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Home Comparison Essay Assignment Comparison Essay-Student Posts Works Cited Exemplar Internal Citation Exemplar Civil Society Defined Great Man Continuum

Post Essay and Works Cited HERE  In this essay I will explain the extent of some major changes that took place during the 1980s and 1920s, and answer the question “who was more influential in the 1920s and 1980s: Great Persons or Civil Society?” To determine if the topic/person was a great person or civil society I used the great man criteria which includes the significance of accomplishment, endurance of legacy, extent of influence, and the impact on daily life. The 1920s was a drastic change from the early 1900s. After World War I women finally began to find their voices. The League of Women Voters was established to “finish the fight and work to end all discrimination against women” (as sited by Drew). The League of Women Voters began to end discrimination by working to give women the right to suffrage, which they accomplished. Their accomplishment has left a long lasting legacy; it has shown women that their voices do matter and now women in our society are almost completely equal to men. The League has influenced other people to make their voices heard and change ways of daily life that are wrong. This fits the great man criteria because these women found the courage to speak up against society to fight for what they believed was right even though they knew their opinion was not being acknowledged, but would eventually be if they kept fighting (Drew).  Another big change in the 1920s was the new technology. Radios were becoming more affordable and allowed people to listen to the news, music, advertise, and simply cure their boredom (as sited by Givi). The radio was invented to help with WWI communications, but became one of the biggest turning points in technology (Givi). Business men used it for advertising, stay-at-home moms used it to keep them entertained, and families used it to stay in touch with the latest breaking news. The radio had a big effect on daily life back then and still does today, we use the radio daily and it has led to many other technology advancements. The radio was an “event-making hero” because it created a technology revolution. Music was beginning to be played a lot on the radio. People wanted to listen to the newest and best music, so radio stations and clubs began to play Jazz more often. One of the most influential men to make Jazz music was Duke Ellington; he “made Jazz very popular” (as sited by Arat). Jazz music was significant because it was a part of African American culture becoming accepted in America. Other than parents thinking of it as “the devils music” it was socially accepted (Arat). While it did not have a daily effect on people’s lives then or now, it has paved the way for many other styles of music and African American culture. Jazz was a great man because it was the beginning of African American culture being embraced by Americans. The 1980s was like the 1920s in many ways, one way being the major technology advancements made. Apple and Microsoft became the leading innovators in this new technology turn. These companies became wildly popular, their products were expensive but consumers wanted them regardless (Drew). Apple made it their mission to get everyone a laptop at a reasonable price, which they accomplished after many long hours and lots of hard work. These companies have led to many other advancements in technology, and have allowed people around the world to have instant communication. Companies like Microsoft and Apple have had a major impact on daily lives then and now; people use technology provided by those companies to do work, connect with other people far away, and to stay in touch with the latest news. These companies are both great men because their company owners were “innovative and forward thinking” (as sited by Drew). John Hughes” brat pack” films were also wildly popular in the ‘80s. His films “defined the youth of the 1980s through plot, style, and music” (Shea). His films helped teens see that they were not alone in their daily struggles from finding a prom date to dealing with depression. The films did not leave a long lasting legacy but they were very influential back in the day. The films influenced the way kids dressed, spoke, and even the music they listened to. John Hughes fits the criteria of a great man because his movies were relatable to all teenagers, the movies had a big impact on society; he was very influential and the only person of the time to make movies like this other films were “raunchy” and unrealistic (EBSCO Host). Some of the most important ideas to happen in the twentieth century were Gorbachev’s political policies: Glasnost and Perestroika, they were the steps that would help lead to the fall of communism in Eastern Europe. After many hard years, the Soviets were tired of how much government interference they had. Gorbachev was the first political leader there to reintroduce democratic-like ways into the USSR. Gorbachev was quoted saying “the Soviet government [had problems that] should be remedied only through extensive political reforms and democratization” (as sited by Abby). His ways were embraced by the Soviets with open arms; they were ready for a change (Abby). Glasnost and Perestroika lead to other countries splitting off from the USSR and becoming their own countries again (Abby). While his ideas don’t have a major impact on daily life today they did back then because they were leading to the end of oppression in the USSR and helping bandage the wounds between the US and the USSR. Gorbachev was a great man because he allowed countries the opportunity to split from the USSR and he reunited the broken countries that made up the USSR by helping lead to the fall of Communism (Abby). Out of all of the 1980 topics I would rank Gorbachev’s political policies as the most influential because it allowed an end to the Cold War and stopped the fear of Communism spreading throughout the rest of the world. These were major concerns back then because of the tension between Democratic countries and Communist countries. Next I ranked Apple and Microsoft as the second most influential; they allowed people the chance to have a personal computer which was unheard of. They led to greater technology advances throughout time and still manage to create new technology that people use on a day to day basis. These companies have had a huge impact on life today but they are not as important as the fall of communism. Communism could have led to many other world tragedies; in fact when they finally called a truce they were in the middle of making a multi-million dollar missile that most likely would have been fired at the US. I rank the John Hughes movies as the least influential because they have had the shortest endurance of a legacy as compared to Gorbachev’s ideas and Apple and Microsoft. While they had a major impact on society in the 1980s they do not impact us daily today. The issues faced in these movies are still relatable but the movies are not as popular as they were back then. For the 1920 topics I rank the League of Women Voters as the most influential because they gained women the right to vote. Without women like them, women today would not have the right to vote. The next most influential topic would have to be the advancements in radio because the radio was a new, more innovative way for Americans to receive news and stay entertained by music or radio shows. The radio is not quite as important as women receiving the right to vote because it has not lead to the equality of women and men, but it has led to many other important technological advancements which is why it is ranked about jazz. Out of the three 1920s topics I rank jazz as the least influential, while it did impact society back then by allowing African American culture to be accepted it does not have a daily effect on us right now, and it’s legacy was short lived because it has been replaced with many different new styles of music. I believe that a great person was more influential over a civil society because 5 out of the 6 topics I choose in this essay were great men. Great men led to many changes in society for the better and sometimes for the worst, but nonetheless they are always influential.

Abby. "Glasnost and Perestroika, Gorbachev." //Wikispaces.com//. N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Mar. 2012. Arat. "Jazz-Duke Ellington." //Wikispaces.com// N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Mar. 2012. Drew. "League of Women voters, Carrie Chapman Catt." //Wikispaces.com// N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Mar. 2012. Drew. "Personal Computers, Apple II and Microsoft." //Wikispaces.com// N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Mar. 2012. Givi. "RCA, Radio Corporation of America, Owen D. Young." //Wikispaces.com//. N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Mar. 2012. Shea. "John Hughes and Brat Pack Films." //Wikispaces.com//. N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Mar. 2012.

RUBRIC

A quality comparison essay will

•Use the __four__ criteria of Great Man Continuum to analyze the significance of three 1920’s topics and three 1980s topics. superficially addressed

•Analyze of each of the 6 topics with evidence taken from the 1920s and 1980s wikis, some supporting evidence referenced

•Develop a thoughtful and thorough conclusions on all 6 topics, unsupported claims made

•Rank the three topics for each decade and explain why one topic is more influential than the other two, yes

•Answer the essay question with a clear, well reasoned argument, yes but many claims unsupported

•Explain why the __second__ choice fell short compared to the __first__ choice but is more just than the __third__ choice, yes

•Organize ideas in extended power paragraphs, inconsistently done--explaining sentence often omitted

•Identify the source and establish its credibility with an appositive phrase, not done

•Cite evidence with internal citations and in a Works Cited. Click links for exemplars. When credited sources are correctly cited