Literary-Cultural Casebook
Assignment Guidelines

Objective: Engage in research of the cultural and historical contexts of a non-Western or non-English-language literary work. Explain how external research can enrich our understanding of a literary work.

Procedure:

• Form into groups of 3-4 students.

• Identify a specific cultural or historical topic that will help you understand one of the works on the English 1582 syllabus.

• Research the topic using online or print sources.

• Elaborate on your research in a class presentation in which each group member speaks for five minutes. Link your group's research to the literary work in question.

• Produce a web-page that sums up your results (250 words, one link to an external webpage, and one image per group member). Links should not be to Sparknotes, Cliffnotes, Wikipedia or any other encyclopedia-style reference. Be creative in choosing your linked material.

Topics:

This is not an exhaustive list. Please feel free to refine topics as needed:

Countries/time periods:

Czarist Russia, Feudal China, Postcolonial Nigeria, The Egyptian Republic, Revolutionary Iran, Present-Day India, etc.

Historical events:

The Assassination of Czar Alexander II, The An-Shi Rebellion, The Biafran War, The Iranian Revolution, The Iranian Coup of 1921, The Revolution of 1919, The Six-Day War, The Partition, etc.

Cultural elements:

Russian Orthodox Church, Nineteenth-century Feudalism, Chinese Imperial Examinations, Confucianism, Igbo, The Kola Nut Ritual, Cairo Cafés, The British Empire and its Legacy, India's caste system, Hinduism, etc.

Deadlines:

Group presentations take place during a class when we are discussing the related literary work, and groups will work that out with me. Webpages are due on May 1st, 2014.