Cincinnati Christian University
Foster School of Biblical Studies, Arts & Sciences
ENGL 220 01 SURVEY OF MULTICULTURAL LITERATURE (Section 1)
Professor: Brian Derico
Semester: Fall 2013
Phone: 244.8147
Email: brian.derico@ccuniversity.edu
3 Semester Credit Hours
Meeting Times: MW 1:30 – 2:45
Course Description
A thematic survey of contemporary literature from authors of different ethnicities. Attention is given both to
literary forms and to social, philosophical, and religious meaning in the texts. Prerequisites: ENGL 110,
ENGL 111 or their equivalents.
Course Rationale
Survey of Multicultural Literature uses literature, dialogue, writing, and research to increase our
understanding of the diverse cultural perspectives of the world—including our own.
Course Objectives
Students who satisfactorily complete this course should be able to do the following:
● Offer insightful analysis of the assigned course texts;
● Demonstrate familiarity with the rules associated with writing about literature in the English
discipline;
● Articulate a greater understanding of their cultural values by considering the contexts which give
them meaning;
● Articulate an ideologically informed position regarding the responsibility of humanity in general—
and Christians in particular—to respond to the suffering and injustice that pervades our world.
Course Text
One World of Literature, Lim and Spencer
Assignments
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Essay 1 (20%)
Essay 2 (20%)
Essay 3 (20%)
Presentation (10%)
Exam (20%)
Class Participation (10%)
Course Policies
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You must read and respond in a timely manner to email from the professor.
All written assignments must be shared with me in Google Drive under file names that conform to the
pattern described in the File Name Format section of this syllabus.
● Work submitted late that reflects a satisfactory effort will receive 60% credit.
● The attendance regulations listed in the CCU catalog apply to this course.
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If you do not understand an assignment or section of class discussion, it is your responsibility to ask
for clarification either during a class session or in private consultation with the professor.
● You must maintain scrupulous academic integrity. The CCU Policy on Academic Integrity will be
our guide on occasions of academic dishonesty.
● I reserve the right to amend the above policies for individual circumstances. It is always your
responsibility to apprise me of extenuating circumstances.
● If you require academic accommodations due to any documented physical, psychological, or learning
disability you should request assistance from the Academic Support Director within the first two
weeks of class. The Academic Support Office is located in the Lower Level of the Worship and
Ministry Building (room 153). You may also contact the office by phone (244-8420).
Office Hours
Stop by during the posted hours to reach me by chance. Please make an appointment via e-mail if your need
is urgent or if the posted hours do not coincide with your availability.
Monday: 9:30-11:00
Tuesday: 9:30-10:00
Wednesday: 9:30-11:00
Thursday: 9:30-10:00
Friday: 9:30-12:00
Course Agenda
All dates are approximate and subject to change without notice.
August
September
26
28
Introduction to Survey of Multicultural Literature
“The Unknown Citizen,” Auden (582-584)
“Writing about Fiction” (All Sections)
“Writing about Literature” (All Sections)
“MLA Formatting and Style Guide”
“MLA Formatting Quotations”
02
04
LABOR DAY HOLIDAY
“A Small Incident,” Xün (209-210)
Presentation
09
“Death in a Plane,” de Andrade (779-783)
Presentation
“Jerusalem,” Amichai (75-76)
Presentation
11
16
18
“Identity Card,” Darwish (134-136)
Presentation
“The Land of Sad Oranges,” Kanafani (137-141)
Presentation
Due: Essay #1
Purdue OWL
Purdue OWL
Purdue OWL
Purdue OWL
23
25
30
October
02
07
09
14
16
21
23
28
30
November
04
06
11
13
18
20
“Migrant’s Lament—a Song,” Qabula (173-175)
Presentation
“The Cooboo,” Prichard (381-384)
Presentation
“Mercedes Benz 220 SL,” Ferré (874-882)
Presentation
“The Hajji,” Essop (161-171
Presentation
“Civil Peace,” Achebe (128-133)
Presentation
“The Balek Scales,” Böll (554-561)
Presentation
Due: Essay #2
“The Guest,” Camus (530-540)
Presentation
“Naema—Whereabouts Unknown,” Dib (15-24)
Presentation
“The Return,” Thiong´o (91-96)
Presentation
“And So I Go,” Grace (447-451)
Presentation
“The Life You Save May Be Your Own,” O’Connor (975-983)
Presentation
