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The assignment, rubric, and structure are located in this Power Point

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Check out this example argumentative essay.

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Collect all the quotes that support your argument or that you can explain your disagreement with.

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Anzia Yezierska (1880-1970) was a Jewish American novelist known for her writing on immigration, assimilation, and Jewish American lives. As a child, she and her family immigrated from the Russian-Polish border to the United States. The following text is an essay about her struggles adapting to living in America.

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A noiseless patient spider,
I mark'd where on a little promontory it stood isolated,
Mark'd how to explore the vacant vast surrounding,
It launch'd forth filament, filament, filament, out of itself,
Ever unreeling them, ever tirelessly speeding them.

And you O my soul where you stand,
Surrounded, detached, in measureless oceans of space,
Ceaselessly musing, venturing, throwing, seeking the spheres to connect them,
Till the bridge you will need be form'd, till the ductile anchor hold,
Till the gossamer thread you fling catch somewhere, O my soul.

Centre of equal daughters, equal sons,
All, all alike endear'd, grown, ungrown, young or old,
Strong, ample, fair, enduring, capable, rich,
Perennial with the Earth, with Freedom, Law and Love,
A grand, sane, towering, seated Mother,
Chair'd in the adamant of Time.

1 To think of time-of all that retrospection! To think of to-day, and the ages continued henceforward! Have you guess'd you yourself would not continue? Have you dreaded these earth-beetles? Have you fear'd the future would be nothing to you? Is to-day nothing? Is the beginningless past nothing? If the future is nothing, they are just as surely nothing. To think that the sun rose in the east! that men and women    were flexible, real, alive! that everything was alive! To think that you and I did not see, feel, think, nor bear our    part! To think that we are now here, and bear our part!2 Not a day passes-not a minute or second, without an    accouchement! Not a day passes-not a minute or second, without a corpse! The dull nights go over, and the dull days also, The soreness of lying so much in bed goes over, The physician, after long putting off, gives the silent and terrible    look for an answer, The children come hurried and weeping, and the brothers and sisters    are sent for, Medicines stand unused on the shelf-(the camphor-smell has    long pervaded the rooms,) The faithful hand of the living does not desert the hand of the dying, The twitching lips press lightly on the forehead of the dying, The breath ceases, and the pulse of the heart ceases, The corpse stretches on the bed, and the living look upon it, It is palpable as the living are palpable. The living look upon the corpse with their eye-sight, But without eye-sight lingers a different living, and looks curiously    on the corpse.3 To think the thought of Death, merged in the thought of materials! To think that the rivers will flow, and the snow fall, and fruits ripen,    and act upon others as upon us now-yet not act upon us! To think of all these wonders of city and country, and others taking    great interest in them-and we taking no interest in them! To think how eager we are in building our houses! To think others shall be just as eager, and we quite indifferent! (I see one building the house that serves him a few years, or seventy    or eighty years at most, I see one building the house that serves him longer than that.) Slow-moving and black lines creep over the whole earth-they never    cease-they are the burial lines, He that was President was buried, and he that is now President shall    surely be buried.4 A reminiscence of the vulgar fate, A frequent sample of the life and death of workmen, Each after his kind: Cold dash of waves at the ferry-wharf-posh and ice in the river,    half-frozen mud in the streets, a gray, discouraged sky overhead,    the short, last daylight of Twelfth-month, A hearse and stages-other vehicles give place-the funeral    of an old Broadway stage-driver, the cortege mostly drivers. Steady the trot to the cemetery, duly rattles the death-bell, the gate    is pass'd, the new-dug grave is halted at, the living alight, the    hearse uncloses, The coffin is pass'd out, lower'd and settled, the whip is laid on the    coffin, the earth is swiftly shovel'd in, The mound above is flatted with the spades-silence, A minute-no one moves or speaks-it is done, He is decently put away-is there anything more? He was a good fellow, free-mouth'd, quick-temper'd, not bad-looking,    able to take his own part, witty, sensitive to a slight, ready with    life or death for a friend, fond of women, gambled, ate hearty,    drank hearty, had known what it was to be flush, grew low-spirited    toward the last, sicken'd, was help'd by a contribution, died, aged    forty-one years-and that was his funeral. Thumb extended, finger uplifted, apron, cape, gloves, strap, wet-weather    clothes, whip carefully chosen, boss, spotter, starter, hostler,    somebody loafing on you, you loafing on somebody, headway, man before    and man behind, good day's work, bad day's work, pet stock, mean    stock, first out, last out, turning-in at night; To think that