writ 1633

human rights / humans write

tiedemann
winter 2017

the prompt
Lynn Hunt argues that cultural artifacts not only represent the human
condition; they teach us new ways to be human. In this essay, youll
apply Hunts concepts to a cultural artifact of your choosing (pending my
approval) in order to argue an original interpretation: What new way of
being human does your chosen artifact teach its users? And specifically
how does it teach that lesson to them?
audience
Imagine that youre submitting this essay to a journal of undergraduate
writing. The editors are an art historian, a philosopher, and a literary
critic. Theyre broadly familiar with the philosophy and history of human
rights; however, they havent read Lynn Hunts work, and so theyre not
familiar with her arguments. And although its possible that one of them
is somewhat familiar with the cultural artifact youve chosen to analyze,
the others are not.
format
You are to format your essay in MLA style (including a Works Cited
page). See the Formatting your work tab on the blog.
due dates
Youll write this essay in stages over a period of several class meetings, in
a single document named WRIT 1633 your name Essay 1. First,
youll draft a summary of Hunts argument (due by the start of class
Thursday, 3/30); then youll add a draft of a thesis paragraph (Tuesday,
4/4); and youll add a draft of the body of your paper (Thursday, 4/6). A
revised draft of the complete essay is due on Tuesday, 4/11. Your revised
final draft will be due at noon on Friday, June 9.
Be sure to follow the instructions on the Formatting and Sharing tab on our
blog.

essay 1:
writing humanity