Metropolitan Community College
COURSE OUTLINE FORM
COURSE TITLE:
ETHNIC LITERATURE
COURSE PREFIX AND NO. ENGL 2530
LEC
4.5
LAB
0
CREDIT HOURS
4.5
COURSE DESCRIPTION:
Students explore the genres, mediums, elements, and themes of U.S. ethnic literature through critical reading,
discussion, and written responses. Students read a selection of works by authors who reflect diverse
ethnic/cultural backgrounds. Students internalize new perspectives and learn to appreciate literature as essential
to understanding self and society.
COURSE PREREQUISITE (S):
ENGL 1020 or ENGL 1240
RATIONALE:
MCC recognizes the importance of preparing students for success in both their personal and professional lives.
By reading and studying literature by authors representing a variety of cultural and ethnic backgrounds, students
think critically about different points of view and explore multiple solutions to problems. Collaborative
activities, discussions, and presentations empower students to become effective, contributing team members.
Recognizing and appreciating the universals communicated through literature fosters lifelong learning and selfimprovement.
REQUIRED TEXTBOOK (S) and/or MATERIALS:
Title: New Worlds of Literature
Edition: Latest (unfortunately the newest edition was published in 1994)
Author: Jerome Beaty and Paul J. Hunter
Publisher: Norton
Materials: Additional Supplemental Materials (more recent than 1994 preferably)
Attached course outline written by: Kris Fulkerson and Pat Smith
Date:
Reviewed/Revised by:
Date:
Effective quarter of course outline:
Date:
Academic Dean Chuck Chevalier
Date:
July 2014
Course Objectives, Topical Unit Outlines, and Unit Objectives must be attached to this form.
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COURSE OUTLINE FORM
TITLE:
Ethnic Literature
PREFIX/NO:
ENGL 2530
COURSE OBJECTIVES:
Upon completion of this course, the student will be able to:
1. Analyze rhetorical elements in works of ethnic literature.
2. Contextualize works of ethnic literature biographically, socially, culturally, philosophically, and
historically.
3. Identify and examine multiple perspectives in, among, and as applied to works of ethnic literature.
4. Discover universal themes in works of ethnic literature.
5. Explore and articulate their own perspectives on universal themes in works of ethnic literature.
6. Demonstrate an appreciation for works of ethnic literature.
TOPICAL UNIT OUTLINE/UNIT OBJECTIVES:
Upon completion of this course, the student will be able to:
1. Analyze rhetorical elements in works of ethnic literature.
A. Identify, distinguish between, and categorize literary works within various genres, such as fiction,
poetry, drama, autobiography, and personal essays.
B. Examine and explain the ways in which ethnicity and culture shape how authors rhetorically use
literary elements such as theme, point of view, plot, conflict, characterization, setting, irony,
symbolism, diction, syntax, metaphor, form and structure to have a desired effect on the reader.
C. Identify the purposes for a work of ethnic literature and explain how genre, medium, and the
rhetorical use of literary elements, along with their desired effects on the reader, help the author to
achieve those purposes.
2. Contextualize works of ethnic literature biographically, socially, culturally, philosophically, and
historically.
A. Consider a work in light of the author’s experiences and values.
B. Identify the significance of the historical and social milieu on a work.
3. Identify and examine multiple perspectives in, among, and as applied to works of ethnic literature.
A. Recognize and apply different approaches to interpreting and understanding literature, such as
Feminist, Marxist, Historical, Ecocritical, etc.
B. Identify the perspectives of those who have been historically disempowered (such as racial, ethnic,
and religious minorities) and/or politically, sexually, ideologically, or economically marginalized.
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4. Discover universal themes in works of ethnic literature.
A. Define and identify universal themes.
B. Distinguish between the specific, local subject matter of a work of literature and the deeper universal
themes it explores.
C. Compare and contrast the treatment of universal themes in works of literature written by authors
representing diverse ethnicities and cultures.
5. Explore and articulate their own perspectives on universal themes in works of ethnic literature.
A. Consider a work in light of their personal experiences and values.
B. Develop their response to a work with an understanding of their own historical, ethnic, and cultural
context.
6. Demonstrate an appreciation for works of ethnic literature.
A. Discover how the diverse perspectives found in ethnic literature enrich and expand their
understanding of themselves and the world.
B. Discover how ethnic literature challenges their assumptions, beliefs, and expectations, and allows
them to articulate the differences between works of literature and popular writing.
C. Develop an aesthetic awareness of ethnic literature as art, such as appreciating the sound and rhythm
of dialect in a text.
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COURSE REQUIREMENTS/EVALUATION:
Students will write a minimum of 10 pages of literary analysis supported by evidence from the text under
consideration. Secondary sources, appropriately documented, should be incorporated into one or more written
or oral projects.
COURSE OBJECTIVES/ASSESSMENT MEASURES
1.
COURSE OBJECTIVES
Analyze rhetorical elements in
works of ethnic literature.
A. Identify, distinguish
between, and categorize
literary works within
various genres, such as
fiction, poetry, drama,
autobiography, and
personal essays.
B. Examine and explain the
ways in which ethnicity and
culture shape how authors
rhetorically use literary
elements such as theme,
point of view, plot, conflict,
characterization, setting,
irony, symbolism, diction,
syntax, metaphor, form and
structure to have a desired
effect on the reader.
C. Identify the purposes for a
work of ethnic literature
and explain how genre,
medium, and the rhetorical
use of literary elements,
along with their desired
effects on the reader, help
the author to achieve those
purposes.
RECOMMENDED PRACTICES
Reading
 Instructor assigns readings in a
variety of genres with an
emphasis on fiction, poetry,
drama, autobiography, and
personal essays (e.g. “Battle
Royal,” “Jorge the Janitor
Finally Quits,” Fences, Black
Elk Speaks).
Discussing
 Students and/or instructor
analyze the genre-specific
conventions for fiction, poetry,
drama, etc. and analyze the way
some works of ethnic literature
subvert those conventions.