these are so much and so nigh to other drivers-and    he there takes no interest in them!5 The markets, the government, the working-man's wages-to think what    account they are through our nights and days! To think that other working-men will make just as great account of    them-yet we make little or no account! The vulgar and the refined-what you call sin, and what you call    goodness-to think how wide a difference! To think the difference will still continue to others, yet we lie beyond    the difference. To think how much pleasure there is! Have you pleasure from looking at the sky? have you pleasure from poems? Do you enjoy yourself in the city? or engaged in business? or planning a    nomination and election? or with your wife and family? Or with your mother and sisters? or in womanly housework? or the beautiful    maternal cares? -These also flow onward to others-you and I flow onward, But in due time, you and I shall take less interest in them. Your farm, profits, crops,-to think how engross'd you are! To think there will still be farms, profits, crops-yet for you, of    what avail?6 What will be, will be well-for what is, is well, To take interest is well, and not to take interest shall be well. The sky continues beautiful, The pleasure of men with women shall never be sated, nor the pleasure of    women with men, nor the pleasure from poems, The domestic joys, the daily housework or business, the building of    houses-these are not phantasms-they have weight, form,    location; Farms, profits, crops, markets, wages, government, are none of them    phantasms, The difference between sin and goodness is no delusion, The earth is not an echo-man and his life, and all the things of    his life, are well-consider'd. You are not thrown to the winds-you gather certainly and safely    around yourself; Yourself! Yourself! Yourself, forever and ever!7 It is not to diffuse you that you were born of your mother and    father-it is to identify you; It is not that you should be undecided, but that you should be decided; Something long preparing and formless is arrived and form'd in you, You are henceforth secure, whatever comes or goes. The threads that were spun are gather'd, the weft crosses the warp,    the pattern is systematic. The preparations have every one been justified, The orchestra have sufficiently tuned their instruments-the    baton has given the signal. The guest that was coming-he waited long, for reasons-he    is now housed, He is one of those who are beautiful and happy-he is one of    those that to look upon and be with is enough. The law of the past cannot be eluded, The law of the present and future cannot be eluded, The law of the living cannot be eluded-it is eternal, The law of promotion and transformation cannot be eluded, The law of heroes and good-doers cannot be eluded, The law of drunkards, informers, mean persons-not one iota thereof    can be eluded.8 Slow moving and black lines go ceaselessly over the earth, Northerner goes carried, and Southerner goes carried, and they on the    Atlantic side, and they on the Pacific, and they between, and all    through the Mississippi country, and all over the earth. The great masters and kosmos are well as they go-the heroes and    good-doers are well, The known leaders and inventors, and the rich owners and pious and    distinguish'd, may be well, But there is more account than that-there is strict account    of all. The interminable hordes of the ignorant and wicked are not nothing, The barbarians of Africa and Asia are not nothing, The common people of Europe are not nothing-the American    aborigines are not nothing, The infected in the immigrant hospital are not nothing-the    murderer or mean person is not nothing, The perpetual successions of shallow people are not nothing as    they go, The lowest prostitute is not nothing-the mocker of religion    is not nothing as he goes.9 Of and in all these things, I have dream'd that we are not to be changed so much, nor the law    of us changed, I have dream'd that heroes and good-doers shall be under the present    and past law, And that murderers, drunkards, liars, shall be under the present    and past law, For I have dream'd that the law they are under now is enough. If otherwise, all came but to ashes of dung, If maggots and rats ended us, then Alarum! for we are betray'd! Then indeed suspicion of death. Do you suspect death? If I were to suspect death, I should die    now, Do you think I could walk pleasantly and well-suited toward    annihilation?10 Pleasantly and well-suited I walk, Whither I walk I cannot define, but I know it is good, The whole universe indicates that it is good, The past and the present indicate that it is good. How beautiful and perfect are the animals! How perfect the earth, and the minutest thing upon it! What is called good is perfect, and what is called bad is just    as perfect, The vegetables and minerals are all perfect, and the imponderable    fluids are perfect; Slowly and surely they have pass'd on to this, and slowly and surely    they yet pass on.11 I swear I think now that everything without exception has an    eternal Soul! The trees have, rooted in the ground! the weeds of the sea have!    the animals! I swear I think there is nothing but immortality! That the exquisite scheme is for it, and the nebulous float is    for it, and the cohering is for it; And all preparation is for it! and identity is for it! and life    and materials are altogether for it!

