Essay #1: Identity in Social Context

Please compose an essay of 4 double-spaced pages (no smaller than 10 point font) interpreting your identity (or biography) within the social context laid out by the readings of Part I of Social Issues. The essay must make at least five references to articles assigned in Part I of the course. Pay special attention to the excerpt from C. Wright Mills, The Sociological Imagination.

Your essay should convey a sense of having contemplated the topic, providing meaning in your life, and your having gathered substance from the readings. Specifically discuss issues of gender, race, and class and how they have --- or have --- not intersected your life-space.

Your essay counts as 15% of your final grade and will be assessed on these criteria.

Depth: The richness of understanding conveyed.
Content: The substance contained, including the referencing of readings

Suggestions

For depth, the interpretation will be important. Give me a sense of the social context within which you were nurtured and educated. Please do not dwell exclusively on your family alone, but place your situation in a larger context. Finally, do not neglect to reference the readings.