Students and/or instructor
identify literary elements (e.g.
imagery, point of view, and
diction) through student- or
instructor-led discussions.

Students and/or instructor
rhetorically analyze works of
literature (e.g. identify and
explain the relationship
between rhetorical elements,
effect on audience, and
purpose).

Students and/or instructor
rhetorically analyze the use of
different mediums in ethnic
literature (e.g. film,
documentaries, graphic novels).
ASSESSMENT MEASURES
Monitor student reading by
administering quizzes and/or
evaluating quality of classroom
participation.
Evaluate student writing,
discussions, presentations, and/or
exams to determine the students’
ability to analyze rhetorical
elements in works of literature.
Evaluate writing, discussions,
presentations, and/or exams based
on textual support and clarity of
ideas.
Writing
 Students analyze rhetorical
elements in works of literature
through response journals, short
papers, or longer essays (e.g.
How does the writer’s
ethnic/cultural perspective
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affect or influence the reader’s
understanding of theme in a
given piece of literature?)
Presenting
 Students and/or instructor use
audio/visual aids to
dynamically introduce a
rhetorical element in literature,
identify that element in a work
of literature, and explain how it
contributes to the literature’s
effect on the reader and the
overarching purpose of the
piece.
2.
Contextualize works of ethnic
literature biographically,
socially, culturally,
philosophically, and
historically.
A. Consider a work in light of
the author’s experiences
and values.
B. Identify the significance of
the historical and social
milieu on a work.
Reading
 Instructor assigns readings that
grow out of authors’ social,
ethnic, and cultural experiences
(e.g. “Arrival at Manzanar,”
“Theme for English B,”
Incidents in the Life of a Slave
Girl).

