CHIN328 Asian American Women Writers

T R 10:30 am -- 11:45am Thompson Hall 106

Fall 2008

Instructor: Dr. Esther Tsuey-fen Lee

email: tleeo@gmu.edu

Office hours: T R 11:45 -- 12:15  or By Appointment

Location:   Thompson Hall 234-A

 Course Description

 The purpose of this course is to introduce students to the rich literary contributions by Asian American women writers. We will study works by a few prominent women writers of Chinese, Japanese and Indian descents. At the beginning of the class, we will ask ourselves the general social positions of “Asian American” and “women” in America and the cross-cutting effects of them on Asian American Women as we have experienced or perceived from media or literature. With this pretext we will come to our literary texts and to discover the different voices and representation reflected and expressed by our authors in their writings. For each of our readings, we will examine social and historical circumstances that described in their works, and the various strategies these writers use to question both the traditional culture they have inherited, and the dominant culture in which they live. Understanding the cultural and historical contexts will be helpful in our reading, but our emphasis will always be on the primary, literary text and our goal is to appreciate the literary qualities of these works and to enrich our appreciation of literature in general. The literary genre studied in this class includes short stories, autobiography, poetry, and novel.

Course Objectives

§         To introduce a variety of writings by Asian American women writers and to explore these texts from historical and literary perspectives;

§         To read closely from the classics of Asian American women literature and to appreciate the artistry in these writings;

§         To gain an understanding of other cultural perspectives and to explore the similarity and diversity between our own cultural backgrounds and others as reflected in these works;

§         To enable students to analyze and discuss literary texts with fundamental literary concepts and approaches;

§         To practice written and verbal skills for developing ideas and exchanging ideas with others.

 Required Readings

Maxine Hong Kingston. The Woman Warrior.

Joy Kogawa. Obasan.

Bharati Mukherjee. Jasmine

Mitsuye Yamada, Camp Notes and Other Writings

King-Kok Cheung, Seventeen Syllables: Hisaye Yamamoto

Amy Tan, Joy Luck Club

Course Requirements

1. Attendance.  For non-emergent absence, you have to inform me no later than the day before the class and email me your preparation for our reading and class discussion (that includes quote from your reading, why you choose that quote, and your responses to some of the questions we are to discuss in our class meeting -- in addition to your required reading journal). For any unexpected absence, emergency, you need to have proper documentation for the instructor. Any unexcused absence will incur negative 1 point to your final grade. An attendance sheet will be passed out for you to sign in at the beginning of the class.

2. Preparedness and participation in Class Discussion. This course is designed as a place for discussion and exchange of ideas; every person’s contributions are very important for the success of this course. To be well prepared, you have to complete the reading carefully and on time. Be prepared to share with the class your favorite passage from your reading and the reason of your choosing the quote. You are also strongly encouraged to share your insights to some of our reading questions or to ask questions in class. All curious and critical questions will always be welcomed and respected.

3. Respectful and Proper Classroom manners.

§         Please come to class on time and do not disrupt the class by coming late. And do not leave classroom early unless you ask to be excused before the class.

§         Turn off your cell phones; do not use any electronic gadgets, such as iPod or MP3 during class.

§         Do not conduct private conversations or pack up books and papers while the instructor or other students are speaking.

§         Do not use any discriminatory language regarding any ethnic or gender groups.

4. Written Exams. There will be four exams throughout the semester. The exams will be in short essay questions. The exams will test your interpretation of some quote, your understanding of various literary elements in these texts, and historical and cultural aspects interplaying with literary creativity.

5. Critical Paper and Peer review. You will submit 2 critical papers synthesizing and critiquing the reading. In your paper, you will demonstrate your mastery of the readings while asserting your own ideas and arguments about the topics we have addressed in class. Specific guidelines and possible topics will be given in class later. On the due day of the first paper, we will conduct an in-class peer review/response. You will write a one-page comments and response on a paper by another student. This will be an opportunity for you to learn from each other and to develop skills in constructive and critical evaluation of written arguments. Late paper will heavily affect your grade since we have peer review activity involved. Any late paper will lower your grade by one letter grade scale for each of the day being late. The first paper should be 3-5 pages long and the second paper 4-6 pages long.

