Reading Responses
You will write a 200–300 word response to the readings / films for each session. These responses are meant to help you synthesize and integrate the readings for your own learning (and give you a starting point for in-class discussion!), and also to help me gauge your understanding of the readings, what they brought up for you, etc., so that I might pitch classes at the right level. To that end, your responses should engage critically with the assigned materials: summarize the questions they raise and their key arguments, and lay out how the pieces relate to one another; state what remains unclear to you or leaves you perplexed, what questions the texts brought up for you, etc. These posts are due by MIDNIGHT the day before class. You may be exempted for one of the 22 required responses during the semester without penalty; in addition, on the day when you lead class discussion (see below), your presentation will count as your reading response (please email it to me by midnight the day before class). In other words, by the end of the semester, to get full credit for reading responses, you must have handed in a total of 20 (20% of your grade).
Presentation of Readings and Class Discussion Lead
You will each lead class discussion on an assigned reading at one point in the semester; this will entail a 15-minute presentation of the reading / film, and 2–3 questions to launch discussion with your classmates.
This will count for 10% of your grade.
Paper 1
This paper is meant as an opportunity for you to take stock of the material we have discussed so far, and formulate key takeaways.
The central concern of this course is how ideas about Africa — about what Africa is, what it means / its place in the world — have been negotiated and articulated in different historical moments. Among other things, addressing this concern requires considering who is involved in these negotiations, what’s at stake in different stories about or conceptualizations of Africa (for various stakeholders), and the specificities of these negotiations in different arenas of knowledge production.
What trends have you identified in the material we have covered so far (through the end of the History unit) in response to the course’s central concern? If you don’t see a single dominant trend, what are the various trends or directions this process has taken? What questions or concerns do the historical cases we have considered to date raise for the idea of Africa and Africa’s place in the world in the present / future, in your opinion?
Please use concrete examples from readings, employ appropriate citations, and include a bibliography (see Chicago Citation Style: Footnotes and Bibliography (PDF)).
The paper should be 1,250 words; 5 pages double-spaced, 12 size font.
Paper 1 will count for 10% of your grade.
Final Paper
This will be a research paper on a topic of your choosing related to course themes. You will build towards the final paper by handing in a proposal and outline first, and you will present the paper during the last week of classes.
For further detail, see Final Project Prospectus Guidelines.
The final paper will count for 30% of your grade.
Extra Credit Possibility
You can earn 5% extra credit (by event) by attending the following movie screenings and discussions and writing a 500-word reflection on the event that engages with course themes and readings. (If you cannot attend these screenings and would like to attend other Africa-related events instead for this extra credit option, please consult with the instructor beforehand.)
“Rafiki.” Women Take the Reel Film Series, MIT List Visual Arts Center.
“Inadelso Cossa: Personal Perspectives on Mozambican History through Film.” MIT Program in Art, Culture and Technology.
