Which vision do you think has had a greater impact on twentieth-century American foreign policy?

Primary Source Assignment
Choose one of the assignments below to complete your primary source requirement for this class.
Follow the instructions provided for the option you have chosen. Make sure that your assignment is
written in your own words – do not plagiarize. Since this is a primary source assignment, no other
resources should be used to complete the assignment. You can reread sections of your textbook and
research further information about the period of time the sources were written, but no other sources
are needed or should be used to complete the writing of this assignment.
Option 1 – Martin Luther King, Jr. and Malcolm X
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and Malcolm X were both significant leaders during the American civil rights
movement. Each man saw a different path to achieving social justice and addressing the challenges
faced by African Americans. You have been provided excerpts of speeches for both men. As you read the
speeches, you should compare and contrast the ideas of Dr. King and Malcolm X. For this assignment,
you will write an essay that argues a point of view in support of one of the texts and refutes the
arguments made in the other.
For your persuasive (argumentative) essay, you should choose the leader whose methods and message
you found to be the most convincing. You must use evidence from the text of both speeches to make
your arguments.
Your essay should include a minimum of five paragraphs. The essay should include an introduction,
conclusion, and at least three evidentiary body paragraphs. The writing style of your essay should be
clear and concise. Be sure that each paragraph leads logically into the next paragraph. Make sure you
follow the rules for paragraphing, sentence structure, grammar, spelling, and punctuation. Your
assignment should be double spaced, and 12 pt. font should be used. Your margins should be no larger
than one and a half inches.

Include a title page with your essay. The following items should be found on your title page: (1) title of
essay; (2) course title; (3) semester; (4) student name; and (date). The only title that should be on the
first page of your essay, is the title of your paper centered at the top of the page.

You should save your essay as a Microsoft word document file only (doc or docx). I will not accept any
other files. Your file should be labeled by using last name and first initial (smithk.docx).

Option 2 – Dwight D. Eisenhower (1953-1961) and John F. Kennedy (1961-1963)
Both Dwight D. Eisenhower and John F. Kennedy faced great challenges during their presidency. They
held the highest public office in the United States during a time where our nation faced critical issues
here at home as well as abroad. You have been provided links below to Eisenhower’s farewell speech to
the nation and Kennedy’s inaugural address to the nation. As you read the speeches, you should
summarize the attitude each leader had toward American foreign policy as expressed in their speeches.
Along with the summarization of presidential viewpoints, you should also address the questions listed
below in your essay.
(1) Which vision do you think has had a greater impact on twentieth-century American foreign policy?
(2) Are the two visions complementary, or did each president propose a fundamentally different course
for America?
Your essay should include a minimum of five paragraphs. The essay should include an introduction,
conclusion, and at least three evidentiary body paragraphs. The writing style of your essay should be
clear and concise. Be sure that each paragraph leads logically into the next paragraph. Make sure you
follow the rules for paragraphing, sentence structure, grammar, spelling, and punctuation. Your
assignment should be double spaced, and 12 pt. font should be used. Your margins should be no larger
than one and a half inches.

Last Completed Projects