Applying the Life Course Perspective

 Assignment: Applying the Life Course Perspective As we have learned throughout this course, the life-course perspective aims to study people’s lives over time, within structural, social, and cultural contexts. At this point in the course, you should have a firm understanding of the life-course perspective and the various concepts and theories that apply at different stages of an individual’s life. The latter half of the course we have spent time discussing The Short and Tragic Life of Robert Peace: A Brilliant Young Man Who Left Newark for the Ivy League. In these discussions, we have related this book to the life-course perspective to prepare you for your final paper. In this Final Paper, you will apply the Life Course perspective to Robert Peace’s life. As you know, this course has been structured to follow an individual’s life; for example, the importance of biology, one’s childhood, one’s family, adolescence, and adulthood. We have also spent a great deal of time discussing the importance of history and social change. To receive a passing grade on this paper, you are to discuss all the important factors in the life course, using Robert Peace’s life as an example of the life-course perspective in action. Each paper should include the following: I. Childhood & The Family (1-page minimum; 5 points). a. This should include a discussion of the importance of childhood and an individual’s family as it relates to the Life Course Perspective. Be sure to touch on the important concepts and theories we learned during these lectures. Robert Peace’s childhood and family life should be embedded within this discussion (i.e., Part I). II. Adolescence (2-page minimum; 10 points) a. This should include a discussion of the importance of adolescence as it relates to the Life Course Perspective. Be sure to touch on the important concepts and theories we learned during these lectures. Robert Peace’s adolescence should be embedded within this discussion. For the purposes of this paper, we will define Robert Peace’s adolescence as his time at St. Benedict’s and his time at Yale (i.e., Parts II and III). III. Adulthood (2-page minimum; 10 points) a. This should include a discussion of the importance of adulthood as it relates to the Life Course Perspective. Be sure to touch on the important concepts and theories we learned during these lectures. Robert Peace’s adult life should be embedded within this discussion. For the purposes of this discussion, we will define Robert Peace’s adult life as his time after college (i.e., Parts IV, V, and VI). b. Hint: do not only think of adulthood as desistance; you can pull from other concepts for this section as well. IV. The Why (approximately 4 pages; 25 points) a. This should include a discussion of why you think Robert Peace’s Life turned out the way it did. Although I am asking for your opinion, your response must be supported with research and sufficient detail (including relevant theories and concepts). b. While this section may include some similarities to previous sections, this section should include the bulk of the detail. For example, if you believe that Skeet’s life sentence to prison during Robert’s childhood caused Robert’s life to turn out the way it did, you should mention this in the childhood section of the paper and explain why this event would have an impact on one’s childhood. However, in this section, you should discuss – in detail – why this event played a role throughout Robert’s life. In other words, this section should use the life-course perspective to explain why you believe Robert’s life was cut short. c. Hint: It’s probably more than one event that caused Robert’s life to turn out the way it did. Use the Word Bank below to guide your thoughts when writing the paper. Please note that this box is not exhaustive; it is in your best interest to include other important Life Course concepts as well.