+1 862 207 3288 California State University -East Bay
ETHNIC STUDIES PROGRAM
ES 3430: Interracial Relationships, Sex & Marriage in Cinema
Spring Quarter 2017
(online)
Professor: Steven A. Cleveland Office: Meiklejohn – Room #4093
E-mail: steven.cleveland@csueastbay.edu
Telephone: (510) 885-4571 Office Hours: Wednesday 7-8pm (online)
Prerequisite: None & By Appointment
Short Essay Assignment Papers are due on Sunday, April 30th, 2017 before 11:59pm
TOPIC: Often times when we hear an opposing view we assume that its’ source is evil or negative. This is especially true when the perspective is stereotypical or racist. My observation is that most bigots are not racist cognitively or intentionally and many times they are unaware of the stereotypes that they are applying to others. Often times, bigots have developed their beliefs via life experience. This essay challenges you to examine a situation from the bigot’s point of view.
PROMPT: You should think of this assignment as a reflection on how a bigot got their belief. Your goal is not to pass judgment on your chosen bigot’s belief but rather to use your research to see how their point of view developed into a perspective. This assignment
asks you to see the world from another’s point of view—to develop empathy with
people you don’t necessarily agree with. Your assignment is to present an argument for the perspective of an individual bigot or homogeneous group of bigots who opposes interracial relationships, sex and/or marriage. You may choose a character from one of the following: 1) Claudine Chiawei O’Hearn’s Half and Half; 2) a movie that we’ve viewed thus far; or 3) your own life 2 experience. Make sure that you introduce the character/person and movie/story or
life experience that you are choosing in the first paragraph of your essay. Your overall goal is to present a crisp, succinct perspective on a single moment in the life of the character(s) or person(s) that you chose. In your essay, research what
types of forces create this bigotry towards interracial relationships. Write as if you were an investigator and draw on your outside research to help us empathize with how the bigot(s) developed their perspective. You should research the time period, major
personalities and terms that define the cultural history of the bigot you are writing
about. You must write from the THIRD PERSON perspective to analyze the bigoted view about interracial relationships. As examples, re-watch the scenes from Jungle
Feveri at Paulie’s shop and at Drew’s “war council” at Cyrus’ house. In both scenes, there is a homogenous group of people (same race and gender) discussing interracial relations. Both groups express an attraction for interracial sex at some point in the conversation (“curiosity”), yet both groups are strongly opposed to a deeper interracial relationship, such as marriage.
Your essay must deal with perspective as defined in the Announcements of
Week #4, so shy away from anecdote and personal beliefs (including those passed to
you by your parents/mentors). In particular, be sure to use support from outside sources other than word-of-mouth anecdotes. I challenge you to remove your beliefs from the body of the paper. Within your essay, please include facts that led your subject to his/her bigoted perspective. Pull these facts from the movie/story or life experience that you chose AND from your outside research materials. Remember to cite the
sources every time using Chicago Manual Style.
NOTE: You must follow the Paper Requirements listed below. As a way to clarify how this essay is graded, I included the Assessment below. If you have any questions or need further clarity on this assignment, please post your questions in the Q&A section of the Discussion Board. 3
PAPER REQUIREMENTS: 1. Your paper should be no less than 3 full pages and no more than 4 pages 2. 12-point, Times New Roman font 3. Double spaced 4. Standard margins 5. Include page numbers 6. Include a cover sheet (see attached sample provided), which is not to be included in your page count. 7. Include a bibliography (see attached sample provided), which is not to be included in your page count. 8. Endnotes (sample provided at the end of these instructions) 9. Document in Chicago Manual Style 10. 3 Scholarly sources – 1. Half and Half, 2. print source (book or journal), 3. other source (online, movie, or another book).
11. Must be a “Word” Document, not .pdf or .txt file.
See the document “Samples” for examples of cover sheet and citations.
i Spike Lee. “Jungle Fever” (1991)
RUBRIC: This essay encompasses 25% of your total grade and is broken down as follows: * Following Paper Requirements (5 points) * Thesis (5 points) * Support (5 points) * Organization (5 points) * Content (5 points)
