Ray Bradbury's The Martian Chronicles (stories from) raise issues related to our world. You will identify a topic brought up in the reading that is currently being debated and discussed in a variety of media at the local, national and global levels.
Here are some examples you may consider:
Anxieties of Suburbia
Imperalism
Racism
Environmental pollution
Censorship
Nuclear arms race/Nuclear capabilities
Cynicism about family life
Pessimism about progress
People in the masses (population as a whole - not individuals)
Sexism/gender roles
Fear of the unknown
Contemporary American values
Euthanasia
Government Control(finance control, forced military service)
Conflict of Science vs. Religion
Your Task:
Use a close analysis of Bradbury's work and what he suggests about a topic only as a point of entry to your own documented argument about some aspect of one of the topics - take your own position only after thoroughly researching the topic and considering the arguments already out there.
Guidelines:
You must use at least 3 credible outside sources - one of which must be a scholarly journal article
Other sources can be books, web sources, magazine or newspaper articles or an interview with an expert
Requirements:
We will work together both in and out of class to generate strong thinking about our topics and to write our ideas as persuasively as possible. Your essay must be 3-5 pages, carefully and consistently edited, typed doublespaced in 12point Times New Roman font. It must include an original title, in-text citations, and a Works Cited page following MLA format.
You must also incude a reflection letter attached to the back of the paper.
Use the following resources to research topics and find good sources:
Opposing Viewpoints
Student Resources in Context
Global Issues in Context
