California State University, Northridge: Fall 2010
English 392: Junior Honors Tutorial: African Film and Literature
Instructor: Ian Barnard, Ph.D. <http://www.csun.edu/~ib5991>
Office Hours in ST 834: T 3:30-4:30 p.m., TR 1:15-1:45 p.m., and by appt.
Email Office Hours: ian.barnard@csun.edu
Course Description:
The topic of this section of English 392 is African Film and Literature. We will engage
with selected texts by African writers and filmmakers in the contexts of postcolonial,
feminist, and other theoretical frameworks. You will reflect on African film and literary
traditions, histories, politics, and aesthetics; learn to analyze and write about film; refine
your research skills; and practice analyzing and writing about literature.
Student Learning Outcomes for the English Honors Program:
You will
 gain the ability to articulate clear interpretations of cultural texts
 gain the ability to engage in independent research and scholarship
 gain the ability to present a scholarly paper
Additional Specific Student Learning Outcomes for This Course:
You will
 understand the political, historical, and aesthetic contexts of African film and
literature
 develop in-depth analyses of selected African film and literary texts through
critical reading/viewing/writing/discussion
 practice and refine your ability to analyze and write about literature using
secondary sources
 learn and practice how to analyze and write about film using secondary sources
Required Texts:
Books (available for rent or purchase at the Matador Bookstore; texts marked * are also
on reserve in the Oviatt Library):
1. Achebe, Chinua. Things Fall Apart. Anchor. *
2. Aidoo, Ama Ata. No Sweetness Here. The Feminist Press at CUNY. *
3. Coetzee, J. M. Foe. Penguin. *
4. Corrigan, Timothy. A Short Guide to Writing About Film. 7th ed.
5. Ousmane, Sembène. Gods Bits of Wood. Heinemann, 1995 ed. *
6. Taïa, Abdellah. Salvation Army. Semiotext(e).
Please bring the Corrigan book to all class meetings.
Films (available on Media Reserve in the Oviatt Library; films marked * are also
available from Netflix):
1. Faat Kine. *
2. Karmen Geï. *
3. Long Night’s Journey Into Day. *
4. 100 Days.
5. Sia: The Dream of the Python. *
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Course Requirements and Grade Distribution:
1. Collaborative Oral Presentation
2. Moodle Posts and Blog
3. Conference Proposal
4. Participation
5. Seminar Paper
6. Map Quiz
15%
30%
10%
5%
35%
5%
A+
A
AB+
B
BC+
C
CD+
D
DF
9993- 90- 87- 83- 80- 77- 73- 70- 67- 63- 60- 0100% 98% 92% 89% 86% 82% 79% 76% 72% 69% 66% 62% 59%
Attendance
I expect you to attend all classes. If you miss more than four class meetings, I will lower
your final course grade.
Participation
Since this is a discussion-based course, I expect you to read/view all assigned texts
carefully and critically and participate vigorously in class discussions. Obviously you
need to be prepared for class in order to participate effectively, and you cannot participate
effectively if you miss class, arrive late for class, or leave class early. Participation
includes your presentation of your conference proposal and your participation in peer
workshops.
Collaborative Oral Presentation
You and a partner will give an oral presentation on a topic related to our course texts in
order to give class members background and contextual information that will enrich their
engagement with the texts. You will need to research multiple sources in order to decide
what information to present about your topic, and should indicate in your presentation
where you got your information. Your presentation should include at least one digital
medium to illustrate what you are saying (i.e., a website, a video clip, music). Obviously
you cannot give a comprehensive discussion of your topic; you will need to decide which
information is the most pertinent in the context of this course. The presentation should
last about 15 minutes. I will evaluate your presentation based on how well you and your
partner work together, how effectively you choose and present your material, and how
well you integrate multimedia components into the presentation. I will post your
presentation score on Moodle and email you a prose evaluation of your presentation
within a week of the presentation. You are welcome to meet with me before your
presentation date in order to discuss your presentation ideas.
Conference Proposal. Due: 11/18/10
You will develop and submit a proposal for the annual Honors Colloquium to be held in
Spring 2011. In most cases your proposal will address your seminar paper (see below),
though you may submit a proposal on another topic with my approval.
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Seminar Paper (about 10 pages, excluding Works Cited). Draft due: 11/30/10
Write an essay about one of the films/books we have read/watched in this class, or about
one aspect of a book/film, or about a theme you see in several of the films/books, or
about an issue we have addressed in class that you wish to trace in several of the
films/books we’ve studied. If you wish, you may develop your paper from one or more
of your blog entries. Your paper should have a title and thesis (whether explicit or
implicit) and should not read as a collection of unconnected points about your chosen
text(s). Give specific examples/quotes from the text(s) you are analyzing, and discuss
these quotes/examples in detail. Your paper should be written for a scholarly audience of
readers who have read/seen the class texts but who are not necessarily members of our
class.
