Paper 2

Urban Legends

Winter 2021

Final Portfolio Guidelines

As part of the course assignments, you are required to complete a final project that

reflects on the major themes and questions developed throughout the quarter. This project

is due on Sunday, March 14th at 11:59PM. ***LATE PROJECTS WILL NOT BE

ACCEPTED***

The portfolio will contain a collection of six urban legends (with extensive analysis)

covering each of our main subject areas (teen horrors, racial fears, conspiracy theories,

supernatural stories, contamination/disease fears, technology fears).Your portfolio must

include:

1) An Introductory Statement: This one-to-two page statement should detail your process

in finding and selecting your legends. It should also reflect on key class topics and

themes that aided in your understanding of these legends. (10 points)

2) Six personally collected narratives, with accompanying analysis. Each narrative

discussion should include the following:

• Basic background information, including the person or source from whom you

collected the narrative, and where that person in turn first heard it. Also, make a

concerted effort to locate the narrative’s folk origins through consultation of class

readings and/or internet inquiries (e.g., snopes). (30 points)

• Identify and discuss what specific characteristics make this an urban

legend/legend/rumor/memorate/truth claim. (We will discuss these categories in

lecture) (10 points)

• (Briefly) Narrative itself, including any variations or parallels found in class

readings/discussions. (10 points)

• Most importantly—One full page (or more) of analysis: How did this narrative

fit course themes? Is it believable, particularly to the storyteller? How might the

narrative reinforce their beliefs about the world? Does the narrative hold an

obvious social function or contain a clear moral message? Is it conveying a sense

of anxiety or fear? Use specific arguments and examples from both our class

discussions and readings in your analysis! (40 points)

Format: This is meant to be a creative assignment; choose the format the best fits your

set of legends. You may use illustrations, pictures, graphics, and specialized fonts at your

leisure. You are also required to provide a works cited page.

Topics: This portfolio offers the opportunity to select legend topics of your choice. I

encourage VARIETY, in both your sources and your themes. You must collect one

narrative from each major course theme from this quarter (supernatural legends, race

and urban legends, teen horror legends, travel/tourism/contamination legends,

conspiracy theories, or legends relating to media and technology). You may find

legends online, from friends and family, through library sources, or in the media. Do not

limit yourself to finding legends on snopes. At least four of the legends you collect must

come via oral transmission from friends, relatives, or other in-person interactions (for

pandemic safety purposes, video chat is preferred). If you experience difficulty in finding

sources, please come talk to us! You must cite all sources (APA format preferred).

**Note: Please respect your respondents and their narratives. Use pseudonyms by

default, and make sure you have their permission to use their stories for this portfolio.**

Grading: Your final portfolio is worth a whopping 40% of your final grade. We will

grade this final project based on your ability to fully engage and analyze the topics

covered during this quarter. Do not skimp on your analysis. Do not try to put together

your portfolio at the last minute. Exercise good judgment in your legend selections, and

take the time to put together a thoughtful, visually interesting portfolio.

Submission: This project must be submitted through our website and is due on Sunday,

March 14th by 11:59pm. Due to time constraints, late portfolios will not be accepted.