AMH 3423 Florida Since 1860

Take Home Essay #2

To complete the essay, you are required to choose one of the options

below and write an essay (using third-person language only) of no more than

five pages. This means that you need to put a lot of thought not only into

the content of the paper but also into the presentation of your response.

Your essay needs to be written in a single seamless narrative, without

rephrasing the questions and without listing answers in bullets.

To be successful at this task means that you will want to employ an

economy of words in tightly constructed sentences and paragraphs. You should

write in clear and concise language that conveys only that information

relevant to the subject. In other words, avoid becoming bogged down in

minutia but provide the information necessary to show that you have a

comprehensive understanding of the history. When you respond to the

questions, always think in terms of historical significance and draw on the

course readings that cover the period that you are asked to discuss.

(Remember to follow the rules in the Writing Mechanics Exercise. Retrieve it

from your class notebook and put it on your desk next to your computer

before your begin. Many people in the class dropped a letter grade from

their other writing assignments because they failed to follow the rules

outlined on the exercise.)

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Choose one of the following on which to write your essay.

Option One: Women have for many years been absent from history textbooks and

classrooms, although they have been a vital part of the American historical

experience. In your essay, discuss how women in twentieth-century

Florida-from conservation and suffrage efforts in the early twentieth

century to women's liberation late in the century-have played a role in

shaping the course of and events in twentieth-century Florida history. Use

only your course readings and class notes to write your essay.

Option Two: The theme of this essay is the Florida Dream. Throughout the

twentieth century and earlier, many different people have pursued the

Florida Dream and each has defined that dream in his or her own way. For

these people-including whole cultural groups-Florida offered something

special or unique that was usually in part related to its unique environment

(warm sunshine, a long growing season, white beaches, freedom from an

unfriendly government, etc.). To live that dream, however, Florida has been

overrun with people and development. In your essay, discuss Florida's

extraordinary growth in the twentieth century, including the three principal

eras of growth (1920s boom, post-WWII, and post-Disney) and the reasons for

that growth. Additionally, identify the various groups that have come here,

their reasons for coming, and the peculiar attraction of Florida for them.

Finally, highlight the environmental impact of the Florida Dream. Use only

the course readings and your class notes to complete this essay.