The Creature from Jekyll Island: A Second Look at the Federal Reserve

This is a very long book and Griffin employs several strategies to help readers engage with the material. Choose three of these strategies and explain why they are or are not successful in making the subject accessible.

The Creature from Jekyll Island examines several periods of United States History (The Colonial Period, The Civil War, Western Expansion, WWI, WWII, The Great Depression, and others) through the lens of financial history. Choose one of these time periods and explain how Griffin’s arguments succeed or fail with fuller context.

One of the rhetorical strategies Griffin employs is the inclusion of quotations and sources. In each section of the book, choose one of Griffin’s sources, locate it, and assess whether it is reliable and whether it supports Griffin’s argument.

Griffin uses anecdotes, narrative tone, and extended metaphors to draw readers in and help them access the technical or questionable information offered in the book. Choose one example of these techniques that you think is effective and one that is ineffective and compare and contrast his use of the techniques.

Griffin’s book is quite long and there are several places where he repeats information. Explain how this repetition functions and discuss how it helps or hurts his primary purpose.

Chapter 25 is written as a dystopian short story. Griffin uses a narrative tone, but many typical elements of a short story are missing. Using all or part of the sequence of events in that chapter, write your own version of a dystopian short story using setting, character, plot, and other literary elements Griffin left out.

In several places Griffin references conspiracy theories or potentially questionable sources, such as those associated with the New World Order conspiracy theory. Identify these theories and sources and explain in depth, using direct textual references, how those references affect the credibility of the book's thesis.

Griffin lays out two mechanisms related to his larger thematic arguments: The Rothschild Formula and the Mandrake Mechanism. Write a research essay in which you evaluate each mechanism and explain why they are or are not ultimately credible and/or accurate.