Assignment description:
Genre-wise, this paper is mash-up. Think of it as a rhetorical analysis
personal narrative with a small bit of academic research, suitable for both a popular and scholarly audience.
The paper’s main goal is to tell the story of your ethnographic visit while analyzing and exploring the culture of the place. The small amount of research is another layer of exploring the place/culture, giving your paper authority, and (honestly) letting you practice MLA citation one more time before leaving this course.
Paper Requirements
Tell an engaging, lively story about your visit(s) to your selected place. Use plenty of details, style, narrative techniques, etc., to make the reader feel like they’re there with you
Provide some dialogue based on conversations you had while there
Perform plenty of rhetorical analysis about the visit(s) while you relay the details/experiences to your readers
You must include rhetorical analysis pertaining to all of the following
Language use in the place (between others or in your interviews)
The way the space is constructed/built/organized
Activity/interaction in the place
This analysis will not be in equal ratios (for example, your paper may lean heavier on space and not as much on activity), but all three should be there
Incorporate research from at least 2 scholarly articles (short summaries, paraphrases, and direct quotes) that are somehow additive to your narrative (i,e, add something to the analysis, morale, or take away versus just merely being there because they have to be). At least 2 quotes total (at least 1 from each article) must be analyzed but more is OK.
Length should be roughly 7-10 pages
MLA citation should be used throughout paper and a proper Works Cited at the end
Section Requirements/Suggestions
The paper should include the following sections. You could even use the organization I suggest below; however, feel free to modify this for your own needs and with your own creativity.
Introduction that grabs readers’ attention and does not refer to the “assignmentness” of the paper
Explanation/Exploration of your stereotypes and preconceived notions before going to the place
Details/analysis of the actual visit (this will be the bulk of the paper)
Research that adds to the story of the visit (though, ideally, this should be interwoven throughout the narrative and not just dumped into a research section)
Conclusion that explains what you learned, how you were changed, what you got out of the experience, etc. Or, in some cases, how you did not change or get much out of it.
Don’t make this conclusion too short, as has happened in the past. Really take the time to reflect. This can be the most rewarding part for you and your readers.
Grading Criteria
More than anything, I’m looking for a compelling, interesting, and rhetorically focused narrative. This should not be a dry report that just lists a bunch of things you saw. Tell a story. Make it interesting, humorous, sentimental, and analytical. Your grade will largely be a reflection of your ability to pull off all the requirements on this page in a concise manner while using the kind of tone, style, and details that engage a reader and reveal something about both you and this place.
If it makes it easier, the event I planned on writing about was going clubbing in Brazil, specifically clubs like P 12, Milk Club, and Layback Park, all in Florianopolis. It doesn’t have to be about this specifically, it can be an experience you had personally, but that is just a reference, I guess.
They are very high-status places with expensive drinks, foods, architecture, and cars, and I also remember seeing a lot of people doing cocaine. I wasn’t planning on these things being the focus of the paper but it can be some things to analyze rhetorically and add some sort of shock factor
The reason it was uncomfortable was particularly because of my introverted personality and that was what i was going to try to delve into but feel free to pick apart why these sort of places would be uncomfortable.
Feel free to ask as many questions as you need to write this.
