Short fiction class

Essay #3 — the last essay before the final project — will be something other than an analytical paper, something to reflect the moment we find ourselves in.

What does this mean?

Imagine that you are a visitor from outer space– a professor/teacher from a galaxy far, far away– and you are visiting the Washington DC area (and Earth) for the first time in June of 2020. You have “studied” American history by looking closing at this document: https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2019/08/14/magazine/1619-america-slavery.html (Links to an external site.)

(Please note that, “The 1619 Project” is an interactive text, an overview of the history of slavery and race in America prepared by the New York Times in 2019 to reflect back on the 400 year anniversary of the first enslaved person arriving in New World, in Virginia. There are photos– and essays. The goal is for you to explore this work. The New York Times and its reporters won the prestigious Pulitzer Prize in 2019 for this special edition of its Sunday magazine. Please take some time with it — it will give you some historical context to our discussion next week of Critical Race Literary Theory. )

Your writing assignment:

Professor from Outer Space (you might want to give yourself a name): You must prepare a report back to the head of your university. This report should be a personal, eyewitness account that focuses on the major events of the day (pandemic, shelter-in-place, economic distress, and protests). It should be detailed, particularly about the setting you are describing and the tone/mood of this place and its people. It should contain your analysis and opinion on the situation. However, keep in mind that the audience is your peers (other educated academics).

More specifically: the ‘report’ should be 2 pages (600-700 words) in length.