FINAL PROJECT: Disease and Culture
TOPIC: The AIDS Crisis in the United States
Part 4
Direction
Prompt: Provide an essay prompt and a completed essay that reflects the cultural focus of your unit.
Provide an essay prompt, clearly outlining your guidelines and expectations. (Finally, write an essay according to your assigned prompt. Be sure that both the prompt and your final essay focus upon cultural aspects and responses to epidemic events. This is NOT a course on epidemiology. It is a course about culture and society. Your essay must be at least 1,000 words. MLA format).
Writer, below I paste what we have so far in the Prompt. This part needs to be expanded to meet the instructor’s requirements.
Essay Prompt
Write a 1000-word essay on how society’s response to the AIDS pandemic reflected in the mainstream culture of the 90s, citing some artworks in this unit.
BELOW ARE 3 EXAMPLES of how the instructor presents the work, and these examples are different from each other. Thus, to complete what is requested in the first part of PART 4, you can select the model you feel most comfortable developing from the examples.
EXAMPLE # 1
Writing about the Classical World
For this essay, we’ll return to reflecting upon culture. In our first essay, you wrote about your personal culture. Now let’s explore the notion of culture in relation to the material we have read about several significant pandemics in the Classical world of the ancient Mediterranean.
I would like you to discuss at least three cultural responses to these outbreaks of disease, from at least two different pandemics. Keep in my mind all the different aspects of “culture,” including language, customs, beliefs, values, religious beliefs, superstitions, philosophy, mythology, food, clothes, art, music, dance, architecture, and all forms of writing.
If you have questions about what you would like to write about or are looking for feedback, just ask in a Conference meeting, in the Discussion area, or in a private message.
I expect your response to be in the range of 750-1000 words. Unless stated otherwise, I expect your essays to be double-spaced, in a standard 12-pt font, in MLA style. Please identify any outside sources used. Be sure to support your statements with specific evidence. It should be clear when I read your essay that you are familiar with the primary texts and with the material you use to support your work.
EXAMPLE # 2
Writing about the Decameron
For this essay, I want you to reflect on common themes we find in the stories of Boccaccio’s Decameron.
Read the selections I’ve indicated in your guide. I want you to respond with a five-paragraph essay.
Paragraph 1: What are some typical reactions of people to the appearance of the Pestilence?
Paragraphs 2-4: I want you to compose a well-written paragraph on three of the following themes in these stories – faith; love; sexuality; a woman’s place in society. Be sure to be specific, detailed, and discuss examples from multiple stories.
Paragraph 5: Give me a personal response to these stories. This is completely up to you.
If you have questions about what you would like to write about or are looking for feedback, just ask in our online Canvas meeting, in the Discussion area, or in a private message.
You may go beyond the minimum requirements above, but your essay must be at least five well-written paragraphs. Unless stated otherwise, I expect your essays to be double-spaced, in a standard 12-pt font, in MLA style. Please identify any outside sources used. Be sure to support your statements with specific evidence. It should be clear when I read your essay that you are familiar with the primary texts and with the material you use to support your work.
EXAMPLE # 3
Writing about the Plagues of Egypt
For this unit, I’d like to offer some options for your written response. You may choose ONE of the following options. If you have another idea you would like to write about, just ask in our BigBlueButton meeting, in the Discussion area, or in a private message.
I expect your response to be at least 500 words. Unless stated otherwise, I expect your essays to be double-spaced, in a standard 12-pt font, in MLA style. Please identify any outside sources used. Be sure to support your statements with specific evidence. It should be clear when I read your essay that you are familiar with the primary text and with the material you use to support your work.
What was the purpose of the account of the Ten Plagues of Egypt, and how did the author or authors of the narrative achieve this?
Does it matter whether the narrative is historical/scientific, or metaphorical/allergorical? In other words, does it matter if these plagues REALLY happened, or did the account serve a purpose regardless of its “factual” reality. Whichever way you approach this question, be sure to explain why it matters or does not matter.
You may write about an artistic representation of the Plagues of Egypt. One of the links (Links to an external site.) provided on the Contexts page lists paintings, etchings, and other portrayals. If you choose an example of visual art, I expect you to touch on the time period when it was created, about the style, the artist, the purpose of the piece, that kind of thing. If you need some guidance for writing about visual art, here are some helpful links:
Art Loop Open: Essay About a Painting-How Can You Write It? (Links to an external site.)
Purdue University: Writing Essays in Art History (Links to an external site.)
Duke University: Writing About Paintings (Links to an external site.)
EssayPro.com: Visual Analysis: How to Analyze a Painting and Write an Essay (Links to an external site.)
You may take an approach through creative writing. For example, one of the articles (Links to an external site.) provided in the Contexts page talks about “contemporary plagues” such as war, hatred, and disease. Let’s leave COVID-19 aside for now, but how would you creatively present contemporary “blows” in our culture?
You may analyze the Exodus account as a work of literature, and respond to things like narratology, themes, figurative language, overall design, characterization, etc. Not everything applies to this particular essay, but I find this page helpful for writing about literature (Links to an external site.).
Final note: This is NOT an exercise in summarizing. I DO NOT want a list of the plagues or a blow by blow description of them. That’s what the text in Exodus does. The purpose of the essay is to demonstrate that you are engaging with the material critically. You must analyze, not regurgitate. Thank you, and good luck