Asian Literature

Asian Literature General Guidelines The purpose of this review is for you to analyze the narrative framework of a text of y our choice. In other words, you will analyze prominent methods use d to communicate the narrative ( or story ) of the work you choose . Any East Asian narrative written text from the modern period , including fiction, essays , and poetry may be used. Graphi c novels may be used, but beware that you may have to limit your topic to a section of a series, which could make analysis more difficult. You may not review any of the works covered in class . However, you may review other works by authors discussed in class and are, in fact, encouraged to do so. Secondary sources are encouraged but not required. If you do use secondary source s , be sure to provide proper citations using MLA format. (See examples at the end of this handout.) Please use only academi c sources. Internet sites such as Wikipedia and journalistic articles can be a useful starting p oint, but should NOT be cited in an academic paper. If you are unsure of the validity of a source, contact the instructor. Papers which use inappropriate sou rces will be graded down.      Your completed review should be about 2000 2500 words . Please submit your document electronically on Blackboard, using the Turnitin link . There is no need to submit a paper copy. This review should be a polished piece of w riting, relatively free of errors or typos. If your paper has significant grammatical mistakes or sentence structure problems , you will be graded down. If you have weak writing skills, it is your responsibility to find a reliable friend or tutor to proofr ead your work. Don’t forget to give your paper a title! Keep in mind that a creative title is an excellent way to spark interest in your reader. Use 12 point font and 1 inch margins throughout with left margin justification. Number each page at the bottom center or bottom right. Asian names should be written in Asian word order (family name first). Include dates for people , works, and historical periods or events for example, Natsume Soseki (1867 1916) or the Meiji period (1868 1912) Any for eign words used (for example, daimyô ) should be in italics . Loan words that have been incorporated into Eng lish (for example, sushi ) do not need to be in italics. Write the names of all major works in italics . Writing the Review Below is a suggested outline for writing your review. Keep in mind that this is only a guideline: although you should provide the factual information listed in Part One, you are n ot required to follow this format, especially if you have experience writing papers on literature, or consider yourself a strong writer. Part I Introduce the work, including b asic biograp hical information : (1) title in both original language and English (including variant names, if k nown), (2) author , (3) year of publication or release , and (4) genre (s) . You may also want to add relevant background information, particularly as it m ay relate to your discussion in Parts 3 and 4. Par t 2 Give a brief summary of the work and main characters . If your summary is too l ong, you will not have enough space to do an adequate analysis.          Part 3 Discuss one prominent aspect of the work , referring to concrete details and /or specific examples from the text . This could include but is not limited to: (1) narrative voice : first person, third p erson, unreliable narrator, etc , (2) plot : sequencing of events, use of flashbacks or dreams, a story wi thin a story, etc , (3) character analysis : flat c har acters, stock characters, how characters change over the course of the work, etc, (4) language : descriptive, realistic, use of poetic language, dialogue, etc , (5) tone : humorous, serious, didactic, sarcastic, etc, (6) contextual framework: drawing on histo rical events, legends or folktales, earli er literary works, etc , and (7) integration of text and images . Part 4 Discuss a second prominent aspect of the work , referring to concrete details and /or specific examples from the text . Part 5 Summarize your analysis by concluding with a discussion of the extent to w hich you think the work represents East Asian narrative traditions. Do you think the appeal of the w or k is limited to readers with knowledge of these narrative traditions? Or do you think the work has universal appeal? Why? Include a bibliographical reference at the end of the paper for the text that you used. Include any secondary sources used as well. Pitfalls Avoid judging a work based on its conformity to realism. Keep in mind that realism is a relative concept that can vary across time and cultures, and that reali sm is not necessarily the goal of every writer or artist . Avoid making general cultural judgments based on one text. Keep in mind that the many literary texts are produced with the intention of entertain ing and making a profit, and should not be interpret ed as an unbiased perspective of a situation or issue.