{"id":110,"date":"2012-01-04T16:03:47","date_gmt":"2012-01-04T21:03:47","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.briancroxall.net\/buildingDH\/?page_id=110"},"modified":"2012-01-05T21:02:28","modified_gmt":"2012-01-06T02:02:28","slug":"banned-books-literary-criticism-presentation-assignment-and-googlemapping-exercise","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.briancroxall.net\/buildingDH\/assignments\/banned-books-literary-criticism-presentation-assignment-and-googlemapping-exercise\/","title":{"rendered":"Banned Books Literary Criticism Presentation Assignment and Googlemapping Exercise (UT Austin)"},"content":{"rendered":"

ENGL 314, Fall 2010<\/strong><\/p>\n

Charlotte Nunes<\/strong><\/p>\n

Literary Criticism Presentations<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Literary Criticism Group Presentations are meant to familiarize you with the research process necessary to write an analytical research paper in the humanities.\u00a0 As you know, your final papers for this class will involve elements of textual, historical, and cultural analysis; your (required) discussion of at least one scholarly article in your final paper will assist you here.\u00a0 Since we have the privilege of working in a DWRL classroom, these presentations will include both a \u201cmind map\u201d (using NovaMind) and a Google map, to help you visually represent the content of your presentation.<\/p>\n

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Presentations will showcase one scholarly article, which you will research in advance and run by me for approval.\u00a0 We will have one group presentation for each book.\u00a0 All presentations will take place on the last day of discussion of each book.\u00a0 You will notice that each presentation is scheduled for a Tuesday; one person in your group must be designated to e-mail the article to the class by 5 p.m. on the Friday preceding your presentation<\/strong>.\u00a0 The reading assignment for presentation days will be the article under discussion.<\/p>\n

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Presentations will have four parts:<\/p>\n

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1) Article Summary and Discussion:<\/strong><\/span> introduce the article\u2014what can you find out about the author and the publication in which you find the article?\u00a0 Be able to summarize its main points and fit it into a discussion.<\/p>\n

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Questions to answer:<\/p>\n

-What\u2019s the thesis of the article?<\/p>\n

-What are the most important reasons that back up this author\u2019s claims?<\/p>\n

-Which moments in the novel does the author refer to when backing up these claims?<\/p>\n

-What kinds of research and resources does the author draw upon?\u00a0 Some examples could be historical events, cultural developments, or political debates that were happening at the time that the novelist was writing; other examples include other scholars\u2019 close-readings, reactions to the novel (such as book reviews), and theories about race or gender.\u00a0 Basically, what resources does the author refer to that are outside of the novel?<\/p>\n

-Are there any holes in the argument?<\/p>\n

-What do you find particularly convincing about the argument?<\/p>\n

-Can you identify further evidence in the novel that does not appear in the article but that might further reinforce or complicate the claims in the article?<\/p>\n

-What \u201cscholarly conversation\u201d is the author of the article participating in?\u00a0 (In some articles the author will explicitly state what conversation he or she is contributing to, but in others you might need to deduce what the conversation is.)<\/p>\n

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2) Mind Map:<\/strong><\/span> use the NovaMind program available on DWRL computers to construct a mind map to supplement your presentation.\u00a0 You can decide what information to include in your mind map, but it must include at least three branches sprouting from the central node.\u00a0 For example, you might use the mind map to represent information about the article itself, such as publication information, the author\u2019s background, and the aspect of the novel\u2019s historical context that the author features in the article; or you might map the article\u2019s textual, historical, and cultural analysis.<\/p>\n

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For your reference, here are the modes of analysis we talked about on the first day of class:<\/p>\n

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Formal: <\/strong>The world of the text.\u00a0 What literary devices does the author use and how do they contribute to the meaning of the text?<\/p>\n

Historical: <\/strong>The world around the text.\u00a0 How did the historical circumstances of the author shape the text and the way it was written?<\/p>\n

Cultural: <\/strong>The text in the world.\u00a0 What kind of \u201ccultural work\u201d has this text done?\u00a0 How has the text contributed to or been used in various cultural or political debates?\u00a0 What does the text tell us about prevailing cultural attitudes (about gender, race, or class, for example)?<\/p>\n

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3) A Google Map<\/strong><\/span> of the novel\u2019s censorship history, including a statement of how this history relates to the novel\u2019s social\/political\/cultural significance as discussed in the scholarly article.\u00a0 Two excellent resources for censorship histories are:<\/p>\n

–Banned Books<\/em>. Wachsberger, Ken, ed.\u00a0 New York, NY: Facts on File, 1998.
\nCall Number: Z 658 U5 B36 1998 V.1-4 PCL<\/p>\n

–Censorship: A World Encyclopedia.<\/em>\u00a0 London: Fitzroy Dearborn, 2001.
\nCall Number: Z 658 W675 C38 2000 V.1-4 PCL Reference<\/p>\n

Get help from a librarian if need be.\u00a0 <\/em><\/p>\n

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4) Conclusion:<\/strong><\/span> close your presentations with a few questions for consideration for a discussion about the scholarly article and the novel it\u2019s responding to.<\/p>\n

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Grading: y<\/strong>ou\u2019ll be graded on content, organization, and delivery.\u00a0 Divvy up the work as you will, but on presentation day, everyone must have a speaking role and it should be clear to me that everyone has contributed substantively to the project.\u00a0 Be sure to practice in advance so that your transitions between speakers and between parts of the presentation are smooth.\u00a0 Your presentation should have a polished, prepped feel to it.\u00a0 There is no time minimum or maximum; the important thing is that you cover all the points you need to cover.<\/p>\n

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Some tips on delivery:<\/strong><\/p>\n

-Offer an effective attention-getter<\/p>\n

-Deliver extemporaneously (do not read, although you can refer to notes), and with emphasis and enthusiasm<\/p>\n

-Maintain good posture<\/p>\n

-Maintain good eye contact<\/p>\n

-Maintain a good pace<\/p>\n

-Speak clearly and audibly<\/p>\n

-Avoid distracting gestures<\/p>\n

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Signposting<\/strong><\/p>\n

You can easily lose an audience in an oral presentation, so it\u2019s important to leave \u201csignposts\u201d for them that signal very clearly that you\u2019re moving from one stage of the presentation to another. A few examples include:<\/p>\n