“The Horse Dealer’s Daughter,” Lawrence (562-575)
Presentation
“Inem,” Toer (288-297)
Presentation
“The Key,” Phiên (364-369)
Presentation
“The Falling Girl,” Buzzati (624-627)
Presentation
“Spring Storm,” Yōko (337-343)
Presentation
Due: Essay #3
“His First Ball,” Ihimaera (451-460)
Presentation
“About Your Hands and Lies,” Hikmet (186-187)
Presentation
December
25
27
THANKSGIVING RECESS
THANKSGIVING RECESS
02
“The Rockpile,” Baldwin (967-974)
Presentation
“A Hunger Artist,” Kafka (489-496)
Presentation
04
09
11
“Araby,” Joyce (603-608)
“A Soldier’s Embrace,” Gordimer (149-160)
Assignment Descriptions
The following assignment descriptions will be supplemented by class discussion. Students are responsible
for completing each assignment in a fashion that reflects familiarity with class discussions.
File Name Format
When you save your documents please name the file using the following pattern: your name, assignment
number, option number.
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Example: student name, essay one, option two
Example: student name, essay two, option three
Example: student name, presentation outline
Example: student name, presentation bibliography
Class Participation
Operative Theory of Learning:
The design of this course is premised on the theory that learning occurs when individuals and communities
encounter ideas and then bring those ideas into productive contact with the knowledge systems that govern
human behavior (rhetorical, agricultural, historical, sociological, psychological, philosophical, political,
economic, artistic, religious, scientific, etc.). Productive contact is reflective, collaborative, and oriented
toward action. It requires that participants work together to understand how new ideas disrupt or reify
existing knowledge systems--and it must lead to strategic action.
Consequent to this theory of learning is the requirement that students actively participate in this course in the
following ways:
● Attend class regularly (arrive on-time and remain for entire meeting);
● Arrive to class prepared to participate in class activities (complete writing assignments on time; read
assigned texts; plan ways to contribute to production of knowledge during course meetings);
● Actively participate in class activities (participate in class discussions; do not use phones, computers,
tablets, etc. for purposes not explicitly related to the objectives of this course; do not use class
meeting as opportunity to complete work unrelated to this course).
Class Participation Grading Breakdown:
Pass: 10%
Fail: 0%
Extra Credit
I do not offer extra credit because it is a disincentive for students to consistently pursue excellence and
because there are sufficient opportunities to earn credit built into the course.
Genre Expectations
The following bulleted items reflect genre expectations for literary analyses. Essays should conform to these
genre expectations unless there is a compelling reason to violate these expectations.
● Literary analyses describe the action of literature as though it happens in the present tense.
● Literary analyses must incorporate quotations from the text as evidence.
● Literary analyses may also incorporate evidentiary support derived from inquiry beyond the text.
Such evidence might be, for instance, biographical, bibliographical, historical, psychological,
physiological, ideological, critical, cultural, sociological, or epistemological.
● The title of a literary analysis should include the name of the poem or short story that is the subject of
the analysis, the full name of the author of the poem or short story that is the subject of the analysis,
and a description of the approach the analysis will take to the poem or short story that is the subject
of the analysis.
● Literary analyses must include reference to the title of the poem or short story that is the subject of
the analysis in the introduction—even though it must also appear in the title.
● Literary analyses must include reference to the full name of the author of the poem or short story that
is the subject of the analysis in the introduction—even though it must also appear in the title.
● Literary analyses present evidence in support of a claim about the subject of the analysis—not
summary or description alone.
● Readers of this genre expect that you will introduce a compelling assertion that solves a scholarly
problem.
● Literary analyses must make an assertion with which a reasonable person might disagree—or that a
reasonable person might not have considered but would benefit from encountering.
