Thanksgiving has become an iconic U.S. holiday on which Americans express gratitude for the good things in their lives and share a meal with family or friends. However, the holiday does not mean the exact same thing to everyone. These differing meanings arise in part from individuals’ differing understandings of the first Thanksgiving feast.

This assignment asks you to undertake a number of readings. Consider each one carefully, taking notes as you go.

Please do the steps in the order described. Do not do all the readings listed here and then write your blog post. Take your time, and add to your blog post at the end of each step.

Also, for most of the questions you will be answering, there is no single “right” answer. Please answer them authentically, writing what you really think, rather than what you believe your liberal Californian professor wants to see. I want to hear your voice and your thoughts.

Step One: Common tales

1. Watch this video on the evolution of the Thanksgiving holiday and take notes for yourself on how its meaning has changed over the years.
2. Read these three short articles on the first Thanksgiving, and compare and contrast them in your notes. In particular, consider for which audience each author wrote his or her article:
   • “First Thanksgiving”
   • “The First Thanksgiving”
   • “The Pilgrims and America’s First Thanksgiving”
3. Start a new, four-part blog post. In part I, answer these questions:
   • Which of these readings was closest to your childhood understanding of the first Thanksgiving?
   • Which article comes closest to your current understanding of that event?
   • How has your understanding of the event and celebrations of the holiday changed over your lifetime, and why?

Step Two: Challengers

1. Read each of the following articles on the first Thanksgiving and the Pilgrims more generally, again taking notes:
   • “The Great Thanksgiving Hoax”
   • “The Real Story of Thanksgiving”
   • “Pilgrims, Socialism, and Thanksgiving”
   • “The Real Meaning of Thanksgiving: The Triumph of Capitalism over Collectivism”
2. Return to your blog post, and begin part II. Answer these questions:
   • Do you find these interpretations interesting? Explain.
   • Do you find these interpretations compelling—that is, are they reasonable or accurate enough to change your previous understanding of Pilgrims or the first Thanksgiving? Again, explain.
   • Google the authors of each piece and/or explore their websites. Who are they? Briefly summarize what you learned about them.
   • Does knowing more about the authors change how you view their interpretations of the Pilgrims and the first Thanksgiving? Explain why your perception of their interpretations did or did not change.

Step Three: Even more challengers

1. Read (or listen to) each of the following texts, taking notes:
   • “The Pilgrims Were. . .Socialists?”
   • “The True, Grim Story of the First Thanksgiving”
   • “Are you teaching the real story of the ‘first Thanksgiving’?”
   • “The National Day of Mourning”
   • “The Suppressed Speech of Wamsutta”
2. Return to your blog post, and begin part III. Answer these questions:
   • Do you find these interpretations more or less interesting than the readings in Step Two? Explain.
   • Do you find these interpretations compelling—that is, are they reasonable or accurate enough to change your previous understanding of Pilgrims or the first Thanksgiving? Again, explain.
   • Google the authors of each piece and/or explore their websites. Who are they? Briefly summarize what you learned about them.
   • Does knowing more about the authors change how you view their interpretations of the Pilgrims and the first Thanksgiving? Explain why your perception of their interpretations did or did not change.

Step Four: Reflection

1. Return to your blog post, and begin part IV. Answer the following questions. Note: Again, there is no single “right” answer to any of these questions. The only bad/wrong answer is a response that appears to have been written too quickly, without much reflection.
   • How do you think an historian would make sense of the event known as the first Thanksgiving? What steps would he or she take to make sure her narrative and interpretation are as objective and accurate as possible?
   • How would the average 18- to 30-year-old American go about making sense of these competing articles? How do you suppose he or she would determine which interpretation is most compelling?
   • If I were to ask you to find primary sources related to the first Thanksgiving, where would you look?
   • If I were to ask you to find reliable secondary sources on the first Thanksgiving, where would you look?
2. Comment on your group members’ posts.

Remember to categorize your blog post by assignment and group.

Due Saturday, January 30 by 11 p.m.

 

This activity is based on a lesson plan developed by the New York Times.