6. Reading Journal (Response). You will submit 5 entries for your reading journal; each entry will be at least one page long and submitted via email to me by 10:00 pm the night before it is due. No late journal will be accepted.  These entries can be interpretive, analytical, or reflective. You can choose to respond to the reading questions that I post for our reading, or present your own critical questions and possible answers. Instead of summarizing your reading, I would like to see you as engaging readers actively interact with the text.  You can later develop your critical paper from some of these journal entries. You will also be asked to share your thoughts and questions in your journal with the class, whenever class time permits it.

7. Discussion Panel or Facilitator. You will sign up individually as a class discussion facilitator or in group as a discussion panel (depending on size of class) for one class session. Your job description includes helping prepare the class for discussing the new reading by covering the background on the author and cultural or historical context, presenting contrasting critiques on the literary text, and (or) generating discussion questions and engaging the class in discussion. A week prior to your preparation, please meet with me to find some creative and engaging ways to conduct the discussion, and interesting topics to cover.  You are encouraged to use visual aids, show video clips, or act out debates (if more than one student is assigned as the discussion Facilitators) on some crucial issues relevant to our reading. You will email me a summary of the key points in your presentation before 10:00 pm of the night before the day of your presentation.

Grading

Discussion Participation: 15%

Discussion Panel /Facilitator: 10%

Exams:  30% (10% each; lowest exam dropped)

First analytic paper 10%

Peer evaluation/Response 5%

Second analytical paper 15%

Schedule, Topics, and Readings

 (subject to minor changes during the semester; more reading questions to be posted through class emails)

Week 1

 8/26 (Tuesday)

• Introduction to the course-- Overview of course objectives, requirements and expectation; self introduction;
• Discussion: what do you understand about the social stereotypes or position of  “Asian American” and “woman”? How are these concepts  affect the life experience of “Asian American Women” as you know of? What do you expect to find in the writings by “Asian American Women writers”?
• Sign up for discussion facilitator/Panel
• Reading assignment: Woman Warriors

 8/28 (Thursday)

Screening: Documentary- Stories of Maxine Hong Kingston

Week 2 

9/2 (Tuesday)

• Discussion Panel/Facilitator: _______________; ________________; _____________
• Reading Due:  “No Name Woman”, “White Tigers” in Woman Warrior
• Reading questions: What kind of life history and stories of tension are captured in Kingston’s writings? What is "talk-story," and what role does it play in Kingston's life? What is the status of a woman in the Chinese culture Kingston describes? Why do you suppose the notion of the woman warrior figures so prominently in Kingston's imagination?

 9/4 (Thursday)

• Reading Due:  “Shaman” in Woman Warrior
• Reading questions: Why do ghosts play such an important role in this section and in the book as a whole? How would you describe Kingston's relationship with her mother?

Week 3

9/9 (Tuesday)

• Reading Due: “At the Western Palace” in Woman Warrior
• Reading Questions: Again, what is the role of “talk-story” in the story? How the culture clash presented in the story? How do tone and voice change in this chapter?
• Reading Journal Entry #1 Due

9/11 (Thursday)

• Reading Due: “A Song for Barbarian Reed Pipe”
• Reading questions: How does Kingston characterize her own perspective on the world? How is it different from that of her mother and other Chinese immigrants? What is the tone of Kingston's description of this perspective? Analyze the importance of language in this section and in the entire book. What is the significance of the final story?
• New Reading Assignment: Joy Luck Club

Week 4

9/16 (Tuesday)

• Exam #1 on Woman Warrior
• Screening: Joy Luck Club

9/18 (Thursday)

• Class Discussion: What experiences have you had with people of other cultures? How does my family's culture differ from another culture? How does my family's culture differ from the "main-stream culture" and how do these differences influence my behavior? What experiences have I had similar to Amy Tan's?

Week 5

 9/23 (Tuesday)

• discussion panel/facilitator: ___________________, ___________________, _______________
• Reading Due: Joy Luck Club Part I
• Reading Questions: How does “talk story” link characters? What are the conflicts described between characters or cultures?