● Literary analyses mark the title of short stories and poems with quotation marks—not italics or
underlining.
● Literary analyses conform to MLA format and style.
● Literary analyses should be organized in support of a thesis rather than according to the chronology
of the novel that is the subject of the analysis.
Essay Options
Students must choose a different option for each required essay. Students must complete option one in
fulfillment of one of the required essays.
option one
FOCUS: Culture Reflected in Literature
● Choose one of the assigned texts.
● Write a thesis driven essay that supports an assertion about how understanding a feature of the
cultural context of elements of the text—or a single element of the text—is useful.
● This assignment requires contextually credible research—properly documented—into the culture
represented in the literature you have chosen.
option two
FOCUS: Theme in Literature
● Choose a theme that appears in at least two of the assigned texts.
● Write a thesis driven essay that supports an assertion about the way the chosen theme is treated in the
selected texts—and about what the reader stands to gain from this comparison.
option three
FOCUS: Character Study
● Choose a character from one of the course texts.
● Write an essay that supports an assertion about the reasons for or the results of the character’s
behavior or nature (the narrator in a short story and the speaker in a poem are suitable subjects for
this assignment). That is, either make a claim about why a character is as he or she is or make a claim
about what happens because the character is as he or she is. You should then focus your article
entirely on demonstrating the credibility of that claim with two kinds of evidence. First, you should
introduce evidence that demonstrates the credibility of your claim that something is true about a
character. Second, you should introduce evidence that either demonstrates the credibility of your
claim about why the character is as you claim he or she is, or that demonstrates the credibility of your
claim that something happens because the character is as you claim he or she is.
option four
FOCUS: Idea Response Using Literature
● Choose an idea related to Christian thought, experience, or practice about which you can articulate a
clear assertion.
● Consider how one or more of the assigned texts either supports your assertion or is in conflict with
your assertion.
● Write a thesis driven essay that supports your assertion.
● Quote at least one of the assigned texts.
● You may also use evidence derived from inquiry beyond the text, as well as your own reasoning and
examples. Be sure to document any sources used.
● In this assignment literature is support material rather than the central focus.
option five
FOCUS: Joining the Conversation
● Find an article that recommends a reading of one of the assigned texts.
● Write a thesis driven essay that invokes the article and responds in some compelling way to the
article’s recommendation. Represent the article accurately, quote it, and enter into dialogue with it in
a thesis driven essay.
option six
FOCUS: Integration of Academic Insights and Experiences
● Apply a theory associated with an academic field of knowledge to one of the assigned texts.
● Examples of academic fields of knowledge include theology, economics, philosophy, psychology,
sociology, and education.
● Write a thesis driven essay that supports an assertion about what a reader stands to gain from this
approach to the assigned text.
● This option requires an explanation of the relevant theory supported by contextually credible sources.
option seven
FOCUS: Experience
● Identify an event that you believe to be relevant to the content and objectives of this course.
● Submit to me for approval—at least seven days in advance of the event—a paragraph describing the
event and explaining why you believe this event to be relevant to the content and objectives of this
course.
● Participate in the approved event and write an essay that reflects on your experience in the context of
the content and objectives of this course.
● To receive credit for this assignment you must submit it as a Google Document within one week of
the event.
project
FOCUS: Service Organization Presentation
● Each student will research an approved humanitarian service organization. A list of preapproved
organizations follow, but students may seek permission to present on an organization that does not
appear on this list.
● Each student will develop a highly effective persuasive presentation that supports a specific assertion
about the selected service organization. Your presentation must have a thesis that is
contextualized in a compelling manner.
● Presentations must include attention to the mission of the service organization.
● Presentations must include attention to the cultures and communities with which these service
organizations work. Because many of these service organizations are involved in many cultures and
communities around the world your presentation can focus on one example.
● A detailed outline of the presentation--including a compelling thesis that contextualizes the
presentation in a compelling manner--must be submitted via Google Drive 24 hours before the
presentation. Your outline must have a compelling title. A powerpoint presentation may not be
substituted for the outline.
