|
Model Student Midterm1 answers Research Report Proposals 2018 (alphabetical order) |
 |
Ambrosia Alderete
Social Activism in Minority Literature
My original thought for a research
proposal topic would be to explore my native heritage. As a Tejano, descended
from some of the original settlers on Texas the research would almost be easy.
Smooth sailing… However, the discussions in the Minority Literature course has
sparked curiosity in me about the literature of minorities, why it was written,
and who it was written for? I think about the passages and novels and poems
depicting the fight many peoples had to brave through in order to enjoy the
freedoms we have today.
For my research project, I propose to
explore the social activism aspect of American Minority literature, and how
literature helped pave the way for freedoms and civil rights for Minority groups
such as African Americans, Native Americans, and Hispanics, like me. I seek to
explore how oppressed authors braved the media and the retaliation their words
would bring to let it be known that the treatment they received as citizens was
not fair, and not just.
Brad Cannon
Understanding
I have
decided for my research paper that I will be doing a comparison between my
Jewish heritage and ancestors to the Native American people in America. I would
like to see the differences, or lack thereof, between what “my” people went
through when coming to America versus the Natives. I do believe this will be an
important lesson for me to learn as I have already seen so many similarities and
differences between the two already.
I
honestly know about the same amount of Jewish literature as I do Native American
now. It is a bit sad to realize I have not done the requisite reading to really
gain the Jewish perspective on life through American minority literature. I have
lived it somewhat, gaining ideas and values from my family, but never really
taking the time to delve deep into the ideas and see where it takes me. The
comparing and contrasting of these two different histories and art will give me
a much better understanding of who I am and where I came from. I look forward to
doing this in the future.
Cynthia Cleveland
Wendigo Legends
Louise Erdrich’s novel The Round House has a recurring storyline
concerned with the legend of the Wendigo and plays a crucial role in the
justification of Joe’s murder of Linden Lark. Joe’s father determined that
Linden Lark was a wendigo, because he was literally preying upon Joe’s family,
though not with the express purpose of consuming their flesh, but their
happiness. I thought this was an interesting use of symbolism and synchronicity
of Native American culture.
I was most interested in learning more about these legends, simply
because I wanted to know more about their origins and how one knew a wendigo
when they saw one. Joe hears the legend of Nanapush from Mooshum, which details
the conspiracy to murder Nanapush’s mother, Akii, because they believed her to
be a wendigo. According to Erdrich’s novel the killing of a wendigo has a very
specific set of rules for identification and disposal of the spirit that
possesses the body. In times of great hunger and famine, it is said that severe
hunger could lead to the possession of the evil spirit and would then prey upon
humans for food.
Kara Delaughter
Dominant Music In A Minor Key: Research
Proposal
I would
like to research African American influence on culture through music. Music has
always been a big part of my life, and growing up Pentecostal, Black Gospel was
always playing in my house. I developed a great appreciation for many black
musicians and was not surprised to learn that almost every genre of music can be
traced back to African-American spirituals and work songs. I would like to know
more about African instruments and how they influenced the musical styles of the
African people, if Africans wrote poetry before they wrote songs like other
cultures, and if music is as big a deal in Africa as it is in the United States.
Kristin Mizell
Sandra
Cisneros
For my research project I want to focus on author Sandra Cisneros. I read
her book The House on Mango Street and it is one of my favorite books I’ve
ever been assigned to read. I would use that book to frame my research project.
Using The House on Mango Street
I will research how and why her work is taught and school and how her work
represents Latinx culture. I would also want to give a little background on her
life in order to include her experience as a Mexican-American woman. I will also
use her other work, Women Hollering Creek.
Does this sound like a specific enough subject to research?
Justin Murphy
Hip-hop Music and its Relation to African
American Identity
The
topic that I am interested in researching is hip-hop music, and how it helps
African American people in determining their culture/identity. I believe that
hip-hop music is representative of African American culture, and that it can be
a very important force in helping African-Americans discover their identity.
Since African Americans are a minority culture, their history doesn’t always get
told in the proper way. Hip-hop music could possibly be a way for them to
identify with their culture. I will tie this to literature by arguing that
hip-hop music in and of itself can be considered literature.
I will primarily research through journal articles to find experiences of
African Americans and music. I am hoping to find autoethnographies on the
African American experience, as well as theory driven articles to point to the
fact that music can be literature. The two questions I want to pose, and
hopefully answer, are as follows: can music be considered a form of literature?
If so, does hip-hop music help African Americans find their identity, and can it
be representative of their culture?
Shane Murphy
The Identity of a Minority Family
My research topic proposal would be to
go over how family, symbolism, and identity come hand in hand together to define
what a minority is. These three basic topics are able to cover multiple smaller
topics which can be combined to give a greater deduction on how these come
together.
I want
to go over these topics due to me having a love for my family and who I am.
Adding symbolism to the case would go the extra mile to also help identify how
symbols in someone’s culture helps represent who they are themselves. I take
friends and family very seriously. While I do not have it to where I count my
friends as family, I still keep my friends very close.
Anari Oliver
The
Impact of the Harlem Renaissance
For my research report I would like to
study the Harlem Renaissance that took place during the 1920s. This particular
literary movement consisted of both an intellectual and artistic explosion that
spiraled all throughout Harlem. I would like to closely examine some of the more
popular pieces that came about during this time, and how they impacted African
Americans then. I may also mention a few key figures that stood out during this
era.
I figured that this would be a great
topic for me to write about for my research report. For one, I’m African
American. One the other hand, I’m a literature major, so this time in history
pertains to me in many ways. I’ve been able to come across several YouTube
videos that give great information on the Harlem Renaissance, so I plan to use
that as one of my sources. Even though, I’ve heard about the Harlem Renaissance
prior to the class; I still feel as though it isn’t highlighted enough (even
when learning about black history). Why not bring this remarkable time period to
the light and dive a little deeper into it?
Sarah Travis
I am
torn between two topics. The first is about pow-wows. I have always been
fascinated with the music and dance when I witnessed one. I would like to find
out the meaning behind them. Secondly, I would also like to research how to
incorporate minority literature in a secondary classroom while maintaining a
positive learning environment.
Kealey Treadaway
Illegal Immigration in America
I would
like to do my research topic on the different impacts that illegal immigration
has on America. I would also like to know how minorities work and obtain their
jobs and careers compared to how immigrants usually have completely different
jobs and careers.
I do not know much about this topic and I have always wondered why some
cultural groups are different from myself such
as someone of a different minority have such different lifestyles, jobs, and
careers compared to an immigrant of their same race or ethnicity. I hope this
research topic makes sense as I fully understand what I want to research but not
knowing if it makes sense when explaining.
Christa Van Allen
Mohawk Melting Pot
I want to learn more about the Mohawk tribe for personal and scholarly
reasons—any unique stories, how they have developed over the years, and
individual conflicts or interactions with the United States as it grew. However,
I’ll probably focus on their early foreigner assimilation.
It’s something interesting I learned from an official Mohawk Tribe’s
governmental website. There is a brief description they gave of their culture
and history up that tells of a time during the French and Indian War when a
number of refugees from a Dutch mission on Mohawk territory settled in close to
the tribe, but the attitude and culture of the area stayed predominantly Mohawk.
It made me wonder if other similar “adoptions” may have occurred. I refuse to
believe that the St. Regis tribe is the only one that had foreigners play the
“When in Rome” card. What do you think? Should I just focus on similar events or
the Mohawk Indians as a whole?
If
you’re curious, here’s the link:
https://www.srmt-nsn.gov/culture_and_history
