Remember, you have a choice to do either this assignment or the Propaganda assignment. As we reach the end of the semester, I'd like to ask you to reflect in a more creative way on the works we've bee

Remember, you have a choice to do either this assignment or the Propaganda assignment.

As we reach the end of the semester, I'd like to ask you to reflect in a more creative way on the works we've been reading. I hope that you will enjoy an assignment that allows you to express yourself more personally and/or think in terms of how you can create something persuasive and effective to inspire social change.

TOPIC 1: Write a Manifesto!

Over the course of the semester, we've read a number of manifestos and declarations, from those published by Feminist thinkers and groups to the Communist Manifesto. For this assignment, you are invited to write your own manifesto to agitate for change. Your manifesto can be about any topic or issue that we have discussed in class. By extension, it can also be about any problem that seriously impacts the common good in our society today: for example, healthcare, prison reform, education, inequalities, the environment, etc. It can be serious or a parody/satire, like the SCUM Manifesto. If it is a humorous parody or satire, it should still address substantive issues, but in a playful or provocative way. To get an idea of how manifestos are constructed, you should review the ones we read for class.

Although the form can vary, here are a few required elements:

• An introduction that introduces the problem and its history: how long has this been going on? Why does it need to change?
• A set of grievances or a critique of the status quo that outline the problem in greater detail, explaining its consequences, who is to blame, and whom it affects.
• A set of principles: what your group believes in, or the motivating values that have prompted you to militate for change.
• A set of proposals or demands: concrete ideas for change that your group will actively pursue, or demands that you insist be recognized and addressed.

Remember, a manifesto always has a strong rhetorical aspect: in other words, it aims to persuade its audience that

• the problem is real, serious and ongoing
• that not enough (or nothing) is being done by those in power or with an interest in maintaining the status quo
• that important values or principles are at stake
• that action needs to be taken, and that the actions proposed are the right ones

Other considerations: think carefully about your audience, style and word choice, emotional tone, urgency, how radical or violent your group will be.