Students find and read relevant
secondary sources (e.g. literary
criticism, historical accounts,
and biographical information)
to better understand the various
contexts of a work of literature.
Discussing
 Instructor and/or students lead
class in analyzing a text in light
of biographical, historical,
and/or ethnic/cultural
information.
Evaluate the student’s ability to
contextualize works of literature
biographically, socially, culturally,
philosophically, and historically in
their writing, class discussions,
presentations, and/or exams.
Evaluate the ability of the student to
accurately document and integrate
relevant secondary sources into their
writing, discussions, and
presentations.
Evaluate student writing,
discussions, and presentations to
determine student’s ability to
recognize the differences among
various ways of contextualizing
literature.
Writing
 Students contextualize works of
literature in researched
analytical essays (e.g. How did
living in pre-Civil Rights era
America influence James
Baldwin in writing “Stranger in
the Village”?)
Presenting
 Instructor shares ancillary films
and recordings (e.g. interviews,
biopics, documentaries)
 Students or instructor present
biographical, historical,
ethnic/cultural information that
will inform their reading of the
text.
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3.
Identify and examine multiple
perspectives in, among, and as
applied to works of ethnic
literature.
A. Recognize different
approaches to interpreting
and understanding
literature, such as Feminist,
Marxist, Historical,
Ecocritical, etc.
B. Identify the perspectives of
those who have been
historically disempowered
(such as racial, ethnic, and
religious minorities) and/or
politically, sexually,
ideologically, or
economically marginalized.
Reading
 Instructor assigns readings that
represent multiple ethnic and
cultural perspectives (e.g.
Native American, AfricanAmerican, Latino, AsianAmerican).

Students find and read relevant
literary criticism representing
various perspectives to achieve
a multiperspectival approach to
reading literature.
Discussing
 Instructor leads students in
recognizing and analyzing
different critical approaches
(e.g. feminist, Marxist,
postcolonial) one may use to
engage a text and how those
approaches can shape the
meaning of a text.
Writing
 Students write a response paper
discussing how discovering a
different perspective from a
text has changed their point of
view about a group, a situation,
or a time period.
Evaluate student writing,
discussions, presentations, and/or
exams to determine student’s ability
to examine multiple perspectives in
and among works of literature.
Evaluate the student’s ability to
recognize different approaches to
interpreting and understanding
literature in their writing, class
discussions, and presentations.
Evaluate the student’s ability to use
different approaches to interpret
literature in their writing, class
discussions, and presentations.
Evaluate the student’s ability to
identify the perspectives of those
who have been historically
disempowered and/or politically,
sexually, ideologically, or
economically marginalized.
Evaluate the ability of the student to
accurately document and integrate
relevant secondary sources into their
writing, discussions, and
presentations.
Presenting
 Instructor provides depictions
of events, populations, and time
periods from multiple points of
view (e.g. Japanese internment
camps through stories,
memoirs, government orders,
and film).
4.
Discover universal themes in
works of ethnic literature.
A. Define and identify
universal themes.
B. Distinguish between the
specific, local subject
matter of a work of
literature and the deeper
universal themes it
explores.
C. Compare and contrast the
treatment of universal
themes in works of
literature written by authors
representing diverse
ethnicities and cultures.
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Reading
 Instructor assigns readings that
delve into subjects of great
import for humans everywhere,
regardless of individual
circumstances, that tackle
themes common to the human
experience (e.g. identity, race,
class, community, alienation,
power, “us” and “them”).
Evaluate the student’s ability to
discover universal themes in works
of literature in their writing, class
discussions, presentations, and/or
exams.
Discussing
 Instructor leads students in
recognizing the different
universal themes present in a
text and where those themes
exist in the world today (e.g.
Evaluate student writing,
discussions, and presentations to
determine student’s ability to
distinguish between the specific,
local subject matter of a work of
literature and the deeper universal
Evaluate student writing,
discussions, and presentations to
determine student’s ability to define
and identify universal themes.
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COURSE OUTLINE FORM

