub-headings not only add to the clarity of your paper’s organization, but also provide a great opportunity to add a touch of your unique voice to the paper.  Feel free to utilize clever, symbolic, or catchy language that entertains the reader; but don’t be cheesy as this will undermine the work as a whole. 

 

Please be sure to polish your final product according to the following standards:

• Double space
• 12 pt. Times New Roman font
• One inch margins
• Free of awkward sentence construction and errors in spelling, capitalization, and punctuation. 

Follow standard MLA formatting guidelines for:

• Parenthetical citations of news sources
• Citation of political cartoons
• Works Cited page

 PART II:  Write a Book Review
As a vital component of your self-exploration, read a book that truly
feeds your political passion and curiosity, and write a review evaluating
 the author’s effectiveness and the usefulness of the work as a whole.  

For all the books that teachers have forced upon you over the years, here’s an assignment that tries a fresh approach:  pick your own.  Even the most senioritis-stricken can find something to get fired up about on the “Politics/Current Events” shelf at the bookstore.  Go ahead, try it.  Spend one hour browsing this section and you’ll undoubtedly find a title that connects with you; it resonates with that same “political self” you’ve been thinking and writing about in your paper.  Once you’ve found it, just make sure that it’s 1.) related to your political interests, 2.) non-fiction, 3.) published in the last 10 years, and 4.) a minimum of 200 pages in length.  To play it safe, please check with me for “advice and consent” on your chosen title.  After that, you’re ready to start turning pages!  I always find controversy interesting  so you might look at books about controversy’ s in government.  Scott McClellan the former Press Sect for President Bush Denounced the Bush white house in his book.  You might look at that type of book.

A simple way to get started on your search for a good book is to do some searches on Amazon.com or Barnesandnoble.com.  Websites such as these allow you to type in a very specific topic.  In addition, they will make recommendations for you on related titles in the subject.  Once you find a title, check for it in one of the local public libraries, university libraries, or here at the high school.  There’s no sense spending money if you don’t have to.  If you find a title that you absolutely cannot do without, and you cannot find it on the shelves locally, be sure to ask a librarian for assistance.  They get paid to put resources into the hands of eager readers. 

 Paragraph organization (Feel free to use topic sub-headings)

1. Introduction to the book, and a discussion of why you chose it (this discussion should reflect the discoveries you’re making and work you’re doing in the platform paper)

2. A summary of the author’s thesis/overall purpose for publishing.

3. Summary of the book’s organizational layout (please do not simply list the chapter titles).

4. Evaluation of the author’s persuasiveness in proving their thesis.  Since each author will present information in different ways, consider addressing some of these questions as appropriate:  Did he/she make their case?  More importantly, does their thesis even matter?  What does it contribute to the world of political analysis?  To what degree does the thesis and supporting evidence challenge/reaffirm your personal political biases?  

5. Conclude by assessing the degree to which you would recommend this book to future students.  What audience would most benefit from this book?  REMEMBER TO INCLUDE POIGNANT QUOTES AND PARENTHETICAL PAGE REFERENCES AS FURTHER EVIDENCE OF COMPLETE AND CAREFUL READING.

 Formatting Requirements

§         Two-Four pages typed, double spaced

§         Times New Roman 12 pt. font

§         One inch margins

§         Free of awkward sentence construction and errors in spelling, capitalization, or punctuation.