Summer, 2012
Catherine Fraga, Instructor
Out of Class Essay Assignment #1—200
points possible—VOICES AGAINST CONFORMITY
• Assigned: Wednesday, May 30
• Rough Draft Due (OPTIONAL), typed & double spaced, no later than Tuesday, June 5
• Final Draft Due: Thursday,
June 7, typed & double spaced
***Note that you have eight (8) days
to research and write this essay.
Let’s take a closer look at the issue
of conformity/non-conformity.
The most interesting, focused and
articulate essays I receive from students are ones where students select their
own specific topic and are genuinely intrigued by the topic.
For this essay, you will research and
write about one person who is/was considered a non-conformist in his/her field
of interest. Consider the possibility that the person deemed a non-conformist
may not, in your opinion, actually BE a non-conformist. So your essay could support or disprove the label given by the majority of society.
This topic allows for a wealth of
flexibility and choice.
Your focus will be on a person
working in an area (and time period in history) that you are most interested
in: photography; art; literature; politics; film; computers; music; fashion;
science; mathematics; education; or ???
To get a better idea of some possibilities,
and for purpose of illustration, let’s look at some examples of topics within
in the time period of the 1950s in America.
Premise: Many in the 1950s worked
diligently for the comfort and conformity displayed on such TV shows as “Father
Knows Best” and “Leave it to Beaver.” But regardless of the affluence of the
new American middle class, there was still poverty, racism and alienation in
America rarely depicted on TV.
Dozens of people rejected societal
norms through their artwork, creativity and lifestyle. They used words, art,
film and music to rebel against the cookie-cutter mentality of the established
power structure and mass-marketed culture.
Many writers during this time period
(referred to as the Beat Generation) adamantly refused to submit to the
conformity of the 1950s. (these writers included Jack Kerouac, Allen Ginsberg,
Diane Di Prima, Sloan Wilson, J.D. Salinger, William Burroughs, and others)
Likewise, many artists during this
time period adamantly refused to submit to the conformity of the 1950s. (these
artists included Willem De Kooning, Hans Hoffman, Mark Rothko, Jackson Pollock,
Clement Greenberg, and others)
Also, according to an Internet
article on Conformity in U.S. History: “While the 1950s silver screen lit up
mostly with the typical Hollywood fare of Westerns and romances, a handful of
films shocked audiences by uncovering the dark side of America’s youth.”
Many filmmakers of this time period
adamantly refused to submit to the conformity of the 1950s. (these films include
The Wild One; Blackboard Jungle; Rebel without a Cause, etc)
No matter what non conformist you
select to research, your essay must contain the following:
· your working definition of a non-conformist (in order to frame and
set up your argument)
· a brief history of the
country’s mood during this time period;
· background and details about the non-conformist you will focus
on, in particular, those that help support your premise;
· how his/her work challenged the status quo;
· the impact of his/her work on others in the same field and on society;
· and the repercussions and influence felt today or what you
predict WILL be the repercussions in the future.
Your essay will be both informative
and analytical: your thesis will “prove” the person’s influence, or not, on
people’s lives, then and now.
Things to Consider:
This is NOT an essay in which you
write an in depth analysis of the literature, film, music, fashion, etc. of the
time period you are focused on. To do that, you would need to carefully read,
view, or listen to the work or material at great length.
Instead, you are conducting research
to discover the mood of the country and the status quo during a particular time
period——why and how a person’s work was considered non conformist—and how their
work influenced those living then…and now.
Your thesis might read something like
this:
Although 1950s America appeared to be
almost unrealistically content, many visual artists at this time, particularly
Jackson Pollack, successfully combated the blissful charade by using innovative
methods and themes in his work.
A BRIEF LIST OF TOPIC SUGGESTIONS:
Mahatma Ghandi George
Carlin
Martin Luther King, Jr. John
Cassavetes
Eminem Yves
St. Laurent
Georgia O’Keefe Abby
Hoffman
Galileo Galilei John
Lennon
Emma Goldman David
Mamet
Janis Joplin Jim
Morrison
Johnny Cash Ralph
Nader
Steve Jobs Joan
of Arc
Nelson Mandela Che
Guevara
Karl Marx Bill
Gates
Dr. Jack Kevorkian James Dean
Quentin Crisp Henry
David Thoreau
Ayn Rand Elvis
Presley
Carl Jung
Carl Sagan
Alexandr Solzhenitsyn