● An annotated bibliography must be submitted 24 hours before the presentation. Your annotated
bibliography must be formatted in MLA style. If you use multiple pages from the same site, each
page must have a separate entry with separate annotation. The information used in the presentation
must be derived from contextually credible sources.
● Each presentation must last at least ten minutes and may last no longer than twenty minutes.
● Presentations may not include video.
● Presentations may include attention to the opportunities for career employment and internships with
this service organization.
● Presentations may analyze the ways that these organizations rhetorically construct and represent the
cultures and communities with which they work.
● Presentations may include attention to issues that complicate the mission of this organization.
● Presentations may include recognition/response given to the service organization.
● Presentations may include attention to the history of the service organization.
● An opportunity for questions and evaluation will follow each presentation.
Preapproved Service Organizations:
Amnesty International
The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
CARE (defending dignity. fighting poverty.)
Charity: Water
Direct Relief International
Doctors Without Borders
Human Rights Watch
The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies
International Rescue Committee
MAP International
Oxfam International
PATH (a catalyst for global health)
Peace Corps
Project Hope (delivering health education, medicines, supplies and volunteers where needed)
Refugees International
Save the Children
UNDP (UN Development Program)
UNESCO (UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization)
UNHCR (UN High Commissioner for Refugees)
UNICEF (UN Children’s Fund)
UNWFP (UN World Food Programme)
USAID
US Committee for Refugees and Immigrants
WHO (World Health Organization)
World Concern
Clinton Foundation
Rubric
Rhetorical Analysis
E
x
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m
p
l
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r
y
A
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Fulfills assignment with creativity
and sophistication
Demonstrates strategic attention
to audience and other features of
rhetorical situation
Demonstrates strategic use of
means of persuasion (logos,
pathos, ethos, to prepon, kairos,
dunaton)
Style
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Conspicuous, clear, compelling,
and concise thesis
Discourse is clear and thoughtfully
organized in support of thesis on
the outline and paragraph levels
Contains an effective introduction
and conclusion
Transitions effectively orient the
reader
Compelling They Say, I Say move
contextualizes thesis
Mechanics
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Consistently uses grammar,
punctuation, and spelling in
conformity with Edited American
English
Conforms to MLA format
G
o
o
d
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B
Fulfills assignment adequately
Demonstrates adequate strategic
attention to audience and other
features of rhetorical situation
Demonstrates adequate strategic
use of means of persuasion
(logos, pathos, ethos, to prepon,
kairos, dunaton)
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A
d
e
q
u
a
t
e
P
o
o
r
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Fulfills assignment poorly
Demonstrates limited strategic
attention to audience and other
features of rhetorical situation
Demonstrates limited strategic
use of means of persuasion
(logos, pathos, ethos, to prepon,
kairos, dunaton)
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Moderately conspicuous, clear,
compelling, and concise thesis
Discourse is adequately clear and
thoughtfully organized in support
of thesis on the outline and
paragraph levels
Contains an adequately effective
introduction and conclusion
Transitions generally orient the
reader
They Say, I Say move
contextualizes thesis
●
Thesis is neither clear nor
compelling
A lack of organization on the
outline and paragraph levels
detracts from the effectiveness of
the essay
Introduction and conclusion are
not used effectively
Transitions do not effectively
orient the reader
They Say, I Say move does not
effectively contextualize thesis
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No thesis
Lacks strategic organization
No introduction or conclusion
No transitions orient the reader
No They Say, I Say move to
contextualize thesis
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Infrequently fails to conform to
Edited American English
Generally conforms to MLA format
Frequently fails to conform to
Edited American English
MLA format is not consistently
used
D
C
U
n
s
a
ti
s
f
a
c
t
o
r
y
F
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Does not fulfill assignment
Demonstrates no strategic
attention to audience and other
features of rhetorical situation
Demonstrates no strategic use of
means of persuasion (logos,
pathos, ethos, to prepon, kairos,
dunaton)
●
●
●
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Generally fails to conform to
Edited American English
MLA format is not used