For this paper you will choose to write about one of the following works:
1. Saidiya Hartman’s Wayward Lives, Beautiful Experiments: Intimate Stories of Social Upheaval, 2019.
2. Elizabeth Hinton’s America On Fire: The Untold History of Police Violence and Black Rebellion Since the 1960s, 2021.
Both authors paint pictures of Black people’s politics and rebellion that have been obscured by mainstream narratives of Black people and the United States. For your paper you will demonstrate a clear grasp of one author’s argument and articulate a clear thesis that addresses one of the following prompts:
Prompt 1—Saidiya Hartman:
Hartman stated that her study was an attempt to find the “social revolution” in a historical period of great social upheaval brought on by Jim Crow segregation, urbanization, and the Great Migration (17). Where does the “social revolution” originate for Hartman? (i.e. which spaces, which people, and why? Is it a product of ordinary/everyday life? A top-down state initiative? A large, violent rebellion?) How did aspects of gender, race, class, and/or sexuality shape Black women’s “intimate politics” of rebellion in the early 20th century?
In your answer, address specific examples where Hartman shows 1) how people and institutions aimed to categorize and control Black women, and 2) how this shaped the meaning of these Black women’s rebellious, “wayward” lives.
Prompt 2—Elizabeth Hinton:
Hinton uncovers a long history of rebellion by Black communities in urban spaces from the 1960s to the present. What does this untold history of rebellion reveal about race and the carceral system in the United States?
In your answer, address Hinton’s argument on why policing of low-income Black communities and mass incarceration rates increased from the 1960s to the present. What solutions does Hinton propose? Do you agree with her assessment? Why or why not?
Requirements:
Do NOT use any sources outside of the class. You will lose points for citing outside sources, and uncited outside sources will count as plagiarism.
Your essay must be 1500-1800 words.
You must include at least 6 pieces of evidence to support your argument from either Hartman or Hinton depending on which prompt you choose.
You may use any other sources from the class to provide context or beef up your argument with evidence. It is not required (though recommended).
Use Chicago Manual of Style citations. These may be as footnotes or endnotes. No additional bibliography needed.
Include a header with your name, class, instructor, date, and word count in the top right corner. (No title page needed).
Include page numbers and an effective title for the essay.
