Now, just as centuries ago, we sometimes hear people claim, This is a witch hunt! Hopefully you now have a bit more context for that claim than you did before beginning this course. Sometimes people make this claim to try to stop unwanted investigations or news coverage, and sometimes these claims are warranted. It is important to understand the history of witch hunts and how fear has led to persecution and discrimination against a particular group of people. It is always the hope that understanding history will help us avoid making similar mistakes in the future.
Your next writing assignment will be another opportunity to conduct research and to compare and contrast an event in history with the witch hunt described in The Crucible.
I would like you to choose another witch hunt to research. This will not be the Salem witch trials or McCarthyism and the Red Scare. Instead, I would like you to research another point in history when a group of people was targeted and persecuted because of fear. Some examples might include the following:
Genocide in Rwanda
Japanese internment camps
HIV scare in the 1980s and 1990s
Hate crimes and racial profiling after 9-11
Lynchings in the United States after the Civil War
In all of these cases (and in many others you may choose to research), fear or suspicion (or fear of losing the society they knew) led people to persecute, discriminate against, or even kill other people. That word other is key in each of these events. In each event, the othersthe different, the unknown, the not like uswere the target of suspicions, distrust, and persecution.
Your assignment is to write a essay about the historical event you choose. I do not want to receive a paper about an entire historical event. For example, if I receive an essay about the Armenian Genocide or World War II or 9-11, you will receive little to no credit for your submission.
Instead, I am looking for essays that are focused specifically on the persecution or discrimination against a specific group or specific individuals. Answer the following questions as you research:
-Who was the target of the persecution? Are you identifying a specific group or examining specific individuals?
-Who targeted these individuals?
-What was the source of the fear or suspicion? (What caused it?)
-What happened to those who were targeted? (Be specific.)
-How does this event compare to the events in The Crucible?
-Were there individuals who, like Proctor, refused to sacrifice their honor? (This would include either those who were persecuted or those who attempted to defend or save the persecuted.)
-Were there individuals who, like Abigail, used deceit to persecute and target?
– Are there quotes from The Crucible that are relevant to a discussion of this time period? (You must include three quotes from the play in your essay).
-What lessons can you learn from your research of this event and your reading of The Crucible?
**Begin your essay with an introduction of the event you researched, making a specific claim about that event and how it compares to the events and characters described in The Crucible.
Once again, the body of your essay should describe the witch hunt or the persecution, individuals or groups involved, and specific details about what happened. You must also compare and contrast this event with the witch hunt described in The Crucible. -Finally, include your thoughts about what you have learned from these witch hunts. **How has learning about these events affected you? How will you look at the world and those around you differently?
While writing your paper, follow these formatting guidelines:
-Format your essay according to the MLA formatting guidelines included in this document from the BYU Writing Center: MLA Style Formatting
-Your essay should be double-spaced using 12-point Times or -Times New Roman font. Your margins may be no larger than one inch on each side (see the MLA formatting guidelines).
-Include a heading on the first page as described in the MLA formatting guidelines, and include a header on each page with your last name and the page number. However, do not double-space between paragraphs, after your heading, or before or after your title, etc.
-Your essay must be guided by a strong thesis statement.
Include a works-cited page that follow
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