mini lit essay

three reading requirements:

> “I Have a Dream”: http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/mlkihaveadream.htm

> “I’ve Been to the Mountaintop”: http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/mlkivebeentothemountaintop.htm

> Address on American Rhetoric: http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/barackobama/barackobamainauguraladdress.htm

mini essay prompt/instructions: 

Barack Obama’s election and re-election show that this country has certainly come a long way since Dr. King’s era, yet in some ways, things haven’t changed enough. For your new discussion post, write a short essay of at least 300 words that explains whether or not you think the promise of the speeches has been realized or not and why. Keep in mind that this new post is a Gordon Rule assignment, meaning that the quality of your writing as well as the length will be considered during the evaluation/grading process. Then, reply to at least 3 of your classmates to get full credit for this assignment. Replies must be 30-40 words.

Mini-Essays and Discussions:

The Mini-Essays (your "new thread" in the discussion) are Gordon Rule assignments. Therefore, you should use your best writing skills when you work on these assignments. Each Mini-Essay and Discussion assignment has three basic requirements:

1. Prepare: Read the literature that is assignment and take note of its discussion question. Be careful to answer the discussion question for each Mini-Essay. You work needs to be "on topic," as the saying goes.
2. Write: Adhere to the length requirements for the Mini-Essay and the discussion portion of the assigment. "New Threads" should be at least 300 words in length. As you write, Blackboard will keep track of your word count, so it's easy to know where you are. After you submit your new thread, you will be able to read the other students' posts. Reply to at least three other students to earn full credit for the assignment. Replies should be  at least 30 words. Keep in mind that this is a short essay assignment, not a paragraph assignment.
3. In-text Citations: If you use a quotation from the literature in your mini-essay, please place an in-text citation (also called a parenthetical citation) immediately after you close the quotation marks and before you place a period for your sentence.