Society has often whitewashed, romanticized, or ignored its treatment of people who do not fit the mainstream ideal of American, whether do the their race, culture, standard of living, gender and sexuality, or some other feature that marks them as "different." Historically, America has marginalized people with Native American, African, Asian, Hispanic and Latino, and other national and cultural identities. In more recent days, the idea that some people have been marginalized has been ridiculed and disparaged, and those who have tried to take a more open and supportive response have been ridiculed as well. Sometimes this treatment of people is naive, sometimes deliberately hateful or discriminatory. Those who live under these circumstances are forced to reckon with them as best they may. "Gentleness Stirred" by Nimah Nawwab and "On the Amtrak from Boston to New York" by Sherman Alexie illustrate some of the responses that those who have been or are being treated unjustly have responded. In an essay of 500 words, illustrate and explain the difficulties marginalized people face in contemporary society by examining the experiences of the speakers in these two poems.
Resources
Primary Sources
Secondary Source
Papa, James A. Jr. "Reinterpreting Myths: The Wilderness and the Indian in Thoreau's Maine Woods." The Midwest Quarterly, vol. 40, no. 2, winter 1999, p. 215. Gale Academic OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A57643992/AONE?u=anon~98801e77&sid=googleScholar&xid=95127a9f. Accessed 15 Nov. 2025.
This article explains who Don Henley was and why his efforts to restore Walden Pond were futile. It also explains the background on Walden Pond and Thoreau. The facts about Henley, Thoreau, and Walden Pond will help students explain the speaker's reaction in the poem. When using the Papa article in your essay, you will not write a paragraph on the article. Instead, you will only refer to the article in order to explain why the speaker says what he does about Henley and Walden Pond. Henry David Thoreau spent time in a cabin beside Walden Pond. He wrote about it in a book titled Walden, where he argued people needed to get back in touch with nature. As Papa's article points out, Walden Pond during Thoreau's time had already been damaged by locals, and by the time Henley wants to "save it," the pond is already ruined beyond repair.
You only need to read the beginning of the Papa article. You can stop where the paragraph starts that begins "Typical readings of The Maine Woods center on Thoreau's near religious conversion concerning the true face of nature." Also, Walden Pond is not in Maine. Walden Pond is in Massachusetts. The references to the Maine Woods in Papa's article refer to another essay that Thoreau wrote about the American wilderness.
Requirements
- Length: Your essay must be a minimum of 800 words.
- Documentation Format: You must include an MLA formatted Works Cited page that includes correctly formatted internal citations for the poems and the additional resources.
- Sources: You are restricted to the the poems "On the Amtrak from Boston to New York" by Sherman Alexie and "Gentleness Stirred" by Nimah Nawwab and the additional resources included here. You must use at least two of the additional resources as supporting evidence.
- Format: The essay must be in MSWord format (.doc or .docx)
- Generalize on the ways that people/cultures are often marginalized in society
- "On the Amtrak from Boston to New York" by Sherman Alexie (examines, explores, reveals, . . . ) [something about his reaction to the woman on the Amtrak with him--what is Significant, Important, Relevant, or Valuable about his experience?]
- "Gentleness Stirred" by Nimah Nawwab (examines, explores, reveals, . . . ) [something about how the man treats her based on his perceptions of her as a woman and how she reacts to that ----what is Significant, Important, Relevant, or Valuable about her experience?
- Use specific details from each poem by incorporating brief quotations--key words or phrases--that reveal the relevant details from each poem.
- Each sentence of the body paragraph should help explain the argument you have given in the topic sentence.
- For each poem, show why the speakers react as they do, and the justifications for their reactions.
- For the Alexie poem, use specific information from the James A. Papa, Jr. article that would provide the needed background to explain the speaker's reactions. Be sure to connect the details from the article to specific details in the poem. Do not create a separate paragraph summarizing the Papa article.
Students must use MLA style documentation. Internal citations should identify the author and line number for the poems and author for the article. Students must also include an MLA Works Cited page.Students should proofread carefully their final drafts for spelling, grammar, and punctuation as well as clarity, conciseness, and completeness. The final draft should be typed, double spaced, with one inch margins, in Times New Roman 12 pt. The essay should be a minimum of 900 words.
The essay will be evaluated based on how well students develop their arguments with significant support from the poems (thesis, topic sentences, supporting details from the poems); clarity, cohesion, and conciseness; correct use of MLA format; and grammar and spelling.For this essay, students may use a dictionary to help with words with which they are not familiar but should not refer to the dictionary definitions in the essay. Students must use MLA style documentation. Internal citations should identify the author and line number for the poems and author or authors for any articles or other resources. Students must also include an MLA Works Cited page.
Students should proofread carefully their final drafts for spelling, grammar, and punctuation as well as clarity, conciseness, and completeness. The final draft should be typed, double spaced, with one inch margins, in Times New Roman 12 pt. The essay should be a minimum of 900 words.The essay will be evaluated based on how well students develop their arguments with significant support from the poems (thesis, topic sentences, supporting details from the poems); clarity, cohesion, and conciseness; correct use of MLA format; and grammar and spelling.
Essay Map
Introduction
Lead
Thesis
The thesis statement (and topic sentences) should focus on ways in which people are made uncomfortable/marginalized/devalued as a result of their race, religion, culture, status, gender, and so on.
"On the Amtrak from Boston to New York" by Sherman Alexie and "Gentleness Stirred" by Nimah Nawwab (examine, explore, reveal, . . . ) [how people are marginalized by those around them] Do not use this exact wording, but your thesis should reflect a similar idea.
Body
Topic Sentences
Create a topic sentence specific to each poem (you may do the poems in any order):
Supporting Details
Conclusion
Based on the experiences of the two speakers in these two poems, what significant, important, relevant, or valuable realization can be reached?
