For this assignment, you will respond to the prompt below and make a thoughtful argument about the Shahnameh and Sundiata. You will then present your argument to your instructor via a PowerPoint presentation of 8-10 slides and a brief 3-5 minute video overview of that PowerPoint presentation.
Task Prompt:
Which two secondary characters do you believe to be the most compelling, and why? Select one secondary character from each epic (neither Rustem nor Sundiata, two total). What significant choices do these secondary characters make? In what ways do they adhere to the values of their societies, and in what ways do they break established norms? What price (if any) do they pay for the choices they make? While they come from different epics (and different cultures), what similarities do you see between these two characters? Ultimately, what is the audience intended to learn from these characters that they don’t learn from the heroes?
Second, create a PowerPoint presentation of your argument. Include both text and images that illustrate and enhance the argument you are making. Use the following as an outline of what to include:
• Start with a title page that includes your name, the title of the presentation, the date, the course, the name of your professor. (1 slide)
• Explain the general topic and put forth a thesis, an argument that brings both epics into conversation with each other. (1 slide)
• Apply that topic to both the Shahnameh and to Sundiata. Give specific examples and quotations from the texts to support your analyses. (5-7 slides).
• Your final slide should be your Works Cited slide, with both texts in MLA format. (1 slide)
Third, and finally: Create a 3-5 minute video. During your video, please don’t read each slide out loud. Instead, trust that your reader has already looked through your slides and use the time to discuss what you yourself found compelling about this project. For example, what do you feel is the most fascinating part of your presentation, and why? What do you understand about these epics now that you didn’t before you worked on this project? If you had time to continue working on this project, what might you explore next?
