WGS 376/LIT 316
Global Women Writers

Illustration essay

• Length:  1200-1500 words (4-5 pages).  (There is no penalty for going over this length, but a much shorter essay will not be credited.)
• Due on the date you signed up for (place in SOCS dropbox and bring a copy to class).
• Be prepared to discuss your ideas in class on the date your essay is due.
• Before you start:  review these evaluation criteria.  Be sure you understand what constitutes plagiarism. Check out the plagiarism link for guidelines about appropriate use of secondary sources.

THE TASK

Identify one topic that you can research to help you, and the rest of the class, imaginatively "world-travel" into the world of the novel for which you have signed up. Your goal will be to explain your discoveries to the class, and discuss how the knowledge you gathered can enrich our understanding of the text.

BACKGROUND THEORY

Postcolonial feminist theorists like Rajan and Park advise readers that, while studying the writings of Third World women is important, simply reading and appreciating the literature isn't enough. They urge westerners to do "the hard work of uncovering and contesting global power relations, economic, political, military, and cultural hegemonic"--to learn as much as we can about the histories of colonialism and imperialism, avoid simplistic cultural relativism, and be aware of who and where we are (and how our location impacts our knowledge).

Maria Lugones's concept of world-traveling offers some guidance in this task. Critical race legal theorist Isobel Gunning turned to Lugones's concept in her search for ways that Westerners might gain the knowledge they need to work for women's human rights across cultures. Her summary of world-traveling raises specific areas of questioning that can provide a framework for identifying research topics:

1. What topic could you research that would shed light on the US's historical relationship to the place, people, conditions, or events in the world(s) of the novel?
2. What topic can you research to gain insight into how people in the world of the novel might view you?
3. Identify and research a problematic practice in the world of the novel. What practice in your world is analogous?
4. What topic can you focus on to enrich and deepen your knowledge of the cultural context of the novel?

Tips

Choose a topic related to the chapters assigned for the day for which you signed up. The topic choice is broad: historical events or people, geographies and natural environments, ethnicities, political structures, economies, cultural practices, arts, technologies, social relationships--anything that might help us "world-travel." Your source might be a relevant newspaper article, a reliable website, a work of fiction, a scholarly article, a work of art, photographs, an advertisement, a recording, or video footage that concretizes or exemplifies an idea in the readings. You may think of other possible sources.  

In your essay, beyond reporting on your discoveries, create an argument demonstrating how your research enhances your reading of the text.   Why does your topic matter? How can it contribute to the kinds of knowledge-gathering that Rajan & Park or Lugones and Gunning recommend?

Your opening paragraph should state your thesis (briefly describing the new insights that you reach). In the body, use brief direct quotes from the novel and/or the research source to support your points.   If you wish, you may also draw on one or more of the theoretical texts.   (This is optional.) Your conclusion should state questions for further investigation or discussion.

As always, cite your sources using any consistent and thorough method (e.g. MLA, APA, University of Chicago).

Warning: WikiPedia and other less-than-reliable online sources will not be accepted. One way you could use WikiPedia legitimately is to locate entries that have good bibliographies, and follow up on one or more of the sources cited. Strong WikiPedia entries include good scholarly or investigative sources that are likely to give you reliable research-based information.