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A noiseless patient spider, I mark'd where on a little promontory it stood isolated, Mark'd how to explore the vacant vast surrounding, It launch'd forth filament, filament, filament, out of itself, Ever unreeling them, ever tirelessly speeding them.

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I dreamed that you were a bee
That one day gaily flew along,
You came across the hedge to me,
And sang a soft, love-burdened song.
You brushed my petals with a kiss,
I woke to gladness with a start,
And yielded up to you in bliss
The treasured fragrance of my heart;
And then I knew
That I had waited there for you.

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I dreamed that you were a beeThat one day gaily flew along, You came across the hedge to me, And sang a soft, love-burdened song. You brushed my petals with a kiss, I woke to gladness with a start, And yielded up to you in bliss The treasured fragrance of my heart; And then I knew That I had waited there for you.

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Does money or wealth have anything to do with your idea of the dream?

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America prides itself on being a country where economic mobility is possible and everyone has an equal opportunity for success-what we define as the American Dream. But is it really true that anyone can attain the Dream?

According to research by Pew Charitable Trusts, 84% of people out-earn their parents (even after adjusting for inflation). That's great!

Right? Maybe.

The poorest Americans are wealthier than they used to be, but it's increasingly difficult to transcend the economic class you were born into--43% of people born into the lowest economic class are stuck there, and 40% of those born into the very highest class hold onto their lofty positions.

Meanwhile, in a comparable country like Denmark, under 30% of those born into the lowest class end up stuck there as adults. It's not just Denmark; The New York Times notes there's less class mobility in the U.S. than in Canada or even Britain, a country with a reputation for class constraints.

So, although we're making more than our parents in absolute dollar amounts, a boost in income may not be enough to bump us to the next rung on the ladder because the gap between the richest and the poorest is wider than ever. Economists think the U.S. poverty rate will soon rise to 15.7%, the highest since 1965, and an earlier study by the Pew Research Center found that two-thirds of Americans think the class divide is the biggest concern in our country today, even bigger than racial strain or immigration.

As you can see in the chart from Pew's report, below, a true rags-to-riches experience is hard to come by. Each bar in the chart refers to one quintile, or a fifth of all people, born in each social class. So, the bar all the way to the left represents people born into the lowest fifth, and the colored divisions going upward represent the class they ended up in as adults. As you can see, only 4% of people born into the bottom quintile managed to make it all the way to the top as adults.

How to Improve Your Class Mobility

Despite the current lack of mobility in the U.S., one thing has been shown to help people across all economic classes raise themselves up: a college education. Though the nation's massive student loan debt has led people to debate whether a college education is actually worth it, education has been shown to significantly improve economic class at all levels.

For those who grew up low on the ladder: A college education makes a person over three times more likely to rise from the bottom of the family income ladder all the way to the top. 90% of people with a college degree move up from the bottom fifth of the ladder.

For those who grew up higher on the ladder: A degree makes people raised in a middle or higher economic group significantly less likely to lose ground. In other words, growing up in an upper middle class household helps your odds of staying relatively wealthy as an adult, and having a college degree cements that.

Is College a Cure-All?

Although a college education is, in some ways, a great equalizer, the road to that education is far from equal. Obviously, wealthier families will better be able to help their kids pay for college, and educated parents are more likely to pressure their kids to get a higher education. But the problem is that the achievement gap between rich kids and poor kids is growing ever wider.

In one study, the achievement gap--the difference in standardized testing scores--between rich and poor kids grew about 40% since the 1960s.

