Write an essay explaining what you think are the three most important things you have learned in this course and how your new understanding of them has given you a more complex view of the history of the United States.

Write an essay explaining what you think are the three most important things you have
learned in this course and how your new understanding of them has given you a more complex view of the history of the United States.
Your paper will be evaluated based on how well you explain the subjects you choose (this is where
you have to get the facts right) and tell me why they are significant. I’m most interested in your
ability to reflect on how they changed your thinking or encouraged you to see a subject from new or
more varied perspectives.
Here are some subjects you could discuss (some of the main themes of the course).
Economic change, the growth of business, the creation of a global economy
Efforts to address social, political, and economic problems
The growth of the federal government’s powers and responsibilities
Class divisions, conflicts between employers and workers, economic inequality
Race relations and systemic racism
Immigration and ethnic diversity
Changing definitions of what it meant to be an “American”
Rising living standards and America’s transformation into a mass consumer society
The roles of women and men and the evolution of American families
The emergence of the US as a “great power,” its involvement in world affairs, its relations with
other nations
Unlike the previous exams, this one should be written as a formal essay, with a short introduction (no
more than three or four sentences) and a conclusion in which you discuss the final portion of the
assignment (how your understanding of US history has become more complex). You should devote at
least one paragraph to each of the subjects you choose.
Your essay should be edited and proofread for clarity and to eliminate grammatical, stylistic, and
typographical errors. This is important! It will make it easier for me to understand what you’re trying to
say—and the degree to which you’ve mastered the course material. Please cite any direct quotations
from the textbook or the Beachboard essays, and submit the essay to the dropbox folder labeled “Final
Exam.”
Your essay is due on MONDAY, DECEMBER 13, AT 11:59PM.

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