SPRING 2008 Prof. Ghislaine Géloin, Modern Languages Department Office: Craig Lee CL 147. X 8707 [email protected] Office hours: M, W 11-1 or by appointment.
GENERAL EDUCATION CORE IV : CRITICAL INQUIRY. AFAM 262/01 -- THE FRANCOPHONE AFRICAN WORLD.
WebCT course. Please make sure to access all documents before class session
Course description This course is designed to introduce you to the cultural products of the French- speaking African world.
Art, poetry, novels, plays, films and essays in translation are analyzed as documents of historical, social, political and cultural issues of Francophone Africa. Films provide authentic cultural products to explore important aspects of Africa. Students will thus be able to experience the fabric and texture of African.
A variety of topics have been selected in order to familiarize you with essential cultural aspects of African countries that have been influenced by French colonization. (See detailed description of topics of exploration in Course content.)
Throughout the course you will come to understand the complex realities of Africa, its geographical, historical and social/cultural contexts and its relationships to the West, especially to France. You will listen to African voices telling their side of the story on colonial, neo-colonial, postcolonial Francophone Africa as well as on the cultural values of traditional and contemporary Africa. You will thereby better understand African perspectives, the relationship and the ongoing dialogue between the West and the Non-West as illustrated through the examples of Francophone Africa. By learning about a part of the world that you are not familiar with, you will become more aware of other cultures. In order to provide cultural diversity in your general education and a reflection on the Non-West / West dichotomy, the course seeks to develop tolerance, understanding and celebration of other cultures.
Specific course (CORE IV) objectives • To make you discover the Francophone African countries; to examine their interconnectedness because of a common historical (painful) past and a common language, their relation to the rest of Africa and to the West through the concept of Francophonie. • To bring to the fore « marginal » cultures and minor literatures about which you have no knowledge and which will make you recognize cultural diversity. 2
• To think critically about cultures which are in the Non-Western world and to challenge the stated boundaries of West and Non-West when it comes to the African countries. Critical analysis is necessary in a complex and often contradictory world in order to comprehend the Global World. • To improve your writing skills through writing assignments on topics, themes or « problems » connected to the African world in past and present. The final paper will require careful development, library research, and critical thought. [See Guidelines about writing for General Education p.11-14] • Readings will lead to class discussion. Study guides (with questions and topics) are posted on WebCT in order to help you with your reading and to stimulate class discussions.
Pedagogy and class format Close reading and textual analysis. A mix between lectures and class discussions. Questions /answers format. Your instructor does not make claim to have all the answers. This is not the nature of a GE course. The course raises a series of issues that, in turn, raise your interest and desire to investigate further and engage in a topic. The topics have been chosen to provoke critical inquiry and critical thinking around a series of questions, mainly the problematic relationship between the “Non-Western” and the Western worlds. There is not one simple answer.
Course requirements -- Attendance policy : Regular class attendance is mandatory. • You are allowed a total of 3 unexcused absences, (those for which you do not present an official, written, documentation). Starting the 4th unexcused absence your participation grade will go down by one letter grade for every class absence. -- Classroom etiquette / courtesy . Please do not take offense about class policy. List of don’ts that will affect your final grade : • Classroom behavior. Your attitude and respect toward the class and your peers are expected. Too much talking with your neighbors disrupts the class. Please no cell phone ringing or checking messages, sending SMS, playing with your cell, etc., (in case of anticipated emergency, inform your instructor) • Systematic late arrivals (grace period 15’), early departures, short leaves during class period. Be prompt! • Sleeping or nodding off during class period will equal to an absence. You may be asked to leave class and go to the health center. • Doing homework on non-class related material and reading books in class. • Not being prepared for class. Completion of reading for the session it has been assigned is required. This is the only way to actively engage in the learning process and the material. If you feel that you must do your reading in class, you will be asked to go to the library. This also means that you bring the books, the downloaded lectures and required material in class the day they are needed. Since we do textual analysis you need 3
books and documents for reference. Take good notes; this is the key to your success in the course • Not submitting assignments and papers on time. -- Assignments and papers are due on the assigned day. If you send your paper electronically make sure that you get a receipt notice. (Students experience mysterious internet problems whenever a paper is due). No acknowledgment means no papers have been submitted. -- Non exam materials (papers, paragraphs…) will be accepted up to one class day after the due date if you provide an official excuse. After one class day, it will not be accepted at all. It is always advisable to turn in your work early if you know that you will be absent on a particular day. If you have special circumstances, make special arrangement with your instructor so that another contract can be drawn. Put your work on my desk when you arrive. • Make-up exams are allowed with an official excuse. I expect prior notification that is before the exam day. Make-up exams will not be accepted at all after exams have been returned. There are no make-up for quizzes.
GRADING POLICY The final grade is based on • Active class participation : the discussion format of the class is intended to serve as a way to assess students level of understanding and area of concern. Questions and comments are expected from assigned readings. Students’ responsibility is to contribute constructively to the class discussion. Low stakes writing (one page writing) and quizzes on readings will count as part of your participation grade……………………………………………… 20% • Three tests will measure knowledge acquired after major works have been studied. Short answers and essay questions ………………………………… 20% • Two papers (5 pages) from works discussed, summarizing discussion and in- depth exploration of a theme. These will be considered as preparatory training for the final paper + Portfolio on an African country………………………… 20% • Final paper (8-10 pages): Ongoing research during the course. Topics must be • approved in advance after midterm. It is worth 0.33%. Appropriate bibliography and notes are included to indicate where sources of information were gained (0.33%) …………………………………………...... 20% • Final exam will synthesize knowledge acquired in the course Identifications, short answers and essay questions………………………….. 20%
************************************************************************ Required texts (available at the campus bookstore unless it is specified “handout”) Make sure that you buy your books before midterm since the bookstore returns unsold books before midterm. Houseboy, Oyono, 1956, (Cameroon) Ambiguous Adventure, Cheik Hamidou Kane,1961, (Senegal) A Season in the Congo, Césaire, 1966 (handout) Xala, Ousmane Sembene, 1974, (Senegal) 4
Films Les Statues meurent aussi, Even Statues die, Resnais, 1954 Lumumba, Death of a prophet, 1992, (excerpts) Lumumba (excerpts) Raoul Peck. Mobutu, King of Zaire, Thierry Michel, 1999. Portraits de femmes, Faces of Women, Désiré Ecaré, 1985 (Ivory Coast) Yeelen, Souleymane Cissé, 1987, Mali La Petite Vendeuse de Soleil, The Little Girl Who Sold The Sun, Mambety, 1999 (Senegal).
Course content, organization and schedule
WEEK ONE Jan 22 Syllabus presentation and discussion. Books and reading assignments. Importance on finishing reading material for the day it is assigned. Do not fall behind. Allow yourself at least two weeks to read the material. Study the books with the Study guide available on WebCT in Guidelines for reading assignments and take good notes. Think ahead about topics for your papers and for your final research paper by mid-semester. What makes a good paper (1. Structure and organization; 2. Analysis and critical thinking; 3. Spelling, grammar, style, (see Guidelines p.11-14). Use the Writing Center if you experience difficulties.
-- INTRODUCING AFRICA : Why study Africa? -- LECTURE 1 - Francophone Africa (download on WebCT in Lectures notes) Presentation of the course content : The French-speaking African countries that share a common language. Maps of Africa. Physical and political geography of Francophone Africa versus Anglophone and Lusophone Africa. French as an official, administrative, international, or tool language; French language of cultural expression for African intellectuals and writers. Assignment: -- * Exploring Africa 1) Google earth in African links (WebCT) 2) In preparation to your semester portfolio “Adopt an African country”, learn how to gather good information on current events/ news in Africa and positive developments. Report to class on Jan 29 and turn in your one typed double-spaced page. Here are some links / Websites News agency dedicated to Africa : www.afrol.com The Guardian news. BBC world news, New York times (section Africa) Access to African newspapers : http://www.ipl.org/div/news/browse/AFR/ http:// www.africapolicy.org or use African Links in the WebCT course Use Google to find maps of Africa : Type : maps of Africa
* Download LECTURE 1 and 2 - Francophonie and OIF in Lectures notes. 5
Jan 24 Concept of FRANCOPHONIE. Why LA FRANCOPHONIE ? Important aspects of La Francophonie as applied to the French-speaking African countries: the privileged relationship as a cultural and political construct. The important dates : from Brazzaville 50 to Biarritz 1994, to Beyrouth 2002, etc. Franco-African summit conferences. Cooperation between France and the Third World / Francophone countries. The International Organization of Francophonie (OIF) and its General Secretary Abdou Diouf (Senegal). Regional / native languages versus the French language. Think about the Non-Western World in its relationship with the West. The arbitrary dichotomy between the Non-Western World and Western World especially in the case of the French-speaking Africa when literary manifestations are grounded in a Western language.
* Download LECTURE 3 – Traditional African art (in lectures notes) *Start reading Houseboy, Oyono for Week 5. Study Guide for Oyono and Houseboy in Guidelines for reading assignments ______WEEK TWO Jan 29 -- THE WEST DISCOVERS AFRICAN ART -- “NEGRO ART”. Film : Even Statues Die (Les Statues meurent aussi), 1954, Resnais (30’) European artists’ interest for African art – l’Art nègre. Picasso ; Les Demoiselles d’Avignon. Jazz age in the 1920s. The need for African art. At the beginning of the 20th c. eagerness of the West to accept other cultures but it did not judge them by their own standards. Toward a rehabilitation of the African culture. Africa as the “Other”. Its dark side (as the film exemplifies) : the looting of African cultural heritage. Illegal traffic of art objects finding their way to European museums and private collections. Indictment of western cultural imperialism: appropriation of African art and its degradation by the West. The study of African art is inseparable of the denunciation of colonialism and the destruction of African cultures by the Western civilization (the film was banned in 1954). The current controversy: the campaign for the return of African art to its home * Group report on your findings on African news. * Download (WebCT) : -- Poems Black Mask and Prayer to the Masks in Course reader by Leopold Senghor and read for Sept 17. -- A traditional African tale: Le Boli (Tales of Amadou Koumba), Birago Diop in Course reader and READ for Feb. 5.
6
Jan 31 Description of African traditional art Poems Black Mask and Prayer to the Masks by Leopold Senghor
* WRITE a page on one aspect that interested you in the presentation of traditional African art and your appreciation of it now. Turn it in on Feb. 7 * Download LECTURE 4 -- Cissé Souleymane, Yeelen in Lectures notes for Feb 5.
WEEK THREE Feb 5 AFRICAN ORAL TRADITION and NEW IMAGES OF THE PRE- COLONIAL AFRICA Tales and Myths. What is a tale? What are the values conveyed in a tale? Search of myths and their values in the pre-colonial Africa. Examples of a tale : Le Boli Presentation of Yeelen, Mali, LECTURE 4 A filmic tale rooted in African oral tradition. The Bambara culture. African rites of initiation and myths.
Feb 7 Film : Yeelen, Souleymane Cissé, Mali, 1987 (105’) *Turn in your page on Negro Art
* WRITE a page around questions provided in Yeelen Lectures notes * Download LECTURE 5 – Cameroon and its history. * Prepare for TEST 1 ______WEEK FOUR Feb 12 THE 1950s. THE COLONIAL CONTEXT – THE CULTURAL ENCOUNTER. LECTURE 5 – General information on Cameroon Test 1 on Francophonie, Negro Art and Pre-Colonial Africa, Le Boli & Yeelen.
* Download LECTURE 6 - Colonialism in Lectures notes and Negritude Poems The Vultures, The Renegade, in Course reader * Prepare for Quiz Feb 14 on Houseboy
FEB 14 LECTURE 6 – Colonialism. Poem: The Vultures Houseboy, Oyono, 1956. The Colonial experience by an African boy. The Europeans’ behavior under the demystifying African gaze. The cultural assimilation process. The fractured Self. Poem: The Renegade From literature of testimony to literature of revolt. Recovery and reaffirmation of African value. Quiz on Houseboy (on factual information/ content only)
* Start thinking on PAPER 1 on Houseboy due March 4. * Start reading: Ambiguous Adventure, Cheik Hamidou Kane, 1961, (Senegal) for week 7 and download Study guide in Guidelines for reading assignments. 7
WEEK FIVE Feb 19 Houseboy : close analysis. See questions in Study guide
* Assignment for Feb 28 : Excerpts from The Colonizer and the Colonized, Memmi available in Course reader. Also 2 copies are available on reserve. Class will be divided into groups to explain the psychology of The Colonizer and The Colonized and how it applies to the situation in Houseboy.
Feb 21 Continue discussion on Houseboy and the Colonial period. The colonial situation and the loss of Self. Colonial psychology
WEEK SIX Feb 26 Continue discussion and analysis of Houseboy
Feb 28 Information on Senegal. Historical background: the islamization of West Africa. * Share The Colonizer and the Colonized / Memmi assignment with your group. * Prepare Quiz on Ambiguous Adventure for March 4.
WEEK SEVEN March 4 CROSSING CULTURAL BORDERS : Ambiguous Adventure Aspects of Islam in Ambiguous Adventure. Clash and irreconcilability of Muslim and traditional values with Western values in the context of colonial setting. The philosophical novel and the “ambiguity” of its conclusion in 1961. The cultural dilemma: traditional African culture and westernization vs. modernity. * Quiz on Ambiguous Adventure
March 6 Continue analysis and discussion on Ambiguous Adventure * PAPER 1 due
* Read The Clash of Civilizations, Huntington, 1993. http://history.club.fatih.edu.tr and the Said response : The Clash of ignorance. www.thenation.com Muslim values in the current debate. Are a multicultural education and multicultural societies possible in today’s conditions ? In what contexts ? What fosters cultural diversity ? * Write a reaction paper on Huntington and Said. Find 5 arguments / counter-arguments against Huntington by Said. State your own position. Due March 20. ______S P R I N G R E C E S S March 10 – 17
8
WEEK EIGHT March 18 Continue analysis and discussion on Ambiguous Adventure
March 20 End of Ambiguous Adventure: the story of Pierre-Louis (from handout) Conclusion: This novel is a starting point to reexamine the issue of the alleged clash between the Muslim World and the Western World. Is there a clash of civilizations? *Turn in your arguments for or against Huntington/Said
* focus PAPER 2 on Ambiguous Adventure due week 10 * Download Study guide A Season in the Congo, in Guidelines for reading assignments * Start reading excerpts of A season in the Congo, Césaire. You may want to view the film Lumumba, Raoul Peck, 1992 + Lumumba, death of a prophet (available in video stores, Acme, and at the Media center). There is in the DVD archival footage of the Lumumba’s rule, betrayal and assassination. * Download LECTURE 7-8 -- The Democratic Republic of the Congo (former Zaire ) for next session.
WEEK NINE -- POST-COLONIAL AFRICA at the TIME of INDEPENDENCE. March 25 LECTURE 7-8 -- The Congo Free State and the Belgian Congo. Test 2 on Houseboy and Ambiguous Adventure
March 27 FILM : Lumumba. The tragedy of political emancipation and independence during the Cold War in the Congo, 1966. Case study. Role of the United Nations : its professed neutrality and non-interference. Africa in search of heroes : Lumumba, a hero of the Negritude and an archetype of African nationalism, Panafricanism in 1963.
* Read Xala, 1974, Ousmane Sembene (Senegal) for week 11. * Download Study guide for Xala in Guidelines for reading assignments. * Start thinking about the subject of your final paper and write a proposal. ______WEEK TEN -- April 1 Read excerpts of A Season in the Congo (see study guide) Rehabilitation of Lumumba as a political figure today.
April 3 Continue excerpts of a Season in the Congo. AFRICA AFTER INDEPENDENCE and THE COLD WAR. The making of African Dictators with the internal and complicity of the West. Case studies : Mobutu (Zaire) , Bokassa (Central Africa), Amin Dada (Uganda). The problem of “decolonising” the mind. The triumph of capitalism. Role of IMF (International Monetary fund), World Bank. USAID, International Development of Aid to Africa (1955- 1995), NGOs, etc. 9
* Paper 2 due
* Download LECTURE 9 – History of Senegal * Prepare quiz on Xala for next session ______WEEK ELEVEN -- POST-COLONIAL AFRICA : AFRICA ON ITS OWN. April 8 Xala, Ousmane Sembene, novel (film) Neo-colonialism : the betrayal of the Black business middle-class mimicking the former colonizers. Corruption. Quiz on Xala * Final paper topic is definitely selected, discussed with the instructor and proposal and outline accepted. (See Guidelines p.11-13)
April 10 Issues : Polygamy in urbanized Africa. 3 portraits of women in Xala The young woman (Rama) as a figure of the modern Africa. ______WEEK TWELVE April 15 Xala The language issue in Francophone Africa. The ultimate artistic compromise : the bilingual interplay between French and Wolof
April 17 Xala (end) Test 3 on A Season in the Congo Portfolio “Adopt an African country” due
* Download LECTURE 10-- Côte d’Ivoire. ______WEEK THIRTEEN -- PORTRAIT of BLACK WOMEN in MODERN AFRICA. April 22 Issue of excision (female circumcision) LECTURE 10: History of Ivory Coast / Côte d’Ivoire
April 24 Film: Faces of Women, Désiré Ecaré, 1985, (Côte d’Ivoire) (105’) Other portraits : women’s place in modern African society, feminism, economics and tradition. Conflict between modernity and tradition. ______WEEK FOURTEEN April 29 IMAGES OF CONTEMPORARY AFRICA The Little Girl Who Sold The Sun (Sénégal) (La Petite Vendeuse de Soleil), Mambety, 1999 (45’) Dakar streets, busting central markets. Street kids. The unchallenged free-market orthodoxy
May 1 Short presentation of final papers to the class by groups (no longer than ten minutes, + five minutes for questions) 10
______
* Final paper due last day of class; at the latest on the exam day. Final examination : check College calendar. Final exam week is May 5. Final examination is comprehensive and tests appropriate knowledge of the topics studied during the course. At the end of the course you understand the issues for Africa. You can grasp and define the 3 main periods : pre-colonial, colonial and neo / post- colonial Africa. Handout Course knowledge for final exam
11
GUIDELINES about WRITING for General Education
A General Education course, Core IV, is built around three areas : 1) The “Non-Western” World . 2) Critical Inquiry into other cultures. Careful thinking requires an active, engaged set of responses to reading assignments and classroom discussions. There must be depth and meaning to your analysis. 3) Intensive writing, writing assignments enable you to practice careful thinking and develop writing effectively and clearly. Originality and creativity are encouraged as well as critical thinking around the issues raised in the course.
Since General Education courses have been designed as courses to develop writing courses in order to develop your writing through critical thinking, there will be two kinds of writing assignments
1) INFORMAL, low-stakes WRITING are done at home. This activity consists of writing one typed double-spaced page on a specific subject in order to give shape and clarify ideas, be more engaged with and incorporate reflection about the material covered in class. These one-page writings also prepare you to write your formal papers. These assignments will be collected. Please put them on my desk at the beginning which will indicate , ─ ٧ ,٧ , + ٧ or at the end of the class. You will receive a check mark the quality of content and writing. This activity may also be used as as an extension of class discussion.
2) Portfolio / Dossier on an African country of your choice. “Adopt an African country” (See assignment on WebCT) During the semester you should follow the current events and particularly focus on any aspects that deal with the relationship with the West. Make appropriate comments. The portfolio is due by Week 12.
3) FORMAL, high-stakes writing. They consist of 2 papers and a final paper. These papers will be graded and you will receive feed back. Paper 1 : focus essay on Houseboy (about 5 double-spaced pages) Paper 2 : focus essay on Ambiguous Adventure (about 5 double-spaced pages. You choose your own, specific, topic on a subject discussed in class that you want to further explore. Use the Questions/topics in the Study guides. Final paper : is as well a focus essay between 8-10 pages in length (not including the bibliography, appendices and quotes). It is possible to write an excellent paper in six pages as well as a poor one in twelve pages. Make sure that you go well beyond a surface analysis, that you do not just repeat what you have read, but you engage with ideas and apply them to the works that we have read by giving specific examples. Your final paper must include at least 4 references. You might use the web to collect and critique information but avoid uncritical use of internet material. Books and professional journals give access to better sources of information and allow a better in- depth research of key issues facing Africa (and its relation to the West) 12
Choose your subject early. If there is an area that you want to explore but the course has not yet covered, do not hesitate to go ahead. You will receive the information later on. The syllabus format provides a road map for choosing your subject and inquiry. Make sure that you use a topic relevant to the course content. You need to justify your topic and show its relevance at least in your introduction if not throughout your paper. The texts that we studied at least provide the starting point. I will give you a list of possible topics for research as we progress. However you are welcome to find your own topics and to discuss them with me. Submit a proposal and an outline for approval by Week 11 at the latest. Collect documentation and think about what you want to write. Write an outline and several drafts, make revisions. Keep focused on your subject. I am interested in the quality of content and not its length. You must write from an objective perspective with well-developed arguments sustaining critical thinking. Final papers that do not use the course material and have nothing to do with the course won’t be graded. The proposal and outline that you submit for approval are your safeguards. Papers will be downgraded by 0.3 if you fail to submit an outline and /or if you do not use references. Final papers are due the last day of class. Grace period may be granted until final exam day. Papers won’t be accepted after final exam day.
HOW TO PROCEED TO WRITE A CRITICAL PAPER Although there is not one correct writing process, a typical writing process might look like the following: Draft 1: Collect information, generate ideas. Start by writing down everything even if you don’t know what you want to say. Many times writing helps you discover your thoughts. The process of writing may reveal to you ideas and opinions that you didn’t even know you had. Do your writing in stages. Divide the task into small subtasks. Do not think that you have to proceed in a straight line from introduction to conclusion. Jot down ideas as they occur to you. Later you can organize them, add examples and details to explain them. If you try to generate your ideas and organize them at the same time, the task might be insurmountable. But if you take one step at a time, it will become manageable, even fun. Draft 2: Weed out irrelevant ideas; remain focused on your subject; clarify relevant ones. Draft 3: Explain ideas in detail; organize them. Draft 4: Rewrite. The rewriting often lets you articulate an idea that you had earlier but could not express at the time. Correct spelling and grammatical errors. Use your computer spelling and grammar check. Make sure that you have a clear subject and verb.
I hope to see improvement in the logic, clarity, style, and effectiveness of your presentations as the course progresses if you had any problems. Writing improves by writing. Use the writing center in case of need.
13
WHAT A GOOD PAPER LOOKS LIKE
• STRUCTURE and ORGANIZATION An abstract or outline should be drafted to give you a blueprint for your paper. What are you planning to say? Do you have a clearly defined topic? What data will be used? Where do the data go? What conclusions are you hoping to reach? You need to write a focus essay analyzing in greater depth the argumentative and interpretative issues that were raised in the readings or in class discussions. You need to comment on your point of view regarding the issue. There needs to be a logical sequence in your paper. You need to have: 1) An introduction with a thesis statement. A thesis is what you are trying to prove in your essay. It indicates the purpose of the essay. 2) The body of your essay in which you support your thesis with the data. Present the evidence in a logical manner. Refer to specific elements in the text and discuss the significance of those references to your claim for instance by quoting in order to clarify and back up your points. However limit yourself to short quotes and comment them. Do not crowd your paper with long quotes. Provide the relevant data that will confirm, modify or reject the hypothesis. It may be handy to use sub-headings or other devices to distinguish a hierarchy of topics or themes and sub-themes. All data need a specific place. In other term divide your paper in several parts (usually two or three are sufficient). 3) A conclusion: observations and conclusions which lead you to reflect about what others have said about this topic and if you agree or disagree, and why? Are there important gaps in the knowledge of the subject? What do we still need to know? What can be done about it?
• DATA SOURCES Give references to the work of others. Use of course material is appropriate but not sufficient Use of encyclopedias and websites is fine but does not replace other research. Library research is expected. Do an inter library loan.
• DOCUMENTATION Endnotes or footnotes include the author, full title, and page number of the data The bibliography offers a full citation of the author, full title, publisher, place, and edition date. Use the MLA (Modern Language Association) style format. Responsible, short, QUOTATIONS: do not use quotations out of context just to fill in your paper. Too many quotations are not what a paper is about. Make sure to say what they mean and why they are relevant to your point. If an idea or sentence comes from an article, be sure to cite it by using a parenthetical note that names author and page number or incorporate the citation into your paragraph (X argues that…… and page number at the end of the sentence).
• PRESENTATION Use font point 12 so that I can read it or use an easily read font. 14
Double space so that I will have room for marginal editorial notes. Have adequate margins (about one inch on all sides will work) Italicize foreign words; underline or italicize titles. No spelling and grammatical errors. Have a fluid style with complete sentences.
• TIMELY SUBMISSION Submission on time is expected. See syllabus for deadlines. Papers not turned in on time will be penalized.
• PLAGIARISM RIC has a zero tolerance plagiarism policy. Consult the Student Handbook for policy and procedures (p. 35-36). Use the program turnitin to check your work.
WHAT A CRITICAL PAPER IS NOT It is not a summary: you do more than summarize what the others have said or summarize the story. Do not spend most of your paper filling your reader in on the plot. Remember that you reader has also read the text. Summarize only when it is necessary to make a point. It is not a subjective paper based solely on your emotional reaction to the work. This is not a critical paper. It is more valuable to take a closer and more analytical look at something which you especially like, hate, or are puzzled by in the work. As a critic, your task is not to say how you feel about a text but to analyze. Keep an objective perspective. Do not over quote. Do not just regurgitate information. Use information to think analytically and critically. A paper needs to take position, solve a problem, etc.
[ Rhode Island College is committed to making reasonable efforts to assist individuals with documented disabilities. If you are thinking reasonable classroom accommodations under the American with Disabilities Act, and/or Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, you are required to register with the student Office. The S.L.O is located in Rm. 127 in Craig-Lee Hall. Phone is 456-8061. To receive academic accommodations for this class, please obtain the proper S.L.O forms and meet with me at the beginning of the semester.]
15
CRITERIA for GRADING
A paper • The paper adequately states and defends an argument. • Develops a thesis, using a logical structure and well-developed answers to the question, problem and / or issue. • Engages the topic thoughtfully and imaginatively, using well-chosen details. • Makes integral use of the readings and films, specific arguments and authors are mentioned. If quotations are used, they are short and appropriate to the demonstration. • Good organization, well-developed arguments, few mechanical errors such as sentence fragments, paragraph fragments, grammatical errors, and spelling errors.
B paper • The paper contains an argument, relevant sub theses, and specific evidence. • Is well focused • Provides an orderly progression of ideas • Factual evidence is either incorrect or missing or not specific. • The linking sub theses are either unclear or missing.
C paper • The paper correctly lists, narrates, describes data, just regurgitates information and makes little or no attempt to frame an argument or thesis. • States an argument or thesis but does not develop it. • Shows some sense of organization • Has just enough examples to make its points acceptably • Supporting sub theses and factual evidence are missing, incorrect or anachronistic, irrelevant, not sufficiently specific, all or partly obscured by errors in language, grammatical errors and distracting mistakes in usage
D paper • The paper simply lists, narrates, or describes data and includes several factual errors. Offers a simplistic or inappropriate response to topic • Develops ideas inadequately or illogically, distorts and misrepresents content. • Lacks coherent structure or elaboration with examples • No real attempt to discuss the problem, with general answers to some of the questions and no specific use of the sources. • Makes many grammatical errors that impede communication. Vocabulary is too general or inappropriate.
F paper • The paper is dishonest (plagiarized). • Completely ignores the question set. • Offers little substance and disregards the topic’s demands. • Lacks focus, organization, or development. • The paper contains very serious factual errors, distortion and misrepresentation of content. • The paper is incomprehensible due to errors in language or usage. Misuses words and contains abundant grammatical errors. 16
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Highly recommended Camara Laye, The Dark Child, (NY 1954) Ba, Mariama, So long a letter (London, Heinemann, 1981)
Additional Reading and References for your final research paper
If not available at the RIC library, do an inter library loan. Start early.
Arnold, James, Being Black and Being French ______, Modernism and Négritude, the Poetry and Poetics of Aimé Césaire, Cambridge, Harvard University Press, 1981. Bâ, Sylvia Washington, The Concept of Negritude in the poetry of Leopold Senghor, Princeton, 1973. Baba Wague Dikite, The Hunterman and the Crocodile, a West African Folktale. Birmingham, David, Kwame Nkrumah, The Father of African nationalism (Athens: Ohio University Press, 1998) Césaire, Return to the native land ______, Discourse on Colonialism, 1972. Diawara, Mantha, African cinema, politics and Culture. Diop Birago, The Tales of Amadou Koumba (Oxford U.P., 1966) (contains 20 tales) Dorson, Richard, Theory of Myth and the Folklorist : Myth and Mythmaking, New york; Braziller, 1990. Echenberg, Colonial conscripts :TheTirailleurs Sénégalais in French West Africa, 1857-1960, (Heinemann, Portsmouth, 1991) Huntington, Samuel, The Clash of Civilizations (article available on the Internet) Fanon, Frantz, Black Skin, White Masks, 1952 ( on reserve) ______, A dying Colonialism, 1965. ______, The Wretched of the Earth, 1963. Finnegan, Oral literature in Africa. Faces of Islam in Africa literature, representation of Islam in West African literature. Gendzier, I. Frantz Fanon: A Critical Study. Pantheon, New York Laye Camara, L’Enfant noir, The Dark Child, 1960 www.sonoma.edu/users/t/toczyski/camaralaye Markovitz, Irving Leonard, Leopold Senghor and the Politics of Negritude (NY: Atheneum, 1969 McDermott, Zomo The Rabbit, a Trickster Tale from West Africa. Memmi, Albert, The Colonizer and the Colonized, 1965. (on reserve) ______, Dependence, A Sketch For a Portrait of the Dependent. ______, Dominated man: Notes Toward a Portrait, Orion Press, London, 1968. Miller, Christopher, Theories of the Africans. Nandy, A., The Intimate Enemy: Loss and Recovery of Self under Colonialism. Oxford University Press, Delhi. 17
Ngugi Wa Thiong’o, Decolonising the Mind : The Politics of Language in African Literature, 1981. Okpewho, Isidore, Myth in Africa, London: Cambridge University Press, 1981. Said, Edward, The Myth Of The Clash Of Civilizations [videoconference] 1998. ______, Orientalism Sartre, Black Orpheus, 1976. The Language Question in Francophone Africa (collected papers) Senghor, Leopold, Selected poems (Translation and introduction by John Medout and Clive Nake, 1964). Soyinka, Wole, The Burden of Memory, The Muse of forgiveness. ______Myth, Literature, and the African World, London: U Press, 1976. Thiam, Awa, Speak out, Black sisters: Feminism and Oppression in Black Africa (London: Pluto Press, 1986) The Mande Blacksmiths : Knowledge, Power and Art in West Africa (Bloomington University Press,1988)
Other film references (some are available at the Media Center or at your local video store, ACME on the East Side) Coup de torchon, Bernard Tavernier, 1981 Echoes from a somber empire (Bokassa), Werner Herzog Black and White in Color, Jean Jacques Annaud, 1976. Chocolat, Claire Denis, 1988 Lumumba, Raoul Peck, 2000 (115’) Mobutu, King of Zaire (Roi du Zaïre), Thierry Michel, 1999, (135’) Kirikou, and the sorceress, Kirikou et la sorcière, Michel Ocelot, 1999 (70’)