Question: Project 2 - Cultural Experiences
Introduction: In this project, you will tell a story about your or other people's cultural experiences. Through this story you will demonstrate the significance of the experienced culture. This project aims to enhance your understanding of culture and narrative as method of inquiry.
You may include observation and interview in your narrative essay. You are greatly encouraged to conduct an observation of a special situation in your summer and base your essay on your observation
Genre: Narrative essay It should have a primary theme and include vivid descriptions as well as insightful reflections.
Be sure that you meet the following requirements:
? No less than 900 words, double-spaced (not including the Works Cited, if applicable)
? MLA Format
Objectives: • To invite you to examine the relationship between individual life and culture
• To practice using 1st person or 3rd person narrative as tools for inquiry
• To practice some empirical research methods such as observation and interview
• To further develop your narrative skills (such as showing and telling)
• To enhance your understanding of rhetorical situation, purpose and audience.
Below are some areas of your experience to consider.
National/regional culture: you might tell your story of national or regional culture such as the "My Story of Chinese Spring Festival". However, I hope you could think out of the box and come up with some new and original topics such as "Long Time No See - My Chinese Cuisine".
Subculture: culture could also broadly refer to a group of people's behavior and belief. Therefore, you may also choose topics like "The Rules of Clicking ‘Like' on My Facebook", "My Experiences of Using Emoji", etc.
Intercultural experiences: as most of you choose to study abroad or in another state, to talk about your cultural experiences in America could also be a promising topic. Below is an interesting topic for intercultural experiences. The well-known restaurant California Beef Noodle could be found everywhere in China. But actually in California this restaurant can hardly be found. It is more like American culture in Chinese people's imagination. This makes an interesting topic on the differences between reality and imagination ("Building America in My Imagination"). For another example, Pizza Hut in China is popular and highly admired. Some children are even taken to Pizza Hut as a special treat when they get higher grades at school. But in America, Pizza Hut is often no more than an ordinary restaurant. This also indicates some cultural differences.