Since you are entering into a scholarly conversation about the texts we have
studied, you need to research what others have written about them and the issues around
them. You should engage with at least one outside scholarly source in your paper. You
may also use additional non-scholarly sources judiciously. Remember to explain how
your evidence from your primary and secondary sources support your thesis--don't
simply make a claim and then give a quote from the primary or secondary source. This
assumes that your reader interprets the source the same way you do. Explain what the
evidence means. Use this opportunity to demonstrate your thinking. We will discuss
effective ways of using sources in class. Cite primary and secondary sources according
to MLA format, and conclude your paper with a list of Works Cited that follows MLA
format (primary and secondary sources should appear on this list, including any films you
refer to).
You will get feedback in class from colleagues and in an individual conference
with me on your paper draft/ideas before you post the final revised paper. You will post
the final paper on Moodle, so may include links, images, etc. as part of your paper.
Ensure that your paper is titled and double-spaced, with one inch margins on all sides of
the page. I will lower your paper grade if you post the draft or revision late without prior
permission from me.
Course Policies:
 Disability Issues: Please see me early in the semester if you require academic
accommodations based on a documented disability.
 Email: I usually acknowledge all email messages within 24 hours. If you email
me but don’t get a response, I haven’t received your email. Feel free to email me
concerning any questions you have about the course or about your work. Be sure
to include a salutation, signature, and appropriate subject heading in your email
message. Do not email your assignments to me for feedback; I’d be happy to
discuss your work with you in person.
 Recording Of Classes: I do not permit recording of class sessions.
 Plagiarism: Plagiarism is a contested and context-specific topic. We will discuss
effective ways of using sources and issues around plagiarism in class.
Blog
Create a scholarly course blog at blogger.com (or another blog site). You will post the
URL for your blog on Moodle, as well as the author name you are using for your blog.
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Write your blog with a general audience in mind--remember that it can be read by
anyone. The prompts for the required blog entries appear below. You may add
additional course-related blog entries if you wish. Your blog should include at least two
images and at least two links. I will evaluate your blog holistically at the end of the
semester based on the blog criteria posted on Moodle. You will lose points if you post
blog entries or responses to colleagues’ blog entries late. Be sure to log in when you
respond to class members’ blog posts so that you can earn credit for your responses.
Each blog entry should be about three paragraphs long; each response to a
colleague’s assigned blog entry should be about a paragraph long.
Blog #1
Discuss one technical aspect of Sia that you found particularly interesting or effective or
problematic. Make specific references to the film and use the terminology discussed in
Chapter 3 of Corrigan’s book. Post your blog entry by 10 p.m. on Wednesday 9/1. Your
blog should include at least one image by this time. Respond to two or more class
members’ assigned blog entries by 10 p.m. on Friday 9/3 (don’t respond to the same class
members as everyone else).
Blog #2
Discuss any one paragraph from the second half of God’s Bits of Wood. Talk about what
you see as the significance of this paragraph in the context of the novel as a whole; give
quotes from or make specific references to your chosen paragraph as you discuss it in
detail. Try not to choose the same paragraph as everyone else in the class. Post your
blog entry by 10 p.m. on Monday 9/27. Respond to two or more class members’
assigned blog entries by 10 p.m. on Friday 10/1 (don’t respond to the same class
members you responded to for Blog #1).
Blog #3
Choose one of the stories from No Sweetness Here and retell the events in the story from
the perspective of one of the characters in the story--you should write in the first person
as if you were that character! Post your blog entry by 10 p.m. on Wednesday 10/6.
Respond to two or more class members’ assigned blog entries by 10 p.m. on Friday 10/8
(don’t respond to the same class members as everyone else).
Blog #4
Write about any aspect of 100 Days or your reaction to the film. Be sure to refer to
specific examples/scenes/shots from the film. Your blog should include at least one link
by this time. Post your blog entry by 10 p.m. on Wednesday 10/27. Respond to two or
more class members’ assigned blog entries by 10 p.m. on Friday 10/29.
Blog #5
How do you interpret the final chapter of Foe? Be sure to give specific quotes from this
chapter and to situate the chapter in the context of the rest of the novel. Post your blog
entry by 10 p.m. on Monday 11/8. Respond to two or more class members’ assigned
blog entries by 10 p.m. on Wednesday 11/10.
