Assignments for ENLT 206--World Literature: Coming of Age

Requirements--Respect, Integrity, Collegiality, and: The purpose of assignments in this course is to gage students' ability to take the knowledge learned in class one step further. In other words, students are expected not only to consume a wide amount of knowledge about world literature, but also to become producers of sophisticated thinking and original argumentation.

Students are reminded of the academic code of ethics, which requires that all work submitted be original and not copied from an uncited source. Five or more words from another author or uncommon knowledge must be cited according to MLA documentation style, even web sources, which follow their own citation style. Failure to comply means failure in this course and sanctioning measures by the Dean of Students. Late papers are still accepted until the final day of the course, though two points are deducted from the grade for each class day the paper is late (i.e., a paper turned in a week late is deducted four points, or about a half grade—from 91/A- to 87/B+). This levels the playing field for your classmates who submit work on assigned dates.

Extra Credit--See Blackboard/Assignments

WRITING PROJECT ON GABRIEL GARCIA MARQUEZ'S ONE HUNDRED YEARS OF SOLITUDE

PART I: Presentation of Research:

The presentation (appx. 7-10 min. per student) should discuss the assigned topic in relation to the novel and may include handouts, discussion questions, visual and other bibliographical resources. You should cite your sources in this presentation, and these sources should be reliable (e.g., not random websites or even Wikipedia); you may present this research as an annotated bibliography that you share with the class (through handouts or Blackboard), and that written material can be used in the final Writing Project. However, we have our own Wiki site that students are encouraged to update as part of their Presentation and Writing Project. This interdisciplinary research helps you to define a topic for your Writing Project, details of which follow below. You must present your preliminary findings to your classmates; if you are absent on the assigned day, you must present the material alone on another day. This oral portion is evaluated on a P/NP basis; if you do not do the presentation at all, 20 points will be deducted from the written portion, which is graded.

M 11/6 WP #1: Marquez Biography (Jazmine, Leslie, Cherine, Monica, Nicole, Vanessa): Who is Gabriel Garcia Marquez, and what are his views? Instead of everyone in this group giving more or less an identical answer to these questions, I ask that you divide your efforts. One person might research information about the author's early life; another might discuss his time in Mexico; another might give a bibliography of his other books and discuss a book review of one of them; while another can discuss recent interviews with the author. What was his conflict with U.S. authorities? At least one person in the group (preferably more) should update a portion of this information on our Wiki entry on Gabriel Garcia Marquez.

R 11/9 WP #3: Magical Realism (Stephanie, Scott, Daniel, Jordan, Matt, Kathleen): What is magical realism? How would you define it? How do others define it? What are some examples of "magically real" moments in the novel? As with the assignments above, it is important that each member of the group develops a different facet of magical realism. You can communicate your findings on the Wiki page I have set up. Students in this group have an important job: the term "magical realism" will turn up on the final exam, and students will need to define and apply it to works we read.

M 11/13 WP #2 (Reina, Kristy, Anna, Kara, Christina, Cristian, Michael): Colombia: As with the assignment above, you should divide your efforts. Where is Colombia? What was its early history, before the Spanish arrived? When did it become an independent state? What are its current politics? What is Garcia Marquez's relationship to this country? What periods of Colombia's history does the novel portray? There is an entry for Colombia and Garcia Marquez's hometown off of the Biography page of our Wiki page; some of you might develop these further.

M 11/13 2-page drafts due for Groups #1, 2, & 3 (typed hard copy or post to Blackboard/Discussion). Please note: you must show evidence of draft work in order to pass this assignment.

M 11/20 WP #4: Literary Criticism I (Andrew, David, Dan, Steven, Danielle, Sarah): This presentation might be more suited for English majors. In addition to researching criticism about 100 Years of Solitude, I expect you to develop your own opinions about the novel. In other words, please do not simply summarize another critic's opinions about the novel. Instead, I hope to see you critique and find fault with others' criticism. Which critical approaches to the novel work best? How and why? Another approach for this topic is to organize discussion questions for the class. You can write these questions together, email them to the class ahead of time, and then have the class discuss these in groups. This is also an opportunity for creative writers. You may create fictional dialogue for the novel, write a dramatic sketch based on the novel, and/or stage a dialogue with the author.

R 11/30 WP #5: Literary Criticism II (Krista, Faith, Dana, Laura, Jesse, Javée): Same as above. The groups should communicate so that they do not reproduce the same material.

R 11/30 2-page drafts due for Groups #4 & 5. Please note: you must show evidence of draft work in order to pass this assignment.

Other Instructions:

This assignment addresses many questions about Marquez’s text that are not easily answered, such as: What is magical realism? How does the world of Macondo resemble Latin and South American experiences (or not)?

The purpose of the presentation is to prepare you to write your Writing Project and it also provides a paper trail to protect you from allegations of plagiarism. Documents created for the presentation may be included in the Writing Project. Documents include but are not limited to posters or collages that demonstrate or outline a particular theme, idea, or motif in the novel; creative responses to One Hundred Years of Solitude, such as a continuation of a scene or a fictional dialogue, letter, poem, or dramatic sketch; maps; a diorama; and/or timelines.

