http://www.history.umd.edu/Faculty/DWilliams/courses/Spring12/HIST251/paper1.html
In Myths of Harmony: Race and Republicanism during the Age of Revolution, Colombia, 1785-1831 (2007), historian Marixa Lasso demonstrates that the early struggles for independence in Colombia [a region known as Nueva Granada in the colonial period] were driven by demands that all American-born free men of independent means, regardless of color, be granted the rights, protections, and honors of a liberal republic. Yet the Constitution of Cúcuta (1821) and other laws passed by the patriots who came to run an independent Gran Colombia codified numerous limitations on the rights of Colombians. In spite of their prominent role in the unmaking of colonial rule and the making of the postcolonial order, argues Lasso, many Colombians — especially the pardo lower classes — were progressively marginalized from the fruits (and narratives) of liberal republicanism. Lasso presents the life and death-by-execution of Afro-Colombian patriot José Prudencio Padilla (1784-1828) as an exemplary case-study of her larger argument.
Part I: A Critical Reading of Myths of Harmony [70% of paper grade]
In a 1000-word essay, write a critical analysis of Lasso's Myths of Harmony. Your analysis should demonstrate your engaged understanding of Lasso's arguments about the complex nature of race and liberal republicanism in Colombia, from the late colonial period through the dissolution of Gran Colombia in 1831.
TIP: The thesis paragraph should succinctly summarize Lasso's hypotheses. From there, the body of the paper should critically analyze how Lasso proves her arguments. As you develop a critical analysis, do not simply repeat the words of Lasso. Analyze them for the quality of argumentation and the use of evidence.
Part II: Handbills [30% of paper grade]
After a careful read of the mini-biography of Padilla presented in Chapter 5 ["Life Stories of Afro-Colombian Patriots"], imagine yourself to be on the central square of Bogotá on October 2, 1828. Draft two handbills about what you have seen and heard as the Admiral was executed.
TIP: Each handbill should be a single, one-sided page [i.e., a document suitable for distribution by hand]. In keeping with the print culture of the period, you may feel at liberty to use different fonts to place emphasis on special words. You should also feel at liberty to write within the impassioned, patriotic, and highly partisan language that characterized political debate during Padilla's lifetime.
Both part of this writing assignment are due at the beginning of lecture on Thursday, February 23, 2012. See the syllabus for the late policy.
Part I should follow conventional formatting guidelines (i.e. typed; double-spaced; reasonable margins and fonts; stapled; numbered pages).
Feel free to seek out the professor or your teaching assistant for guidance in writing a well-organized and engaging paper.
Outlines and/or rough drafts are always welcome. Or, consider making a visit to the Writing Center, located in 1205 Tawes Hall. Tel: (301) 405-3785.