You might consider the following questions as you brainstorm topics for this assignment: What discourse communities do you value? Why? How have various communities shaped who you are and what you want to be? How does your involvement in a particular community inform and/or justify your research interests, and the types of writing and reading skills needed to sustain that interest? Often when we write about issues that matter the most to us, we are motivated and inspired to share our work and personal experiences with others. The three questions listed above will require a good amount of self-analysis and reflection to answer, but most importantly your answers must consider communities that have shaped who you are and whom you want to be. For example, as a woman, Caribbean American, educator, creative writer, film buff, traveler and etc.…—I engage in discourse communities that often coincide with my various identities, the colliding of such identities help support my research interests, and professional peer group. Essentially, you’ll write about your personal interests while developing a focal point about an issue in your discourse community or within a discipline of your choice that would require additional inquiry in the future. Specifically, I’d like you to consider how a discourse community has shaped who you are, and who you want to be. But, most importantly you’ll make connections between personal experiences with a discourse community that might provoke political, social, cultural or disciplinary dialogue. Of course investigating a discourse community means you’ll have an opportunity to evaluate what you already know, and ask questions that will encourage needed dialogue and persuade an audience. Explicit Assignment Details Your essay doesn’t have to be written in first personal, although that is one way to approach the point-of-view you will utilize for this essay. You should however be willing to create a document that shows your ability to communicate complex thoughts with clarity and economy. You should expect to write numerous drafts before producing one that is satisfactory. While doing so, be open to receiving feedback from friends, peers, writing center staff, family members and myself. Remember- Are some points inadequately covered? Are there further questions that should be tackled? Be sure to include only matters that are important to your interest in researching more specifically a particular problem or issue in a distinctive discourse community′. Feel free to run drafts by me via email. Essay Formatting Requirements: Times New Roman, 12-point font, double-spaced with (normal) 1-inch margins. Essays must be between 5-6 pages. No cover page is required for this essay. Here are the same questions I′ve been asking you to think about during this semesters readings. Step 2: Generate & Develop Ideas List as many desсrіptions and definitions of yourself as you can.(e.g., I am x, y, z …) Go back to the ones that intrigue you and develop them a little further. Describe specific memories you have where this core component or culture was challenged, exposed, etc. Freewrite a response to the following questions: What defines you? How do you describe yourself? Of the many wonderful and not-so-wonderful qualities you have, which are significant? Think broadly as well as idiosyncratically. Step 4: Gather Information from Secondary Sources Look for any research already done on your culture Gather quotes, images, charts Step 5: Reflect on your own experience Choose a specific incident from your personal history that reveals something important about your culture. Free-write about it. Add interpretive analysis to your narrative of the event. How might this experience be representative of an aspect of your culture? In what ways is it typical or atypical? Step 6: Describe the language of your culture What types of words, phrases, pronunciation–that is language do insiders to your culture use? How might this culture′s language clash (or not clash) with the language of an outside culture? Try to examples of this language use to reveal your insider nature, while at the same offering “translations” to outsiders (whether willingly or begrudgingly–that will depend on the tone you choose to take on). Step 7: Describe important artifacts of your culture What types of objects are important to your culture (either physical or not)? What is the ″stuff″ your culture uses? Why are these things/objects/artifacts important? In what ways do outsiders read or mis-read these objects? Step 8: Describe important traditions of your culture What traditions or rituals are important to your culture? What do these traditions or rituals look like? Give a detailed account from personal experience, field notes, or an interview. Why are these traditions/rituals important? In what ways do outsiders read or mis-read these traditions or rituals?