The New York Times article speculates that the recession may have intensified this gap, not least because, as one quoted University of Pennsylvania professor puts it, "The pattern of privileged families today is intensive cultivation." In other words, by the time they hit high school, high-income kids have spent about 400 more hours in "literacy activities," like extracurricular activities or enrichment camps, than poor children. Meanwhile, lower income families are likelier to be from single-income homes, in which parents simply don't have the time or means to keep their kids constantly stimulated.

Maybe that's why increasing numbers of high-income kids are going to college nowadays, whereas lower-income kids' college numbers have barely budged. One study found that high-income kids finishing college increased from about 33% to over 50% from the early '80s to the early '00s. Meanwhile, the number among low-income students only increased from 5% to 9%.

The bottom line? Income inequality:

has been growing vastly in the U.S.

is one of the biggest social issues today

can be mitigated by going to college

has bled into many parts of society, with social repercussions including the ability get an education and advance from one rung to the next.

What do you think of this? Is income inequality in the U.S. at the front of your mind?

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How Attainable Is the American Dream, Really?

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America prides itself on being a country where economic mobility is possible and everyone has an equal opportunity for success-what we define as the American Dream. But is it really true that anyone can attain the Dream? According to research by Pew Charitable Trusts, 84% of people out-earn their parents (even after adjusting for inflation).

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A Brief Background:
I had an assignment for my Humanities class that asked us how we personally feel about the concept of the "American Dream" and to consider how other cultures view the concepts of happiness and freedom. At the same time I was watching the PBS documentary series We Shall Remain, 6 episodes from their American Experience series about the atrocities suffered by the native tribes of this country at the hands of the invading Europeans. The series presents an emotional history of several tribes and influential people in American history from the perspective of the native peoples' affected. You can learn more

about the series and access a ton of cool resources at the PBS website.
These two topics, the idea of the American dream and the extreme suffering of the Native Americans, set the tone for the following post.

For me, the phrase "The American Dream" has always brought to mind images of baseball, apple pie, Rosie the Riveter, and immigrants lined up outside the Statue of Liberty with visions of streets paved in gold. For many immigrants, America represented the epitome of freedom and happiness, but for the native peoples of North America, the "American Dream" was actually a nightmare of invasion, plague, and genocide.
Native Americans enjoyed true freedom and happiness amongst the vast riches of this land for thousands of years before Europeans stepped foot on our soil. Hundreds of thriving societies with rich cultures were wiped out in less than a century and those that remained were imprisoned on small tracts of land far from their homes, their ancestors, and their traditions (PBS, 2009). For the few native peoples left in this country, freedom is an unknown concept and true happiness cannot be fully realized within the constraints of their reservations.
The European-American vision of freedom, a far cry from what the natives knew as freedom, enslaved thousands of people and revoked the in-born rights of hundreds of cultures and societies within the continent. For many tribes, freedom and happiness go hand-in-hand and their people cannot have one without the other. Happiness is found through the freedom of celebrating their culture, heritage, and traditions, remembering where they came from, and what their ancestors sacrificed for their right to be Cherokee, Lenape, Lakota or any of the hundreds of other individual societies of natives. Europeans stole the Native Americans' identity and forced them to assimilate into white society or be imprisoned on reservations. The Trail of Tears, the marching of thousands of Cherokee people from their homes in the southwest to the reservations of Indian Country, is just one example of the freedom and potential happiness of these peoples being taken right out from underneath them by the white man (PBS, 2009).

We Shall Remain. [Television Series]. (2009). USA: PBS.

Check out Part 2 of my pro-native tirade in which I disassemble the Preamble of the Declaration of Independence.

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A Brief Background: I had an assignment for my Humanities class that asked us how we personally feel about the concept of the "American Dream" and to consider how other cultures view the concepts of happiness and freedom. At the same time I was watching the PBS documentary series We Shall Remain, 6 episodes from...

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More than any other ethnic group, Latinos remain optimistic about their lives in America and the country's future. They have not given up on the American Dream, the main reason being the success stories they hear about Latinos who made it. These stories continually inspire present and future generations of Latinos from all walks of life.

