World Literatures in English

當代印度次大陸、非洲、加勒比海地區文學中的
種族與性別議題

  Connecting to the Big Wide World

through News, Documentaries and Other Cultural Texts

Purpose:

Some of the students who took this course later told me how the readings resonated with what they saw on TV, or what they experienced not only in Taiwan and the areas we cover, but also in U.K., U.S, mainland China, Vietnam, and etc., etc..  This gives me an idea: the "English" world is too big to be brought into our classroom indeed, but why don't we make connections to it with what's available in our world--that is, the news, films, documentaries and other cultural texts we frequently read and see?   

Method:

1. I have compiled a list of documentaries. In the bookstore, there are also a lot of memoirs available. You can choose one, or two at most, which you find relevant to what's covered in our class.
(News and documentaries and memoirs are preferable, as they 'seem' more realistic and less organized than the literary and filmic works we discuss. However, if you have a strong interest in literature and film, you can choose them, too.)
2. Discuss the 'text' you choose, its meanings and how they can be related to the texts we read in class on the one hand, and to our lives on the other.
3. Bring up some questions for discussion in class. (Whether all of them will be discussed in class depends on the class size.)

List of Documentaries
on Race, Gender (the Muslim women), and the three areas (Indian Subcontinent, South Africa and the Caribbean).

our no. Kind Nation City Program/Title No.

General

0 Society: Race Race; (definition, racism and jokes) 96
0-1 Society: Race Afghanistan 真相大白:千尋百找阿富汗少女 140

 

2 Society: Gender Muslim World 回教女性的面紗(上) 90
3 Society: Gender Muslim World 回教女性的面紗(下) 91

India

1 Culture intro. India   India: The Land of Spirit and the Mystique   
4 Urban Culture India Bombay Chasing Time 37
5 Urban Culture India Bombay 一個城市六個朋友 102
6

Entertainment

India

Bombay

Bollywood 印度電影工業

45

7 Urban Culture India   Global Trekker (勇闖天涯) 147
8

Religion

India

Agra

Taj Mahal, Agra city

47

9

Religion

India

Goa

48

10

Society: Gender

India

五個婚禮和兩場葬禮─印度教婚禮、馬來婚禮

98

 South Africa

11 Society: Race South Africa   Long Night's Journey into the Day (website)  
12 Urban Culture South Africa Cape Town City Cabs 81
13 Culture: Music     Grace Land (Paul Simon)  
21 Society: Love South Africa  

21 Up South Africa: Mandela's Children

(website)

 

East Africa

22 History: Colonialism East Africa Kenya

Mau Mau (part 2) Black Man's Land Trilogy

 
23 Civil War and Survival East Africa Uganda

War Dance

(website)

 
24 Civil War and Survival East Africa Uganda

The Other Side of the Country

(website)

 
25 Civil War: Child Soldier East Africa Uganda

Invisible Children (DVD 355.0083 I62)

(website)

 

 

The Caribbean Area

14

National/Regional Jamaica     44
15 National/Regional     Hidden Caribbean --ecotourism 146
16 National/Regional South Africa Johannesburg 五個婚禮和兩場葬禮 ─約翰尼斯堡婚禮 148
17 National/Regional     Lonely Planet(勇闖天涯): Caribbean 151
18 Culture: Music     BOY MARLEY STORY, THE   

19

Culture: Music     Fugees  

20

Culture: Music     Rhyme and Reason