You may use PowerPoint on your laptop, but please notify me beforehand. I advise you to  1) learn how to switch between the screen view and the data projector (Displays) before coming to class and 2) to bring your laptop at least a class day in advance to practice before your presentation. It's a good idea to have a back up (e.g., transparencies of your PowerPoint slides) in case the technology doesn't work out.

Discussion questions also work quite well. Generate original and thought-provoking discussion questions, either to be discussed in groups or to stimulate class discussion. You might even email these to the class beforehand, to insure that your audience is prepared to dialogue with you (go to ‘Email Options’ and then ‘Send Email’ on Blackboard: select ‘All Users’). This is a good option for groups that do not have the resources to work collaboratively, since each student could be made responsible for a specific question. Each student’s question might evolve, in turn, into a paper topic. Discussion questions allow you to guide a close reading of a specific passage, looking for literary elements such as symbols, motifs, and word choice.

Sometimes students devise games for presentations. This is an okay option, but please remember that in the work environment, speakers need to stimulate their audience without using sugar (e.g., candy-throwing is discouraged).


Annotated Bibliographies

An annotated bibliography serves the purpose of pre-writing by summarizing the salient points of a critical resource. Keep your audience in mind, who want to know what the article/book chapter is about, what kind of methodology it uses, and whether it is worth reading. It may also consider the following five questions:

1. THESIS: What is the author's thesis?

2. EVIDENCE: How does the author develop the thesis? What evidence does the author provide? Does he or she use statistics, definitions, first-hand experiences, research references, or case studies?

3. PURPOSE: What is the author's purpose or goal (i.e. why did the author bother to write this piece?), and the author's intended goal (i.e., what does the author hope to accomplish by writing this piece?

4. AUDIENCE: Who is the author's audience (i.e., what kind of people does the author hope will read this piece? Who is he or she trying to convince?).

5. PERSONAL: How might this secondary source be relevant for your own research question?

EXCELLENT annotated bibliographies also begin to critique an article’s argument, evidence, and purpose by evaluating and comparing it to original (i.e., your own) research.

Example of an Annotated Bibliography

Annotated Bibliography

1. Alpers, Paul. What is Pastoral? Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 1996: 93-112. Although not entirely confined to the topic of Milton’s “Lycidas,” Alpers’ book is relevant given that it is the most recent (as far as my research could discern) publication concerning “Lycidas.” Alpers addresses Sacks’ and Fish’s question of the poem’s lack of poetic voice and concludes that the pastoral elements of Milton’s work commemorate Lycidas and further the process of consolation. Alpers includes a close reading of “Lycidas” within the elegiac tradition; it is a lucid work and definitely worth reading.

2. Leonard, John. “’Trembling Ears:’ The Historic Moment of ‘Lycidas’.” Journal of Medieval and Renaissance Studies. 21 (1991): 59-81. Leonard’s essay details the historical relevance of Milton’s work, both within the framework of Milton’s Puritan contemporaries (the branded Bastwicke, Burton and Prynne) and criticism of the clergy. While useful for a detailed description of the poem’s historical and political implications, this criticism reveals little about “Lycidas’” merit as an elegy.

3. Ronnick, Michele V.. “Blind Mouths in Milton and Eustathius: a Note on ‘Lycidas 119.” Notes and Queries. 237 (1992): 452-453. Ronnick’s essay explicates Milton’s reference to “blind mouths,” which the author connects to Milton’s knowledge of the twelfth century Byzantine bishop Eustathius’ commentaries on the Iliad and the Odyssey. This is perhaps useful for reference of Milton’s use of classic authors and literary criticism of the period. In the same volume is another essay concerning Milton’s use of Virgil, which is not as convincing but provides other resources for this topic (“Milton’s Affair with a Bar Maid: Virgilian echoes in ‘Lycidas’ 64-84”).

4. Silver, Victoria. “’Lycidas’ and the Grammar of Revelation.” ELH 58 (1991): 779-808. Silver departs from Ransom’s and Fish’s criticisms of the poem’s inartistic nature (I have not cited these articles here as the main thrust of these are included in both Sacks’ and Abrams’ works). In order to counter these arguments, Silver utilizes a Miltonian discussion of theology; she argues that the tension and discrepancies between a theological order and poetic subjectivity reveal the traumatic loss encountered in death. Moreover, Silver addresses Sack’s question of language; the “labyrinth” of Milton’s language, Silver argues, shows where “the hidden God” lies (807). Silver’s essay is an enlightening counter to Ransom’s and Fish’s deconstruction of “Lycidas.”

PART II: Writing Project on One Hundred Years of Solitude due on R 12/7 at 11:30 am:

You will receive an actual grade for the written portion of this assignment, the Writing Project, which documents, in a more formalized manner, interpretations that began in your presentation. As with any good paper, your Writing Project should have a title that represents (and not just tells about) its major themes and points. This assignment is called a Writing Project because, unlike a traditional English paper, it might collate several different kinds of documents in a portfolio-like manner. If you excel in writing English papers, then you may of course write a traditional paper, which is based on close literary analysis. Traditional literary analysis is a paper whose internal logic is expressed through an introductory paragraph, supporting paragraphs, and conclusion. In other words, (A) you are invited to write a traditional English paper on One Hundred Years of Solitude, or (B) you may also collate a several types of responses to García Márquez's novel. In either case, the Writing Project, due on 12/7, should be 3 to 7 pages typed.