No one can argue that Latinos have it tough in America. Statistics reveal that they are at the low-end of the economic ladder in the nation. Yet one feature little appreciated of Latinos is their tenacity to succeed.

So where does it all begin for Latinos and the American Dream?

A universal theme among many Latinos is the struggle they faced upon arrival in the United States. Most of them lived in poor areas of the country and took up low-paying jobs that were available.

Many did not even had proper immigration papers and even those who did, might not have understood that they had labor rights in this land. Latinos generally do jobs no one else wants.

You may be interested: Food for thought Latino workers abused at poultry farms

For the most part, first generation of Latino immigrants have endured almost every type of difficulty that is humanely possible. Despite these hardships, Latinos strongly believe that in order to succeed, they must educate their children so they can achieve what they have not. And it is this undying devotion to their children that have allowed Latinos to see success among the present generations.

A recent National Survey of Latinos conducted by the Pew Research Center revealed that even when the current recession was at its peak, Hispanics had extreme faith in the American Dream that far exceeded that of African-Americans and White Americans. Eternally optimistic, Latinos get up each day and hope for the sunshine.

What has changed for Latinos?

Amid all the poverty and discrimination they suffer, more than 50 million Hispanics are now exercising their unprecedented political force to get their voices heard. Without a Latino vote, no political party can win the presidential election- that is how strong their voice has become.

"Arturo Vargas, executive director of the National Association of Elected and Appointed Officials, projects 13.1 million Hispanics will vote nationwide in 2016, compared to 11.2 million in 2012 and 9.7 million in 2008," according to The Hill.

Still, only about half of documented immigrants have applied for citizenship and are able to vote. And, in the last four elections, only about 48 percent of Latinos eligible to vote show up at the polls, according to Fox News Latinos.

Is the Latinos and the American Dream story a true story?

All over the country, we now hear of Latinos achieving positions that would have been almost impossible to imagine just a decade or two ago. As a group, they are slowly moving up the social and economic ladder- being present in almost every sector of society now where their presence counts. And the majority of Latino parents believe their children are much better off than they were just a decade ago.

You may be interested: SCOTUS Justice Sotomayor Leadership Award from Hispanic Heritage Foundation

However, despite this large numbers of Latinos and their success stories, we cannot escape reality. A report conducted by The Washington Post and the University of Virginia's Miller Center showed that the average Latino family makes nearly $20,000 less than an average American family.

Although with small increments, Hispanic homeownership is still low at 46 percent, and many work two or three menial jobs to make ends meet. They still remain financially insecure and their median household wealth is low compared to other groups. Less than 15 percent of Latinos end up with a college degree compared with 31 percent of all Americans.

Upward mobility has come for a few Latinos but the majority continues to struggle. The upbeat attitude is mainly because as they start at a very low step of the ladder, any gain is seen as a big accomplishment. Just having children going to an American school is considered a major achievement even if there is a dire situation at home. White Americans, on the other hand, expect more from the system.

How far apart are Latinos and the American Dream?

Latinos and the American Dream are still far apart. While poverty and school dropout rates have improved, being Latino is still seen as a stigma in certain parts of the country.

They have been played by both political parties with promises that have never been fulfilled such as comprehensive immigration reform and decrease in deportation and family separation.

Protected by government oversight, American corporations continue to exploit undocumented workers with low wages and a system of disguised "modern slavery" that would be unacceptable for any American worker.

With the upcoming presidential elections, pervasive discrimination against Latinos -and other immigrant groups- has surged in our society.

More than ever Latinos need to play their role in American society to counter balance the negative narrative that has been agitated by extreme political groups. It is now up to us to show up at the voting polls, once and for all to determine our own destiny.

Leave us a comment!

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No country for Latinos and the American Dream

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More than any other ethnic group, Latinos remain optimistic about their lives in America and the country's future. They have not given up on the American Dream, the main reason being the success stories they hear about Latinos who made it. These stories continually inspire present and future generations of Latinos from all walks of life.

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Everyone, no matter how well a writer, needs to brainstorm.

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Microsoft Word: How to Set Up MLA Format 2013

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Watch the video updated for 2017 here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NMqTfSm7gdA How to set up MLA format 2013 in Microsoft Word.