heritage, belonging,
communication,
.
assimilation).
Students facilitate class
discussion based on 3-4
questions they have drafted
about the universal themes in a
text.
Writing
 Students compare and contrast
different ethnic perspectives on
a universal theme expressed in
or among different works of
literature (e.g. The attitudes
expressed toward family in
works by Alice Walker,
Sherman Alexie, Amy Tan,
Sandra Cisneros)
themes it explores.
Evaluate student writing,
discussions, and presentations to
determine student’s ability to
compare and contrast the treatment
of universal themes in works of
literature written by diverse authors
representing diverse periods, places,
and cultures.
Presenting
 Students graphically present
cultural perspectives on
universal themes.
5.
Explore and articulate their own
perspectives on universal
themes in works of ethnic
literature.
A. Consider a work in light of
their personal experiences
and values.
B. Develop their response to a
work with an understanding
of their own historical,
ethnic, and cultural context.
Reading
 Students critically read to
discover connections between
their own experiences and the
work (e.g. comparing and
contrasting generational
conflicts within families in a
story with their own
experiences).
Discussing
 Students, in small groups, share
their perspectives on universal
themes found in works of
ethnic literature.
 Students discuss in small
groups the ways in which their
views have been shaped by
their own historical, ethnic, and
cultural context.
Evaluate the student’s ability to
explore their own perspectives on
universal themes in works of
literature in their writing, class
discussions, presentations, and/or
exams.
Evaluate student writing,
discussions, and presentations to
determine student’s ability to
consider a work in light of their
personal experiences and values.
Evaluate student writing,
discussions, and presentations to
determine student’s ability to
develop their response to a work
with an understanding of their own
historical and cultural context.
Writing
 Students keep a reading journal
comparing characters, events,
and situations in a text with
their own experiences.
 Students stylistically imitate
works of literature while
inserting their own specific
experiences and perspectives
on universal themes (e.g.
Writing in the style of Jamaica
Kincaid’s “Girl” using
parenting advice from their
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own life)
Presenting
 Students present the imitative
writing they have done.
6.
Demonstrate an appreciation for
works of ethnic literature.
A. Discover how the diverse
perspectives found in ethnic
literature enrich and expand
their understanding of
themselves and the world.
B. Discover how ethnic
literature challenges their
assumptions, beliefs, and
expectations, and allows
them to articulate the
differences between works
of literature and popular
writing.
C. Develop an aesthetic
awareness of ethnic
literature as art, such as
appreciating the sounds and
rhythm of dialect in a text.
Reading
 Instructor provides a list of
extracurricular reading based
on student interest.
Gather evidence of students
pursuing further reading (e.g. of or
about a particular author, period, or
genre).
Discussing
 Students debate the degree to
which a character’s actions are
justified, the obligations one
has to one’s family or
community to challenge their
assumptions about large human
topics like justice, identity,
happiness, love, prejudice, etc.
Gather evidence of students
independently attending literary
events (plays, dramatic readings,
poetry slams, etc.).
Writing
 Students imitate works of
ethnic literature in style and/or
theme in order to appreciate the
creative act behind works of
literature.
Presenting
 Students share creative projects
including dramatic readings,
artwork, theater productions,
imitative writings,
impersonations of authors, etc.

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Instructor seeks out and
provides opportunities to
connect the curriculum with
cultural events in the
community (e.g. plays,
readings, poetry slams, book
clubs).
Gather data about students taking
additional literature classes.
Evaluate end-of-course reflection
essays, discussions, or presentations
to determine the extent to which
literature has enriched and
expanded students’ understanding
of themselves and the world and the
extent to which it has engendered in
them a lifelong habit of learning.
Compare and contrast assumptions,
beliefs, and expectations present in
student writing, discussions, and
presentations from the beginning of
the quarter with those at the end to
determine to what extent those
assumptions, beliefs, and
expectations have been challenged.
Evaluate student writing,
discussions, and presentations to
determine the extent to which the
students value and are moved by the
beauty of literature.
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