Writing about a book

The main objective of this assignment is for you to gain exposure to an author’s perspectives on a country, countries, and/or region(s) of the world where s/he has traveled, studied, worked and/or lived. Most of the readings I have suggested (per our syllabus) are non-fictional tales of these travels. Others are creative pieces intent at translating the travel experience to the reader. In other words, these writings include fictional, non-fictional and mixed literary genres.

ABOUT THE ESSAY FORMAT

The five-page essay on your “book on travels overseas” should be typed and double spaced, with attention given to correct spelling, punctuation and grammar (more on this below). I will be available during office hours, and by appointment, to discuss your writing. Don’t underestimate how helpful it can be by just being able to verbally articulate your ideas to others; let alone, when you are shopping for ideas to sketch the central argument for a story, paper, etc.

Essay title: As to the title of your essay, you could simply use something generic like, “Book essay on The Lady and the Monk: Four Seasons in Kyoto , by Pico Ayer”; of course, if “The Lady and the Monk ...” is the book of your choice. Else, you are welcome to use your imagination, and come up with your own creative title.

***On the cover page of your paper, please make sure you write: Your name, the course number, your instructor’s name, and the title of your story***

BTW: The title page does not count as one of the five pages (minimum) required for this assignment. Conversely, you will not be penalized if your essay exceeds the five-page minimum.

TARGET BOOK (The book you have read)

Please write the full reference on your book of choice (Title, Author, Publisher and year of publication)

ESSAY CONTENT

This essay is NOT about ...

a. Summarizing the book you have read;

b. Rehashing what others have written on this particular book. [After completing reading your book of choice, you might want to compare your notes with other readers. However, the purpose of this assignment is for you to use your creativity, imagination, and intelligence to write a cohesive response to the title that you have read];

c. Reproducing lengthy quotations from your reading(s). Please wisely use quotations to support your point, strengthen your argument(s) only;

d. Leaving loose quotations as strings of texts. You want your reader to be able to retrace the source(s) you extracted the information from;

e. Stream of consciousness (i.e., writing for the sake of writing, and not really grounding what you are saying on a point-of-view, or an argument);

f. Telling me that you read the book, and that you (dis)liked it. Reserve your opinion, criticism to your final paragraph(s);

g. Compiling a list of facts, stories. You will need to be creative enough to weave your points into your own story, in a way that is readable and interesting to the reader.

WHAT TO FOCUS ON YOUR ESSAY

A. Your book essay IS about:

a. Telling the reader a compelling story about the book you have read;

b. Showing writing organizational style, structure and clarity of ideas;

c. Convincing me that this particular book is (or not) worth reading;

d. Making appropriate use of the English Language;

d. Demonstrating basic expository writing standards:

(i.e., introductory paragraph-thesis statement-story development-focus-argument-supporting ideas-proper referencing-point of view & conclusion)

B. Link between your reading and the content of INST 110I

a. Your essay must establish a clear connection between the book you have read and the various topics covered in INST 110I: Introduction to International Engagement. You should make these connections as explicit as you can by citing passages from your book on travels overseas and relating them to specific theme(s). For example: If there is an extraordinarily interesting event/action/example in the book you have read which illustrates, let’s say, “non-verbal communication”, bring this up; weave the information into your argument; furthermore, find an interesting quotation from Kathryn Sorrell’s (or, for that matter, from any of the other readings, in-class presentations); using proper citation, please record the source, including page number(s). You are free to use whatever writing Style you are most comfortable with (i.e. MLA, APA, The Chicago Manual of Style).

b. Key to a successfully finishing your essay is how you support the argument you want to develop. In order to succeed doing this you would need to back up your views with examples and plenty of evidence. For instance, I suggest that you use any resource(s) available (i.e. articles, newspapers, printed or online materials) which would help you make a stronger argument. Remember, that one of the missions of an insightful writer is to convince the reader that s/he has an “amazing” story to tell, and that the reader should pause/stop to listen, enjoy and learn. Also, you should rely on the many discussions we will have completed in class (i.e., group conversations, lectures, and presentations).

DEADLINE

Your “book on travels overseas” write-up is due on Thursday, December 14th, by midnight (as per in-class discussion and syllabus); that’s the Final Exam date for INST 110I.

FYI: YOU ARE REQUIRED TO SUBMIT AN ELECTRONIC COPY OF YOUR ESSAY TO BLACKBOARD LEARN [VIA TURNITIN] only. Your essay will not be read, nor graded if it is sent in as an e-mail attachment. Paper copies will not be accepted either.

Please let me know if you plan to submit your paper at an earlier date; I would need to setup the TurnItin option through Bb Learn. Let me know).

LATE POLICY: Failure to turn in your essay by the due date will result in automatic failure of your BOT Project.

TURNITIN.COM AND PLAGIARISM