Description

5/6 pages for essay, and one for references so 6/7, 5 pages is more than enough 1375 words This assignment will consist of preparing a comparative essay of a specific theme in the book Rigoberta Menchú, I, Rigoberta Menchú: An Indian Women in Guatemala (London: Verso, 1984, 2004), without actually writing it. You will be asked to compare two groups, the Quiché (which is Rigoberta Menchú’s Indigenous group) with another Indigenous group from anywhere in the world, specifically comparing how these two groups interact with a particular theme. The goal of the assignment is to introduce you to the process of doing library research and to introduce you to the practice of comparative analysis. The assignment requires a bibliography of 6 sources (including I, Rigoberta Menchú), annotations for each bibliographic entry, and a thesis statement. STEP ONE You cannot begin this assignment until you have completed Assignment 1, the quiz on the book I, Rigoberta Menchú. STEP TWO Choose one theme from the book I, Rigoberta Menchú from the list provided below. If you would like to choose a theme not on the list, you must have it approved by your TA. STEP THREE Choose an Indigenous group to compare to the Quiché (Mayans) discussed in I, Rigoberta Menchú. You can either choose your group first and then look for sources or start looking for sources or your chosen theme to see what groups have publications concerning this theme. Consult the lists of Indigenous peoples provided by the professor at the start of the course. Be prepared to change your group or change your theme, depending on what sources you can find. STEP FOUR Create a bibliography of 6 sources, which include at least one academic article (published either in an academic journal or in a published collection of academic essays) and one academic book on this theme concerning your selected Indigenous comparison group (not the Quiché, which is the Indigenous group of Rigoberta Menchú). Your final bibliography must include at least 6 sources, which will be I, Rigoberta Menchú, as well as the academic book and the academic article on your selected Indigenous comparison group, concerning the theme you have chosen, and 3 additional sources. Your bibliography can be larger if you wish, but not exceed 12 sources. DO NOT include textbooks, Wikipedia entries, or encyclopedia entries in your bibliography. However, you may include credible websites and news articles. How do you find sources? I suggest that you start researching your chosen theme. Use the theme along with the term “Indigenous” (or “Aboriginal” or “Indian” or “Native”) as search terms to see what has been published about which Indigenous groups. This will probably be much easier than choosing your Indigenous group to compare to Quiché. You may use the SPARK (Student Papers & Academic Research Kit) to help you find sources, which explains how to search in Omni (the York Library Catalogue) and in the York Library guides. See https://spark.library.yorku.ca/research-strategies-searching-the-library-catalogue/. Books will be listed right in Omni, but you need to use Journal Databases to find academics articles (see https://spark.library.yorku.ca/research-strategies-using-journal-databases/). I also like to use Google and Google Scholar to find sources. You can often find sources on Google Books and in Wikipedia. It is usually a good idea to choose sources which are as recent as possible. You can also browse through their footnotes and bibliographies to find other sources (which will be older). How do you know if an article or book is academic? Academic articles and books have conducted original research, which is visible in the referencing system (footnotes, endnotes, or in-text referencing, as well as a bibliography). Usually (but not always) the publisher is based at a university. However, there are always exceptions. For example, I, Rigoberta Menchú is a first-personal memoir. It is considered an academic book because the author is relaying her lived experiences, which we consider data for our historical interpretation. Historians often call this kind of book a primary source (which contains primary historical evidence), while they call more conventional academic books secondary sources (which interpret and explain history based on the primary resources). Avoiding textbooks and encyclopaedia articles This assignment will NOT ACCEPT either textbooks or encyclopaedia articles as the minimum required sources for the bibliography because they are too general. However, textbooks and encyclopaedia articles may be a great way to find academic sources. Formatting The format should be a bibliography listing in alphabetical order by author’s last name. Use the Chicago Style in your bibliography: (https://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/home.html). Here are sample bibliographic entries: https://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/tools_citationguide/citation-guide-1.html and https://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/turabian/turabian-notes-and-bibliography-citation-quick-guide.html STEP FIVE At the top of your assignment, state the Indigenous groups you are comparing (the Quiché and your other selected group) and the theme you have selected. Produce an annotated bibliography of the sources you found, including the book I, Rigoberta Menchú. Create annotations for each source. The annotations should contain between four and six sentences. Use at least one sentence to describe the source in general and use at least one sentence to explain how you are using it for this research essay. Place your annotations underneath each entry in the bibliography. Here are some samples of annotated bibliographies: https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/general_writing/common_writing_assignments/annotated_bibliographies/annotated_bibliography_samples.html https://guides.library.cornell.edu/annotatedbibliography https://guides.library.ualberta.ca/research-writing/annotated-bibliographies STEP SIX Last, create a thesis statement for a comparative essay that you could write about your chosen theme, comparing the Quiché with one other Indigenous group. Thesis statements must contain a position or point of view that can be demonstrated with evidence. A strong thesis statement clearly identifies the topic being discussed (including time and place if possible), states the position of the paper, and includes points that will be made in support of the position. The thesis statement should act as a roadmap for the essay, so that the reader knows what to expect. Place your thesis statement at the end of your annotated bibliography. Example of a strong thesis statement: The Haudenosaunee of the North American Great Lakes and the Maori of New Zealand effectively resisted colonization because they were wealthy societies, were militarily strong, and had strong political governance to lead them through the crisis of British settlers taking their lands. Example of a weak thesis statement: Haudenosaunee and Maori resisted colonization. Example of a strong thesis statement: In the 19th century when European colonizers came to their lands, the Yaghan of Tierra del Fuego in southern South America fell victim to economic trauma while the Nenets of Siberia in northeastern Russia maintained their economic health because the Nenets had more impressive technology, especially in clothing, and a more reliable food source, especially with reindeer, than did the Yaghan. Example of a weak thesis statement: The Yaghan became poor after European colonization, while the Nenets stayed affluent. List of themes Ethics and research Food Economic activity (farming, hunting, gathering, trading, making) Land use Resource extraction Labour Social structures (communities, families, etc) Political structures Schooling Youth Elders Family Gender Masculinity Femininity Cosmology Ceremony Religion and spirituality Stereotypes Oppressive authenticity Urban indigeneity Local activism Global activism Citizenship Violence Military Poverty Medicine Friendship Material culture Grading For this assignment you will be graded on: Content: We will be looking to see if your assignment demonstrates that you have understood a specific theme from I, Rigoberta Menchú and the relevant course material, and that you have used ideas and information from the course in your assignment. We are looking for evidence of careful research, insightful thought, rigorous assessment, and reflection. Ensure that you are finding appropriate sources in your bibliography. In the annotations, ensure that you understand the material you are summarizing. Structure: We will be looking to see if you understand the mechanics of putting together a bibliography and annotations, and that you understand how to construct a thesis statement. Style: Good ideas and good analysis deserve good presentation. We will assess spelling, grammar, and good sentence structure when we review your bibliographic annotations and thesis statement. Use a formal style, avoiding jargon, clichés, and slang. Avoid repetition of words, phrases, and ideas. Strive for concision.