Just a reminder. Since your neighborhood assignment is a key part of the coursework — and due in less than a month — make sure you let me know your choice of neighborhood as soon as possible, just in case there are any problems with your choice and you need to shift gears.

And re that choice — ideally, you’ll choose a neighborhood in which you can explore some of the themes and issues we’ve discussed in class — ethnicity, racial issues, immigration, class differences, income disparity, etc. And for that reason, you’ll probably do best if you choose a neighborhood away from central Manhattan — ie not the East or West Sides, or SoHo, TriBeCa, or much of Greenwich Village. Writing about those neighborhoods, unless you go back many decades, mostly involves writing about money and real estate. By contrast, if you move out of these sections of Manhattan (and gentrified Brooklyn), you’ll have more interesting and relevant issues to explore.

Professor Rosenblum