Welcome to My World Literature Blog

About

Hi there, welcome to my blog site that reflects on multicultural and global literature. My name is Amanda and I’m a student at Grand Canyon University. I hold a B.S. degree in Sociology and am currently pursuing a B.A. in English with an emphasis in professional writing. I love to write and freelance for a few different clients. In what little spare time I have, I enjoy sewing, practicing the piano, being a mom, and helping out with our church. This experience has been amazing and I have been very thankful to learn about the world’s greatest literature pieces.

Understanding literature means that we can grow our minds and connect with the innerworkings of great author’s that have influenced communities and created movements within their society.

Through my course at Grand Canyon University, I was able to explore an arena of different cultures. I was able to understand the political position of Lu Xun through his work of “Diary of a Madman”, and the magical elements of realisim in “Death Constant Beyond Love” by Gabriel Garcia-Marquez; to name a couple.

In this blog you will find different works of literature from various authors in other cultures including, European, Jewish, Chinese, African, Latin-American, and Native American. You can locate these blogs in the menu bar at the top of this page. My blog is desgined for aspiring student writers and teachers! It is a great way to get a lesson plan for students and teach them how a particular culture associates literature into its community. Each blog also contains elements of pop-culutre to ensure that students are engaged with what they are learning.

Global literature is about being able to explore the world through the pieces of work by authors that share their experiences, lives, traditions, and values. Blurring national boundaries is represented in the 20th century through literature such as Rushdie’s “The Perforated Sheet”, and Kincaid’s, “Girl”. In which the characters are host to their own national identity but as a reader we are not able to see the perfect boundaries in their culture. The struggles that people face with national identity can be seen in these stories as well. In Rushdie’s story, the character is faced with the struggle of being educated but not being respected by his home town. It can be difficult to engage in a multitude of national identities and keep everyone happy.

National Identity in Global Literature

While we look in depth at what it means to hold a national identity, the focus will center around two works of global literature. Rushdie’s “The Perforated Sheet”, and Kincaid’s “Girl”, in the Norton Anthology World Literature Volume 2; 3rd ed. We will begin by looking at Rushdie’s story- this will reveal a tale of a mans account for his grandfathers national identity of being educated and still trying remain prominent in his home town. The second story by Kincaid will allow students to understand blurring national identity. While, Kincaid writes in particular to one culture- the author was well versed in other cultures and does not specify that the events took place in Antigua.  Even being a teacher, you can show students how one can keep a different identity in one place and be a different person at home. These stories will teach students that global literature is more accessible than ever before and allows us to explore other cultures from the comfort of our homes.  

Lesson Plan

To fully understand the character’s blurred national identity in Rushdie’s story, have students identify all the cultural elements that are mentioned throughout the story. This can include traditions, places, or even different foods. Once completed, have students compare and contrast with their own customs. What customs would students most like to adapt? What customs do students least like?

In Kincaid’s story, the characters do not have the amount of cultural diversity as Rushdie’s characters do but the author is well-rounded in other cultures thus making her a global author. In the story of “Girl”, the mother lays out a list of womanhood rules to her daughter for their culture. The national identity is blurred in the sense that most people can relate to the rules since most of them are rules that all adults should know. By not identifying the culture, the author leaves the national identity open for exploration of the reader.

As a final assignment, have students create a PowerPoint of the story, “Girl”. Students should pay attention to:

• The tone in the character’s message.
• Customs related to that culture.
• Other identities that the characters may hold.

The assignment must include 6 slides with a comparison and contrast slide of Rushdie’s story. Be sure to add a summary of what global literature and national identity means.