 9/25 (Thursday)

• Reading Due: Joy Luck Club Part II
• Reading Discussion: Where do we see characters’ Understanding or questions of self and mothers?

 Week 6

 9/30  (Tuesday)

• Reading Due: Joy Luck Club Part III, IV
• How do characters find or not find resolution for their cultural identities?
• Reading Journal Entry #2 Due

10/2 (Thursday)

• Continued Discussion on : Joy Luck Club

o       Some Discussion Questions: What similarities/differences do you find between Maxine Hong Kingston and Amy Tan? Amy Tan's novel The Joy Luck Club was on the New York Times best-seller list for nine months; how do you explain the mass interest in the book? Is it simply because of the “exotic” description of a “remote” culture? In the community presented in the book, who, or which group of people are the strangers, the outsiders, or the “other” in the community?

• New Reading Assignment:  “Seventeen Syllables” and “Yoneko’s Earthquake” by Hisaye Yamamoto;    Introduction, Background to the Stories, Elaine Kim’s “Hisaye Yamamoto: A Woman’s View” (all in Cheung’s Seventeen Syllables: Hisaye Yamamoto) 

 Week 7 

 10/7 (Tuesday)

• Exam #2 on Joy Luck Club
• Guideline of writing analytical paper; possible topics for paper and peer review (handout)

10/9 (Thursday)

• Reading Due: “Seventeen Syllables” and “Yoneko’s Earthquake” by Hisaye Yamamoto
• Reading Discussion: What is your understanding of the practice of “picture bride”? What is the meaning of story title, “seventeen syllables” and how is it tied to the theme of the story? How do cultural differences complicate intergenerational communication in "Seventeen Syllables"? 
• What is your understanding of internment in WWII and the deep wounds the “Camp Experience” had left in lives of Japanese Americans?

Week 8

10/14 (Tuesday)

Columbus Day – no class

10/16 (Thursday)

• First analytical paper due in class
• In class peer review of students paper
• New Reading assignment: Mitsuye Yamada, Camp Notes and Other Writings

Week 9 

10/21 (Tuesday)

• Wrap-up discussion on Hisaye Yamamoto
• Screening: Mitsuye & Nellie: Two Asian American Poets (1981)

10/23  (Thursday)

• Reading Due: Camp Notes and Other Writings
• Discussion on Yamada
• Reading Entry # 3 Due
• New Reading assignment: Obasan

Week 10

10/28 (Tuesday)

• discussion panel/facilitator: ___________________, ___________________, _______________
• Reading Due: Joy Kogawa, Obasan Chapter 1-7

10/30 (Thursday)

Reading Due and Discussion: Obasan Chapter 8 – 13

Week 11

11/4 (Tuesday)

o       Reading Due and discussion: Obasan Chapter 14 –24

o       Reading Journal Entry #4 Due

11/6 (Thursday)

Reading Due and Discussion : Obasan Chapter 25 – 39

Week 12

11/11 (Tuesday)

o       Exam #3 on Yomamoto, Yamada, and Kogawa

o       Final discussion on Japanese American Women writers

• New Reading Assignment: Bharati Mukherjee. Jasmine

11/13 (Thursday)

o       Screening: Conquering America: Bharati Mukherjee

o       discussion panel/facilitator: ___________________, ___________________, _______________

o       Reading Due : Jasmine pp. 1 -61

Week 13

11/18 (Tuesday)

Reading Due and Discussion: Jasmine, pp. 62-121

11/20 (Thursday)

o       Reading Due and Discussion: Jasmine pp. 122-189

o       Reading Journal Entry #5

Week 14

11/25 (Tuesday)

Reading Due and Discussion: Jasmine pp. 190-241

11/27 (Happy Thanksgiving; no class)

Week 15

12/2 (Tuesday)

Wrap-up discussion on Asian American Women authors

12/4 (Thursday) –last day of class

o       Exam #4 on Jasmine

o       course evaluation

12/11 (Thursday)

Analytical paper #2 due via email to me by 1:00 pm

Have a great Winter break!