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Assignments

As described in the syllabus, a total of 30% of your grade will be determined by your final paper, which includes an outline and preliminary bibliography. The topic is relatively open, with the simple requirement that it consider some aspect of reggae's global dimensions. In Fall 2010, students wrote about roots reggae in Hopiland, reggaeton in Guatemala, Rastafarianism in Mexico, and dancehall in the desi diaspora.

Here are the relevant dates/assignments associated with the final project:

1. Outline & preliminary Bibliography, due Ses #25. Your outline/bibliography should contain a few important items:

  • a provisional thesis statement, even if you're not totally sure yet about the precise shape of your argument;
  • a skeletal description of the crucial sections of your paper; in other words, what are your main points and how will you make them? This might include an introduction and literature review, a set of main examples and points to draw from them, a conclusion, etc.
  • a list of 5 references, other than class readings, which you will use. These can be works of scholarship or journalism, but, for now, please no Wikipedia pages, YouTube videos, etc. Those can serve as examples in your paper, but not as references, per se. Annotate each of the 5 items with a brief (one sentence) description of what it is and why it is useful.

2. Final paper (8-10 pages), due (via email) by Monday of finals week. The paper should include a full list of works cited at the end and should conform to basic standards of font size (nothing too big) and spacing (1.5 or double, please). Citation style can be in whatever format you are comfortable with, as long as you choose one and are consistent about it.