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Tentative Schedule
Tuesday, 8/24/10
 Introduction to the course
 Stereotypes of Africa; African
countries
 Discuss map quiz
 Discuss syllabus
 Working with Moodle
Homework:
 Read Wainaina, “How to Write
About Africa” (on Moodle)
 Decide on your presentation
preferences
Thursday, 8/26/10
 Discuss reading
 Introduction to African film
 Assign presentations
 Meet with presentation collaborators
Homework:
 Read Corrigan, Chapters 1-3
 Watch Sia by next Thursday
Tuesday, 8/31/10
 Discuss reading
 Practice film analysis
 Set up blogs
 Blog criteria
Homework:
 Watch Sia
 Blog #1 due
Thursday, 9/2/10
 Discuss Sia
 Presentation tips
Homework:
 Start reading Things Fall Apart
Tuesday, 9/7/10
 Discuss sample blog posts
 Introduction to African history and
colonialism
 Presentation (Chinua Achebe)
Homework:
 Read Things Fall Apart,
Chapters 1-13
Thursday, 9/9/10
 Discuss Things Fall Apart
Homework:
 Finish reading Things Fall Apart
Tuesday, 9/14/10
 Discuss Things Fall Apart
Homework:
 Read Corrigan Chapters 4 and 6
Thursday, 9/16/10
 Discuss reading
Homework:
 Start reading Gods Bits of Wood
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Tuesday, 9/21/10
 Presentation (Sembène Ousmane)
 Introduction to African literature
 Introduction to Gods Bits of Wood
Homework:
 Read Gods Bits of Wood, pp. 1127
Thursday, 9/23/10
 Discuss God’s Bits of Wood
Homework:
 Finish reading God’s Bits of
Wood
 Blog #2 due
Tuesday, 9/28/10
 Discuss God’s Bits of Wood
Homework:
 Watch Faat Kine
Thursday, 9/30/10
 Discuss Faat Kine
 Debate: cinema engagé vs. postmodern
African cinema
Homework:
 Start reading No Sweetness Here
Tuesday, 10/5/10
 Introduction to African feminism
 Presentation (Ama Ata Aidoo)
Homework:
 Read No Sweetness Here, pp. 174
 Blog #3 due
Thursday, 10/7/10
 Discuss No Sweetness Here
Homework:
 Read No Sweetness Here, pp.
75-160
Tuesday, 10/12/10
 Discuss No Sweetness Here
 Mid-semester evaluations of course
Homework:
 Read Corrigan Chapters 5 and 7
Thursday, 10/14/10
 Discuss reading
 Introduction to Carmen
 Presentation (Joseph Gaï Ramaka)
Homework:
 Watch Karmen Geï
Tuesday, 10/19/10
 Discuss Karmen Geï
 Introduction to queer Africa
Homework:
 Read Salvation Army
Thursday, 10/21/10
 Discuss Salvation Army
Homework:
 Prepare for map quiz
 Watch 100 Days by Thursday
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Tuesday, 10/26/10
Homework:
 Discuss Salvation Army
 Watch 100 Days
 Map quiz
 Blog #4 due
 Presentation (the Rwandan genocide of
1994)
Thursday, 10/28/10
 Discuss 100 Days
 Assign conference proposal
Homework:
 Start reading Foe
Tuesday, 11/2/10
 Introduction to South Africa and
apartheid
 Presentation (J. M. Coetzee)
Homework:
 Read Foe, up to p. 152
Thursday, 11/4/10
 Discuss Foe
Homework:
 Read Foe, pp. 153-57
 Blog #5 due
Tuesday, 11/9/10
 Discuss Foe
 Presentation (South Africa’s Truth and
Reconciliation Commission)
Homework:
 Watch Long Night’s Journey
Into Day
 Work on your conference
proposal
Thursday, 11/11/10
Holiday—no class
Tuesday, 11/16/10
 Discuss Long Night’s Journey Into
Day
 Work on conference proposals
Homework:
 Post your conference proposal
on your blog by noon on
Thursday 11/18/10
Thursday, 11/18/10
 Present and discuss conference
proposals
 Assign seminar paper
 Discuss finding secondary sources
Homework:
 Work on your seminar paper
Tuesday, 11/23/10
 Discuss use and citation of primary
and secondary sources
 Sign up for conferences
Homework:
 Work on your seminar paper
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Thursday, 11/25/10
Holiday—no class
Homework:
 Post a draft of your seminar
paper on Moodle by noon on
Tuesday, 11/30/10
Tuesday, 11/30/10
 Conferences on seminar paper in ST
834
Thursday, 12/2/10
 Conferences on seminar paper in ST
834
Homework:
 Work on revising your seminar
paper
Tuesday, 12/7/10
 South African soaps and sitcoms
 Course synthesis/rupture
 Party?
Homework:
 Post your revised seminar paper
on your blog by noon on
Thursday, 12/9/10