Questions and Topics We Can Help You Answering;
Re-read the following passage from The Squatter and the Don:
At five minutes to two, Señor Alamar, accompanied by Mr. Mechlin, arrived in a buggy; his two sons followed on horseback. Clarence had time to look at them leisurely while they dismounted and tied their horses to a hitching post.
“They are gentlemen, no doubt,” observed Clarence.
“You bet they are,” Romeo coincided. Evidently he admired and liked them.
“How much the boys look like the old man,” Tom said.
“They look like Englishmen,” was Clarence’s next observation.
“Yes, particularly Victoriano; he is so light he looks more like a German, I think,” said Romeo.
“I think Gabriel is very handsome,” Tom said, “only of late he seems always so sad or thoughtful.” (249).
In a paper of 800 to 1000 words, discuss how the novel represents the interactions between men in this passage. You may consider how the act of looking works in the passage, how the Latino Don Mariano Alamar and his sons are likened to Europeans, and how the matter of a “light” complexion relates to all this. Open up your observations on these interactions to consider how they connect with the Don’s argument in the rest of the selection about the proper use of the land and his rights as a landowner. Finally, in your conclusion, reflect on what kind of account of America Ruiz de Burton is offering here.
Be sure to quote and analyze words, phrases, or sentences from the text (just as you did in the close reading assignment). You may use prior blog posts and blog responses to build your paper. (You can even quote classmates.)
I will return your paper with comments in Microsoft Word Review. Those comments will give you suggestions for rewriting which you must incorporate into your revision. The revision will be due by 11.59 pm on Saturday, 6/11. See the rubric below for more on the revision.
Submission Instructions
Email your paper as a double-spaced Word document in 12-point font to Be sure to give your paper a title. No works cited is needed, but do use MLA style for in-text citations. See here: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/02/.
Rubric
First Version, Due 6/3
Good: In 800 to 1000 words, you analyze well the interactions between men in the passage, noting how the details of such interactions relate to the Don’s words about land in the rest of the passage. In your conclusion, you make a clear point about the version of America represented here. You cite and analyze passages from the text. It is proofread well for errors and clarity.
Average: In 800 to 1000 words, you partially analyze the interactions between men in the passage, vaguely noting how the details of such interactions relate to the Don’s words about land in the rest of the passage. In your conclusion, you make a point about the version of America represented here, but it is unclear or undeveloped. You cite and analyze few passages from the text. It is proofread passably for errors and clarity.
Poor: In less than 800 words, you fail to analyze the interactions between men in the passage, therefore ignoring how the details of such interactions relate to the Don’s words about land in the rest of the passage. In your conclusion, you fail to make a point about the version of America represented here. You don’t cite and analyze passages from the text. It is proofread poorly for errors and clarity.
