Camelot Remembered

Last month (1/11) marked the 50th anniversary of President John F. Kennedy's famous and only inaugural address. On January 20, 1961, Chief Justice Earl Warren administered the oath of office to John Fitzgerald Kennedy, the 35th President of the United States.

Kennedy was the first Catholic to become president and also the youngest to be elected president. His administration was compared to "Camelot," the mythological, utopian court of the famed King Arthur, partially because the musical "Camelot" debuted on Broadway in 1960. Kennedy's youthful vigor permeated his administration, and his wife, Jacqueline, and two young children, Caroline and John, Jr., contributed to the aura of youth. Upon taking office, Kennedy made an effort to appoint the best and the brightest advisors to his cabinet, with many coming from Ivy League institutions.

A major Kennedy appointment was his brother-in-law, Sargent Shriver. Shriver created and headed a one of the major accomplishments of the Kennedy era, the Peace Corps. Shriver died last month after decades of public service, at the age of 95.

President Kennedy is still remembered for his famous inaugural address quote "Ask not what your country can do for you - ask what you can do for your country." The speech was drafted by Kennedy speech writer, Ted Sorenson (who also died in January of this year), and draws heavily from Lincoln's Gettysburg address. It is widely considered to be among the best presidential inauguration speeches in American history. Here are some excerpts from the speech:

• "Let the word go forth... that the torch has been passed to a new generation of Americans."
  
  
• "Let every nation know... that we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe, to assure the survival and the success of liberty."
  
  
• "The world is very very different now. For man holds in his mortal hands the power to abolish all forms of human poverty and all forms of human life."
  
  
• "Let us never negotiate out of fear. But let us never fear to negotiate."
  
  
• "All this will not be finished in the first 100 days. Nor will it be finished in the first 1,000 days, nor in the life of this Administration, nor even perhaps in our lifetime on this planet. But let us begin."

Students can learn more about the accomplishments of the Kennedy presidency. Many historians rank him among the best five Presidents in American history.

Assign students a written report of at least 150 words, or a presentation of at least seven slides that cites at least three resources from the Pathfinder listed below. Students should address the following essential questions for critical thinking (you can add or substitute others):

• What are three of the most significant events of the Kennedy era and why?
  
  
• Why was is the Peace Corps so important that it continues to be effective, even today?
  
  
• Why did Kennedy beat Nixon in the election of 1960?
  
  
• Why is the Kennedy era associated with "Camelot?"
  
  
• Why is President Kennedy considered to be among the best U.S. Presidents?

Click the 1960s icon > Select John F. Kennedy's Camelot

Your students can use our custom ProQuest models for written and PowerPoint-style reports.

Teachers may be interested in a ProQuest flexible rubrics model for evaluating inquiry-based learning activities.

Educators may also wish to employ the Quizinator Web tool (free, but registration required) for creating a variety of printed resources, including short assessments.