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Essay Available:
Pages:
7 pages/≈1925 words
Sources:
7 Sources
Style:
MLA
Subject:
History
Type:
Term Paper
Language:
English (U.S.)
Document:
MS Word
Date:
Total cost:
$ 30.24
Topic:

Indian Slavery in Mexican California

Term Paper Instructions:

1. Requirements

            a. Minimum of 7 sources

            b. Must be scholarly sources, such as found on the BC Library web page.  When in doubt                 about a source, ask the professor.

            c. You are allowed the use of one documentary. (You do not have to use one if you do                      not wish).

            d. Use of at least 3 books or eBooks.  Cannot use a textbook, Wikipedia, encyclopedias,

children’s sources like duckster.com or scholastics, history.com (try to stay away from dot coms), travel brochures, etc.

            e. Half of your sources must be primary sources. (See video in Modules Page on Canvas                   on primary sources, as well as the BC Library link at                                                                                https://bakersfieldcollege.libguides.com/PrimarySources ).

2. Outline/Thesis

            a. Make an outline and let it serve as your term paper “road map.”  Before writing                             anything, ask yourself where you want to go with your paper. But even before doing                         that, you must do the research and have a really good grasp of what it is you are going                         to write about.  History has different angles, and you need to know the basics before                          deciding what angle to take. Or perhaps you want to create your own, new, fresh angle                       that no one has thought of before. “Angle” is another way of saying “thesis.”  Your                      thesis is not only what your paper is about but what position you are taking on that                          topic. 

            Below is an example thesis statement of a term paper entitled, “The Grapes of Wrath:       History vs. Hollywood”

The iconic classic film, The Grapes of Wrath, accurately portrays the lives of the   migrants as they struggled against nature and man, traveling from Oklahoma to        California, eking out a new life in a hostile California.

            Below is an example of a different thesis statement from the exact same topic.

            The iconic clssic film, “The Grapes of Wrath,” inaccurately portrays the lives of migrants in a condescending manner, depicting them as hicks and simpletons coming to California from Oklahoma during the Dust Bowl years.

As you can see, it is the same topic but with two different theses, or “angles.”  The angle is dependent on your research and the conclusions you come to. 

3. Outline Example. When you know what your thesis is you can put your outline together.

    This gives a brief outline sample from the Grapes of Wrath.                 

            Title: “The Grapes of Wrath: History vs. Hollywood”

Thesis: The iconic classic film, “The Grapes of Wrath,” accurately portrays the lives of the migrants as they struggled against nature and man, traveling from Oklahoma to California, eking out a new life in a hostile California.

I. Introduction

            A. Thesis

            B. Overview of film and historical accuracy

II. The Grapes of Wrath book and film context

            A. Dust Bowl background

            B. Great Depression background

            C. Authorial intent of Steinbeck

            D. Film context

                        1. Studio

                        2. Director, producer, star

                        3. Box office numbers

III. The Grapes of Wrath historical accuracies

            A. Muley losing his land (briefly describe scene)

1. Use data/research to show Muley’s story was an example of tens of         

    thousands of farmers losing their land

2. Show process of eviction/removal

                        B. Treatment of the Joads’ in California (briefly describe scene)

                                    1. Use data/research to show migrant camp life and numbers

                                    2. Use research to show how Californians did not like them here and why

                        C. Portrayals of the Joad family (briefly describe scenes)

                                    1. Use data/research to show work ethic of Midwest/south farmers

                                    2. Use research to describe the culture

            IV. The Grapes of Wrath impact on popular culture

                        A. Book/film banned in Bakersfield

                        B. Populist portrayal of the migrants

                        C. Okie culture now embraced and celebrated

            V. Conclusion

                        A. Restate thesis statement for effect

                        B. Tie it all together, leaving no doubt for the reader that the paper is done

As you work on your own paper, you may go through different outlines.  Whatever you decide on, it is imperative that you back up your position with facts, research, data, and data analysis.  The more research the stronger the argument.

Utilize the Writing Center for help.  Purdue Owl is a really good website for MLA format information. https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/01/. It is HIGHLY recommended that students taking this class have already taken English B1A. It is the student's responsibility to learn, know, and properly apply MLA format to his/her term paper.

Term Paper Sample Content Preview:
Student
Professor
Course
Date
Indian Slavery in Mexican California
The Mexican rule began in California in 1821 and ended in 1846, giving rise to the state's economy. The Mexican ranchos hired the native labor force raising the economic prosperity and providing consistency to native Indian slavery, which Spaniards had already begun or even the rulers before, and continued to the era of the Gold Rush. However, different researchers indicate that Indian slavery during the Mexican period was not as severe as before and after; instead, the Mexican government launched slavery reforms, allowing enslaved people to claim better civil rights. Before this, the Spanish rule did not allow them as much social and economic freedom, similar to the Gold rush that began after the Mexican government and was the darkest age of slavery with brutal genocide, physical and sexual abuse, and child labor. The Mexican age was also not without Indian labor, but it had a milder environment for the natives to conduct their lives through a modification in law. However, slavery continued because no government could run the Californian economy without native labor. Thus they changed the names of rules and activities, and ranchos used their authority to exploit the aboriginal Indians unofficially. The Mexican California marks an age of slavery with unofficial exploitation because they were primitive according to Mexicans; this slavery was a refined form of slavery as compared with other eras of native Indian slavery in California, and it gave rise to the state's economy as a positive economic strategy as approved by the current historians.
After a series of revolts, California won to get freedom from Spanish rule. In 1821, it was a Mexican state. The mission system created so much trouble for the inhabitants that they were not ready to accept its negative impacts, like a vast reduction in the Indian population. Thereby, they rebelled and handed over their state to Mexico. The beginning of Mexican rule modified rules and regulations through secularization. Through this method, the government aimed to provide land grants to the villagers to encourage agriculture and the state's economic growth. The wealthy landowners purchased most of the property and became historically known as ranchos, who raised the castle. The ranchos of the Mexican age mainly were Mexicans who hired the natives to work on their lands because the aboriginal Indians were already an essential part of the economy through labor (Rawls 13). Their cultivation made them wealthier, leaving the native Indians and non-Indians below the poverty line. However, the native labor was vital to the state's prosperity as it has always been a part of the economic support. The masters were obliged to conduct slavery under specific rules. It is undeniable that it brought inequality in the society and began a dark age of slavery at the end of the Mexican government in 1846
. California Indians experienced slavery from their aboriginal mistreatment and Spanish mission to the end of the Gold Rush. During all these years, the rulers discovered indigenous Indians useful for labor and slavery to be productive. The Mexican age brought emancipation for native Indians and decreed several laws in favor of the ens...
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