The US Ethnic Identity

Revise your first essay by expanding your argument and adding research according to the guidelines listed below.
your essay will focus upon a novel, a few short stories or poems, or a film that represents the experience of a particular American multiethnic group. You may choose one of the readings assigned for this class, or you may choose another text in consultation with me. Do not choose nonfiction essays or articles as your primary texts for analysis; however, you can use them as secondary sources.

In writing your essay, you will analyze how the primary text(s) (novel, film, or shorter texts together) depicts U.S. or transnational (U.S. and another country) ethnic identity. Feel free to use some of the central issues that have been identified in online discussions to frame your analysis. For instance, you may want to compare/contrast how first and second generation immigrants define their identities as American; you may want to explore the ways that various characters challenge or accept the process of assimilation, etc.

Be sure your essay makes an argument about the meaning of the text through a clear thesis statement at the end of the introduction. What is the text asking you to believe or consider? How does the text create meaning through some interplay of literary elements (plot, characterization, narration, setting, symbolism) and, if you’re using a film, additional cinematic elements (mise-en-scéne, music, lighting, camera angles, etc.)? If you choose to write about a film, be advised that I am not formally trained in that field, so I will simply expect you to pay attention to some generic aspects of the film as film; I won’t be strictly technical about the genre.

You will also incorporate research from a minimum of two and a maximum of three secondary sources. At least one of your sources must be scholarly or academic.

You may use historical sources, critical sources, or theoretical sources, but choose them carefully; they should help you make your own argument about the meaning of the primary text(s). If you use biographical sources, be sure the focus of your argument remains on the text, not the author. If you research the historical experiences of the ethnic group your primary text depicts, use them only to supplement and support your argument.
Be strategic about how you choose secondary sources: avoid sources from which you have only one sentence to cite, for instance. Choose only sources that you can thoroughly situate in your essay, which means that they help you make your argument in meaningful ways.
To find appropriate scholarly sources, you can search the databases available through the UW library (JSTOR, MLA, Ebsco, etc.), or use one of the three assigned for class (by Badruddoja, Lambert, or Hoffman-Reyes).
Your final draft should be 6-8 pages or 1,500 – 2,000 words (double-spaced, with one-inch margins on all sides, typed in Times New Roman 12 pt font). The Works Cited page does not count as part of your minimum word or page count. You can exceed the maximum length, but should not turn in a paper that is shorter than the minimum.