Future Commemorations and U.S. Origin Stories

Overview:
This assignment invites you to creatively engage with key U.S. origin stories by imagining how they might be remembered, contested, or reinterpreted during a future commemoration. You will choose one of two speculative scenarios and create a fictional commemorative artifact that reflects how that origin story continues to shape or be reshaped by American public memory. Your artifact should take a clear rhetorical stance—patriotic, reverential, dystopian, satirical, or subversive—and be accompanied by a reflective analysis.

This assignment encourages you to think historically and imaginatively about national identity, memory, and the politics of commemoration. As you imagine the future, ground your vision in plausible developments, extrapolating from current cultural, political, technological, or environmental trends.

Choose One of the Following Scenarios:

Scenario 1: The 500th Anniversary of the Plymouth Settlement (Thanksgiving, 2120)
Create a political speech, newspaper report, advertisement, elementary school lesson, museum exhibit description, film or media review, parade, protest, or other imaginary source that tells a version of the Pilgrim origin story appropriate to American society, culture, and politics in the early 22nd century.

In addition to the source itself, you will need to explain its relevance to the nation as you imagine it exists in 2120. Your imagined source can exemplify a dominant story or a counter-story. You will need to think about who the author might be (an Indigenous group, a religious organization, our AI overlords, etc.). The America circa 2120 that you imagine can be more or less democratic, more or less commercial, more or less plausible as a “city on a hill” to the nations of the world than it is today.

Scenario 2: The 300th Anniversary of the Declaration of Independence (2176)
Create a political speech, newspaper report, advertisement, elementary school lesson, museum exhibit description, film or media review, parade, protest, or other imaginary source that tells a version of the American Revolution / Founding Fathers origin story appropriate to American society, culture, and politics roughly 100 years hence.

In addition to the source itself, you will need to explain its relevance to the nation as you imagine it exists in 2176. Your imagined source can exemplify a dominant story or a counter-story. You will need to think about who the author might be (an Indigenous group, a radical political group, a religious organization, our AI overlords, etc.). The America circa 2176 that you imagine can be more or less democratic, more or less commercial, more or less plausible as a “city on a hill” to the nations of the world than it is today.

Part 1: The Artifact
Choose one of the above scenarios and create a fictional commemorative artifact. Possible formats include (but are not limited to):

  • A political cartoon
  • A mock newspaper article
  • A campaign speech
  • A protest flyer or rally poster
  • A TV or digital ad
  • An artist’s statement or museum exhibit description


Part 2: Creator’s Reflection (roughly 2 pages)
Your reflection should address the following:

  • What scenario did you choose, and why?
  • How does your artifact engage with the key themes or contradictions of the origin story?
  • What rhetorical strategies did you use (tone, imagery, audience, historical references)?
  • How does your artifact reflect debates around U.S. identity, memory, and belonging?

Your reflection may also bring in other origin stories we’ve studied (e.g., the Melting Pot, the Myth of the Frontier, White Christian Nationalism, 1619, Indigenous perspectives) as appropriate to the story you’re telling.

Submission Guidelines:

  • Submit both your artifact and your reflection via email as a single document or portfolio
  • Due Date: no later than 5:00 PM on May 19th
  • Format: Typed, double-spaced for the reflection; visual elements may be embedded or submitted as attachments

The evaluation criteria for this assignment include demonstrating historical insight and a clear connection to course themes, creativity and rhetorical clarity in your chosen format, and depth and clarity in your reflection. Additionally, your work will be assessed on how well it engages with the politics of memory and identity, considering how national narratives are shaped and contested.