Further Content Exploration

Stories of personal courage and individual decision-making show up in all historical time periods. American history is rife with these stories and themes, and exploring them allows teachers to link past and present topics in a way that is inspiring and memorable for students. The following "Courage Essay" assignment -- an essay about ideals and courage -- offers an opportunity to connect ideas from the Revolutionary War debate with more contemporary issues. It also serves as a good writing activity.

Think of an action in modern times (1950s or later) that required people to violate powerful social conventions for the sake of their ideals, for example taking a position for or against intervention in Vietnam. In your journal, describe the courage involved in this action. Also, discuss how such people were treated by society at the time that they took action, and how these events are treated in history books today (or will be treated in books of the future). Finally, for which ideals would you stand up -- and stand against society -- today?

Your essay should have an opening paragraph that offers an overview statement about ideals and courage and briefly describes the example you have chosen to write about.

Next, include important facts and details about your example, and describe how these details connect to the ideas from the Revolutionary War debate. You should also address the final question above regarding your own idea about standing up for an ideal.

Your closing paragraph should be a restated version of your opening (about courage and ideals).

This essay should not run more than two pages.

If you are working with colleagues, describe the modern action that you each wrote about in your essay and discuss the connections you made to the Revolutionary War.