Democratizing Twentieth Century America Homework

For the past several weeks we have been studying the Industrial Revolution as a context for understanding how and why women got the right to vote when they did. In your next essay, you will discuss the Women's Suffrage Movement. You will demonstrate your understanding of this movement--its roots, its successes and its limitations. You will also demostrate your understanding of the historic context, including the rise of socialism and Progressivism.

In this essay you must include evidence obtained from the following sources:

a) Howard Zinn - "The Socialist Challenge" and "War is the Health of the State"
b) Kerber, De Hart - "Industrializing America"
c) Who Built America? - "Woman Suffrage", "Factory Reform and the Conditions of Labor", "The Garment Industry and Working Women's Activism", "Socialist, Marxists and Anarchists" **(this book is only available in class and yuo must use class time to take your notes)
d) Women's Suffrage Packet

Your essay should respond to the Essential Questions:

a) Why then? Why did the endeavor for this reform get underway when it did?

b) What gains were won? What gains were sought but not won?

c) If this reform was only partially achieved, what limited its attainment?

An A paper will:

--answer all of the questions, either as past of one contiguous essay or in three seperate sections; the thrust of the essay should be behind answering the a) why then? question
--contain a sophisticated, provocative thesis, supported by 3 arguments
--contain 3 cogent and sophisticated arguments that support the organizing
idea/thesis
--argue well developed, original ideas and illustrate new understanding
of the topic
--persuasively use evidence from Zinn, Industrializing America, Who Built America and Battle for Suffrage packets; contain at least five or six quotes from Zinn and five from the other readings
--discuss both the authors' and primary source perspectives about events
--persuasively use evidence from an outside source
--be well organized, containing a clear introduction that presents the thesis in a highly engaging,compelling manner, followed by smooth transitions from one idea to the next, with a conclusion that synthesizes the different strands and arguments
--demonstrate a clear understanding of the historical time period and demonstrate the cause and effect relationship between significant events
--conform to the conventions of grammar, spelling and punctuation, and be thouroughly proofread and include the signature of one adult to whom it was read aloud

For tomorrow, please bring a tentative thesis for this essay. You might try something like this -- "The social and economic changes brought about by industrialization provided new routes through which woman could obtain the right to vote." or "While college educated women were important leaders within the Women's Suffrage Movement, the right to vote for women could not have been achieved without the working class." or "Industrialization, immigration, education and World War I were key forces that helped women seize the right to vote during the early Twentieth Century."

Once you have a thesis, please construct 2-3 arguments in support of the thesis.

For each argument, list 3 quotes you will use to support.

You can set this up, but take care to make it neat and organized. Be prepared to share with the rest of the class. Use your notes fro class and homework to assist you.