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What is American?

The concept of "American" as a subject of study spans disciplines ranging from history and sociology to literature and cultural studies. It invites students to examine what defines American identity, society, and values — questions that resist simple answers. Courses in world studies, American history, and cultural analysis regularly ask students to interrogate the idea of America as both a geographic place and an evolving set of ideals. Works like J. Hector St. John de Crèvecoeur's 1782 letter posing the question "What Is an American?" and figures such as Benjamin Franklin and Amiri Baraka serve as anchors for exploring how American identity has been constructed, contested, and redefined across centuries.

Student papers on this topic take a wide range of approaches. Comparative essays examine American values alongside European or Asian counterparts, or place historical periods like the Progressive Era and the New Deal in direct contrast. Other papers use case studies to analyze specific social and political developments — the Abolition Movement, the Americans with Disabilities Act, or the influence of Latin migration on American life. Cultural and media analysis appears as well, with papers exploring pop music in the 1980s, advertising's effect on dietary choices, and the evolution of the cell phone as a lens into American society.

A strong essay on an American studies topic works best when it anchors a broad theme in a specific argument. Effective evidence draws on policy documents, literary texts, historical events, or cultural artifacts rather than vague generalizations about national character. The most common pitfall is treating "America" as a monolith — successful essays acknowledge the diversity of voices, regions, and experiences that shape any aspect of American life.

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Research Paper Doctorate

Letter of recommendation for student Josephine

¶ … Professor of Sociology, the Director of the Graduate Applied Sociology Program and the Director of Asian Programs at the University of Indianapolis, I am often asked to write letters of recommendations for students.

Paper Undergraduate

Racial whitening policies and resistance in Latin America

The war, as almost all wars are, was premised on economic reasons. For over a century, between1800 to beyond the 1900s, as the U.S.A. And Western countries entered the industrialized era and demanded more products from…

Paper Undergraduate

The weight of a name: living up to expectations through joy and service

¶ … parents name a child "Jill" or "Sue," well, that is only a name; the child has a lifetime to figure out who she is without worrying about the weight of expectations that come with the name.

Paper High School

James Baldwin's artistic identity and race in autobiographical notes

James Baldwin's Autobiographical Notes details his coming-of-age as an artist. Even as a child, Baldwin labored as writer. At a very young age he received fellowships and support before writing his first 'saleable'…

Research Paper Undergraduate

Affirmative action policy and legal compliance in employment

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits employment discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin, and further legislative acts have also prohibited discrimination based upon gender,…

Paper Undergraduate

Gabriel García Márquez's literary style and magical realism techniques

This work in writing examines the writing style of Gabriel Garcia Marquez, a Colombian author who wrote more than fifteen books which are highly acclaimed. Marquez was influenced by his father's tales of war and his grandmothers fabulous stories. Garcia's style is one that entrances the reader and one that creates a sense of the past, present and future simultaneously. Marquez is known as the master of 'Magical Realism'.

Paper Doctorate

Occult manipulation and everyday horror in film

The paper studies the subject of the occult. The paper limits its focus to four films of the 20th century centering around the occult. The paper defines the occult and explores how the films define the occult. The paper argues the power of semiotic communication and layering of messages in films. Central to the paper is the opposition of Christianity and the occult, specifically magic.

Essay Doctorate

Anne Moody's journey from resignation to activism in the Civil Rights Movement

In the United States, the minority populations of the country have been historically marginalized and minimized in importance. This has been true for all minorities but particularly for those who are African-American.

Essay Doctorate

Nike's lobbying efforts and import quota elimination strategy

¶ … organization's lobbyist, what would you like to see done by the Federal government that would be of help to your organization? This could be what the government could do or what they could stop doing.

Paper Undergraduate

Cultural differences in job interview selection and assessment

The paper answer 11 questions in the industrial psychology field. Most of these concern the differences between cultures and how these affect the workplace. Some questions also revolve around one's personal views on effectiveness in various capacities in life, such as work, family life, and citizen. Generally, it has been found that there is a major difference between how work is experienced by collectivist and individualist cultures.

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