I’m writing a “definition” essay about patriotism. I can use illustrations, negation, cause/effect, process,

You say the term “Patriotism” is easy, maybe that is where you are getting stuck.

What have you come up with for the term? Have you written that down yet? Patriotism has taken on a whole new connotation since 9/11. And, the term patriot means a lot of things to a lot of people. What is your interpretation of it? Do others have a different view of it? Talk to people in your neighborhood or at a store and ask them. Maybe write ten questions to ask them.

You might consider comparing the term before and after 9/11. There’s a cause and effect for you. Talk to people under 30 and over 40 and check their views. (or over and under 35). [These groups would be influenced or not influenced by the Viet Nam War].

What did a patriot look like during the Revolutionary War? Was it patriotic to turn against the motherland? (England).

How much influence do wars have on whether we talk about or display our “patriotism”. Does one have to wave a flag to have patriotism? Does one have to serve in the armed forces to be patriotic? Are there rituals we perform when we are patriotic that we don’t perform that might make us seem unpatriotic? What about metallic “ribbons” for our cars? Is that patriotism or commericalism? How do we know? Who decides?

How do our political views come into play? If we agree with the present administration are we patriotic? Are we not patriotic if we disagree with those views? Why? Why not?

Look in magazines for pictures that you think depict patriotic scenes. There’s some illustration for you.

Now look at the pictures, could they mean something else? Could there be another reason “patriotism” is being promoted? Who would benefit from a country where things were bundled under some moral cloak such as patriotism?

If we were in Nazi Germany would patriotism mean something else? Could we convince people there (or here) to do things in the name of patriotism? (such as putting “security” cameras everywhere, searching your luggage at will and without cause, stopping you from entering your own country?).

What about the Patriot Act, is that promoting patriotism?

Make a list of words that you associate with the word Patriotism. How is patriotic different from “loyal” for example?

Who is a person that you consider to patriotic? Why? Describe those traits.

That’s the end of my brainstorming. Did that help? I hope so. Good luck.

Patriotism Definition Essay

Birth Name: Rillian; now R(changed name) 1. Awful experiences. I was often teased as child for not having a real name. As a teenager friends insisted on calling me Killian after the cheap beer Killians. In college I found that I wasn’t getting scholarships or other opportunities while people with lower grades and less experience in the same subject were. I changed my name legally and almost immediately people who only knew me on paper started taking me seriously. An example: I originally applied to graduate schools as Rillian. I had an undergrad 4.0 but I didn’t get a single offer. The next year–having done no extra coursework and with the same personal statement–I reapplied with the changed name and was accepted with funding to all eight universities to which I had applied. I think this is a fairly clear example of a name holding a person back. 2. My name comes from the name of a prince in the Narnia series (my mother has an obsession). To make the name “feminine” she added an extra L. I don’t think it worked. 3. Personally I don’t like Rillian, but I’m used to it. I still answer to it and my family still calls me it. What I really don’t like is how it worked on a professional level. 4. I’d rather not say what I changed my name to on the internet, sorry. 5. Rillian and R(changed name). Rillian with family, sometimes with my husband (we were dating when I changed it). We’ve moved since I changed my name, so everyone in my new city only knows me by my new name. 6. I didn’t change my last name when I got married, mostly because I had just changed my first name a year before and didn’t feel like doing the paperwork again. I may get around to it one day, I may not. 7. They’re OK. My maiden name and my husband’s last name sound awful with each other, so it’s not an option I am personally considering.

Think about what the words means to you and to others. Perhaps compare what Bush and his Patriot Act mean compared to what the founding fathers meant by patriotism. Is it the same? Different? How? The link below might be of help.

What does patriotism mean to you? Tie it in with the Iraq war and Bush’s “tangled web” as it relates to how he has handled the war and how his action and / or lack of it in this war relate to patriotism.