Assignment
Below are questions we will consider in class, and for you to answer in an informal, written assignment. Please bring in your written responses. They will be collected at the end of the discussion in class. (Not graded but included in your files as part of your participation grade.)
Introduction
The "third world women" in The Map of Love, in most respects, defy the category and stereotype of third world women. This raises some of the issues we asked at the beginning of class: what is third world and what is this artificially homogeneous category "third world women"? The book, in fact, is more about encounters between East and West, between "third world" and first, but it obviously defies these simplistic polarities. We have certainly become more aware since September 11th of both the potential misunderstanding between cultures and people of varying belief systems, as well as the inextricable connections between all of us on this planet. The book also is about history, obviously. (See bottom of page.)
Questions - to be answered in writing and for the basis of discussion in class.
Further questions for discussion