English 117B Spring 2016 Journeys
Syllabus and Schedule
Readings
Required Readings
Related to Swades
Related to Ridicule
Related to The Beautiful Country
Related to Desert Flower
- Excerpt from Desert Flower: The Extraordinary Story of a Desert Nomad
- Discussion Questions for Desert Flower
Related to Testament of Youth
- Some Key Poets of World War I: From Romanticism to Protest
- The Making of a Peacenik: Background on Vera Brittain by her biographer
- Discussion Questions for Testament of Youth--11 March
- Discussion Questions for Testament of Youth--18 March
- Selections from the works of Vera Brittain--Reading assignment for 18 March
Related to Sweet Land
- Sweet Land Biographical essay by screenwriter/director Ali Selim
- Painterly influence on Sweet Land
- Sweet Land writer profile of Will Weaver
- Combined Reviews for Sweet Land
- English-Only law Controversy in Contemporary Minnesota
- **Gravestone Made of Wheat--story by Will Weaver
- Discussion Questions for Sweet Land--25 March
- Discussion Questions for Sweet Land and "Gravestone Made of Wheat" story--8 April
Related to Man and Superman
- Bernard Shaw--photos and links
- Man and Superman--Introduction by Stanley Weintraub plus timeline & major works
- Discussion Questions for Man and Superman
Related to The Motorcycle Diaries
- Discussion Questions for The Motorcycle Diaries week 1
- Images of Che Guevara
- Brief Preface to The Motorcycle Diaries, Brief Chronology, Map
- The Motorcycle Diaries--Excerpt
Optional Readings
Related to Swades
- Song from Swades: "This Star, That Star"
- Song from Swades: "Festival of Ram"
- Song from Swades: "Keep Roaming, Oh Traveler"
- Song from Swades: "Your Motherland Calls"
- Article about the Untouchables
- Background on the Hindu goddess of Wisdom
- Hindu Caste system article (brief)
- Bollywood article (brief)
Related to Ridicule
Related to The Beautiful Country
- Brief background on Vietnamese history
- Background on the Vietnamese "Boat People" (article)
- Background on the "Children of the Dust" (article)
- Interview with The Beautiful Country director & star
- Vietnamese musician and composer's "Odyssey
Related to Desert Flower
Related to Testament of Youth
Related to Sweet Land
- "Minnesota Nice" relationship to homogeneity explained
- Interview about Ali Selim’s teaching and writing
Related to Man and Superman
- Combined reviews of Man and Superman productions
- A retrospective on the play's centennial
- Shaw's Pygmalion and Contemporary Politics
Related to The Motorcycle Diaries
- A Varied Selection of Film Reviews of The Motorcycle Diaries
- Obama and Che--Article about Obama in Cuba with "iconic" images
- Why Che's Daughter Tries to Protect Her Father's Image as an Idealist
Assignments
Major Assignments
Paper #1 Analysis with Research
Paper #2 Film Club Paper and Presentation
Small Assignments
- Introductory Writing Prompt
- Extra Credit with campus cultural opportunities
- Extra Credit with Movies
- Questions for Swades
- Homework Questions for Ridicule (including comparisons with Swades)
- Discussion Questions for The Beautiful Country
- Working Bibliography
- Grand Summary "Significant Passages" Exercise
- (recycled) Final Exam Sample question and answer