For this assignment you are to read the article by George W. Cable, "Creole Slave Dances: The Dance in Place Congo" (published in The Century Magazine, Vol. 31, Nr. 4 [February 1886], pp. 517-532). You access this article in Cornell University's "Making of America" Digital Library via a link on the course home page (under African-American Music).

In brief, you are to write a "response" paper that summarizes (1) what Cable saw, (2) his attitudes toward the music and the people who made the music, and (3) your own response to the article. You need not write an exhaustive summary of the article, but you should address some of the following points:

1. What exactly did Cable see? When (both generally and specifically) and where did these events take place?
2. What sorts of musical instruments did he see? How precisely did he describe them?
3. What sorts of activities did the slaves and other blacks engage in? Could these events be recreated from Cable's descriptions?
4. What sorts of music examples does Cable provide? Do you think these are accurate records of the sounds he heard?
5. In general, how accurate do you think Cable's reporting was? Did he "romanticize" the scene or just report it?
6. What did you learn from this article? Are you able to envision the events in Place Congo?

Again, you need not answer every question, although you should probably address the first (what Cable saw and how he described it) and last (your response). Between those two points, you should choose a few of the other questons and use them as "talking points" to organize your thoughts.

Prepare a typed summary (at least one page and probably closer to two pages, double-spaced, [about 300-500 words]), and submit it to me via email (either as text within the email or as an attachment) by 5:00 pm on Friday, 5 March 2004.

Grading will be based on clarity of expression and correct usage (spelling, grammar, etc.) (50%), and on the quality of your summarization of the article (do you make relevant points and do you cite good examples from the article) (50%). The grade for this assignment will be included in the "projects and reports" category of your course grade.