Midterm Overview: The midterm has two parts. The first section requires students to identify four out of seven historical figures, organizations, and events covered in lectures, discussions or outside readings. This is worth 40% of the grade. On the second section of the midterm, students will choose one of two essay questions that cover larger themes addressed in the course. The essay is worth 60% of the grade. You must bring a blue book to write the answers for the midterm.

Identifications: Your identification answers should address the questions of who, what, when, where and why the event, group, person, or place was historically significant. The identifications on the midterm will come from the following list:

Essays: Your essay should have a main thesis (or central argument) that is clearly stated in the introductory paragraph. It should include concrete examples (brief discussions of people, events, organizations, etc.) from the lectures and books that support the essay’s major points. Finally, it should address potential counterarguments and conclude with a summation of your main thesis. Two of the following essay questions will appear on the midterm, and you will answer one of the two.

1. The year is 1927, and you are a Polish immigrant who came to the United States in 1907. Write a letter to your niece, Ruth Kluger, back in the Old Country who is trying to decide whether or not to come to America. Base your advice to Ruth on your experiences living and working in New York City and Boston as well as the general position of Americans towards you and other immigrants.

2. You are a Populist leader speaking to a crowd of factory workers and farmers just outside of Chicago the day before the election of 1896. Draft a speech that 1) chronicles the efforts of workers and farmers to organize against big business interests from 1865-1896, and 2) convinces the crowd to vote for Populist candidates and William J. Bryan the next day.

3. Whether one thinks that the West was “won” or “lost” in the second half of the 19th century, there is little doubt that armed conflict reigned in the region. What inspired conflicts on the frontier between “cowboys” and Indians, Anglos and Mexicanos, immigrants and native-born Americans, and finally, between settlers and the natural wilderness? How did these conflicts shape the modern West that we inhabit today?

4. You are a member of the National Women’s Party rallying support for the Equal Rights Amendment in 1926. Explain how the position of women in American society has changed between the 1890s and the 1920s? Discuss women who exemplify this change? Finally, explain why Americans should support an Equal Rights Amendment that guarantees women the same rights as men in America.