Unless you write a traditional literary analysis, all projects must include a critical introduction that introduces your work and explains what you have learned through it—about the “coming of age” in the Americas, Gabriel García Márquez, the novel, and an analysis of the ways in which the material fits together. The cover letter is the primary mode of evaluating your Writing Project and may include a summary of your presentation work. Your Writing Project may include any materials you made for your presentation, such as:

- a poster, diorama, or collage (= 1 page)

- a bibliography for your research and short summaries of these items (a.k.a. annotated bibliography) with emphasis on your evaluation of these materials and authoritative quality of the materials chosen (not a good idea to present internet materials in this form)

- creative responses to One Hundred Years of Solitude, such as a dialogue between characters, a dramatic sketch, or a missing scene

- close analysis of a short passage (3-5 sentences) from the novel

In terms of translating presented work into written form, a detailed poster with enough information and thought put into it might equal circa one page; your written documentation should show the connection between your interpretation (e.g., the poster) and evidence from specific passages. You should take care to explain the relevance and interpretation of different documents in your cover letter, since this Writing Portfolio is graded along the same lines as an essay (argument, focus, analysis of text).

If translating a PowerPoint Presentation into a written document, please be sure to use complete sentences and to cite information according to MLA format (page numbers, author last name in parenthesis and with a Works Cited). You might refocus your oral project toward a well-defined question: In what ways, specifically, does García Márquez shape readers' understandings of Latin American civil conflict? What, exactly, is the vision of family and community García Márquez presents? As with any English paper, your paper should follow the grammatical and stylistic conventions of standard American English.

Your Writing Project also needs a main argument. For example: one of these sentences fails to specify a topic:

Too general
 One Hundred Years of Solitude is a good book and features magical realism.
Specific and arguable
 As shown in the figure of Remedios the Beauty and her juxtaposition to the banana plantation, García Márquez uses magical realism in order to relay the censorship of liberal politics in Latin America.

In evaluating this material, I will look at how well you present a close literary analysis of the novel. Writing Projects will be evaluated according to their originality, focused argumentation/controlling idea, logical progression, sophistication, and excellence in standard American English (see general evaluative criteria). This final project should document your sophistication in literary analysis and include a WORKS CITED and follow the MLA parenthetical method (author page number) when citing all of its sources, both primary (García Márquez) and secondary (any articles, encyclopedias, books, and/or websites you consulted).

TIPS:
Dr. Wendy Nielsen     Correction Key for Essays    

agr        lack of agreement (1) verbs (2) pronouns     
apos        Apostrophe needed or misused
awk        awkward phraseology           
ف        deletion suggested                        
C        Content (thesis, argument, supporting paragraphs, conclusion); comments on right
cliché        overused or colloquial phrase           
cit        incomplete or awkward citation       
ev        evidence missing or questionable
ex        example or support needed
F        Form (grammar, diction, writing style); comments on left side
frag        incomplete idea; sentence fragment       
^        omission / missing word
// ism        lack of parallel structure (between nouns and pronouns generally)   
mod        unclear or dangling modifier
mw      missing word                           
p        punctuation                   
pass         use of passive voice obstructs clarity           
ref        problem with pronoun reference       
rep        unnecessary repetition               
R-O        run-on sentence, comma splice, etc.       
sp        spelling error                   
specify        specify your meaning
T        wrong tense or mixing of tenses       
trans        transition needed or unclear connection   
vag        vague point; development of ideas lacking
wd ch        ineffective word choice           
wdy        wordy; cut down               
wo        rearrange word order for clarity or emphasis   
~        reverse word order               
ww        wrong word (i.e., affect/effect)
X        obvious mechanical error (its/it’s)
?        unclear or inaccurate               
√    good point worth developing further; please elaborate and expand
√+        very good analysis
CONTENT TOTAL ( /50):
   
ORIGINALITY:   
   
ARGUMENTATIVE THESIS / CONTROLLING IDEA:   
   
INTRODUCTION PREPARES READER FOR FOLLOWING PARAGRAPHS:   
   
LOGICAL STRUCTURE / LOGICAL PROGRESSION OF IDEAS:   
   
VALID SUPPORT FOR THESIS CLEARLY RELATES TO THESIS:    
   
EACH SUPPORTING PARAGRAPH IS UNITED AROUND A MAIN IDEA:   
   
CLARITY AND SOPHISTICATION OF THOUGHT / COHERENCE:   
   
CONCLUSION:
FORM TOTAL ( /50):
   
PRECISION OF WORDS:   
   
APPROPRIATE LEVEL OF SPECIFICITY:   
   
SENTENCE STYLE (CLEARLY STRUCTURED AND FOCUSED):   
   
MECHANICAL ERRORS: