Complete each of the following tasks:
1. Write a short paragraph of 200-300 words that responds to the feedback you received on your short essay (especially the summary audio remarks) and identifies areas in which you aim to improve when writing the Comparative Essay. You may also like to respond to, even contest the feedback you received.
2. Select a question for the Comparative Essay (see the question and guideline sheet) and write a pilot* introduction of 200-300 words to your essay. The introduction should:
i) Address the question in way that gets to the heart of what is being asked.
ii) State the argument that you will make in relation to the question.
iii) Signal those aspects of the literary works on which you will focus.
3. In dot-point form, set out a pilot scaffold** (i.e. plan) of your essay. This should include those aspects of the literary works that you will focus on and the key points you intend to make. The following lay-out is just a suggestion:
– Introduction: [1-2 sentences on introduction]
– Section 1: [1-2 sentences on first section]
– Section 2: [1-2 sentences on second section]
– Section 3: [1-2 sentences on third section]
– [etc…]
– Conclusion: [1-2 sentences on conclusion]
* A pilot is ‘an experimental undertaking designed to assess the viability of a full-scale project or activity’ (OED). In other words, this is a prototype introduction which is there to help you think ahead to the shape and purpose of essay as a whole, and to test out the argument you will make. You do not need to use the pilot introduction (or even anything resembling it) in the final essay.
** A scaffold is the underlying structure of your essay (you could also call it the ‘skeleton’ or the ‘bare bones’). It sets out the discursive sequence that your argument will take. This then acts as a guide or map when you come to flesh the essay out in full. As with the pilot introduction, this is a prototype and you are not expected to stick to it for your essay.
Literature and Decolonisation (102572)
Third Assessment: Comparative Essay DUE DATE: 11.59pm, 18/06/2017
In no more than 2100 and no less than 1900 words, answer one of the following questions:
1. ‘He [the “native intellectual”] turns himself into an awakener of the people; hence comes a fighting literature, a revolutionary literature, and a national literature.’ (Frantz Fanon)
A common aspiration for colonised writers was to enact decolonisation (or, at least, contribute to achieving it) through their creative work. Compare the way in which two writers that we have studied strive to enact decolonisation through their writing.
2. ‘In order to restore India to a pristine condition, we have to return to it. In our own civilisation, there will naturally be progress, retrogression, reforms and reactions; but one effort is required and that is to drive out Western civilisation.’ (Mohandas Gandhi)
The desire to restore the colonised society to its pre-colonial state was widespread during decolonisation. Compare the way in which two writers that we have studied contend with the desire to restore the pre-colonial condition in their literary works.
3. ‘The domination of a people’s language by the languages of the colonising nations was crucial to the domination of the mental universe of the colonised’ (Ngugi Wa Thiongo)
Compare the ways in which two writers that we have studied engage with the relationship between colonial domination and language in their literary works.
GUIDELINES
– Your essay must compare two literary works from the unit. One of these must be Aimé Césaire’s Notebook of a Return to My Native Land.
– It is recommended that your answer take into consideration the use of literary genre.
– Your essay must include a discussion of at least one extended passage of at least 60 words from each of your chosen texts. If your passages are long, you may include them as an appendix to your essay. That is, a transcription of the passage under the heading ‘Appendix’, with each passage clearly labelled and referenced. This means you will not need to cite the passage in its entirety within the essay itself. Please make clear reference to the appendix, though. The passages in the appendix will not count towards the total word count. Also please type the passages out, do not paste pictures of the text.
– Your essay must contain some reference to scholarly literature that helps to situate the works in their historical moment and literary milieu. References should follow the Chicago
system (or any other another system so long as it is used consistently). (Please see the unit learning guide for details. There will be no allowances for plagiarism.)
– The essay must be presented in the form of an argument. In comparing the two works and you will need to present an argument about the significance of their similarities and differences, commenting on the way this gives us important insights into the relationship between literature and decolonisation.
– If you would like to write your own question or focus on a work which is not included in the set texts, you must seek approval from the Unit Coordinator – [email protected].
