In this essay you will compare and contrast your Poem 3 (revised poem) with the Poem 3’s of people in a group (bleached airpods and group indo) that is very different from your own. The comparison and contrast should lead to an answer to two short but very complicated questions: Why is there similarity? Why is there difference?
To answer these questions you will have to seriously try to understand people whose backgrounds are very different from yours. When people do not understand each other, there could very easily be conflict. When people understand each other, it will probably be easier for them to work together. This assignment forces you to engage with people you do not know.
Here is a suggested structure for your essay. Write the introduction/thesis last:
- Introduction: Introduce yourself and your own group. Lead to the thesis.
- Introduce the group that you have selected.
- Introduce your own poems
- Poem that is most similar. Summary.
- Identify the similarity. Why the similarity?
- Identify differences outside of the similarity.
- Poem that is most different. Summary.
- Identify the difference. Why the difference?
- Identify similarities outside of the differences.
- Conclusion: What does the similarity and difference tell you about your relationship to the people in the other group? What do you think you would have to learn so that you could give a better explanation for the similarities and differences in your experiences and poems?
Although you can think of the essay as responses to a set of questions, remember that you are writing an essay, not a set of short answers. Do not number your paragraphs. Instead, you will need to decide where to have paragraph breaks, you will need an introduction and conclusion, your paragraphs will need topic sentences, and you will need to write transitions between paragraphs.
Finally, for your thesis, you are answering these two questions: Why is my poem similar to one poem, and why is my poem different from another poem? In other words, why is the experience depicted in the two poems similar, even though my background is different from the poet’s? How have the larger histories of people in different countries who speak different languages resulted in differences in the experiences depicted in the two poems? Write your thesis and introduction last because your thesis should be based on what you write in the body of your essay. Pay attention to the differences and similarities in the conflicts and in the expressions of solidarity. Pay attention also to differences and similarities in the backgrounds of parents and children. Here are some possible reasons:
- Different/similar racial dynamics in settings; different/similar racial majorities/minorities
- Different/similar gender expectations
- Different/similar expectations with regard to sexuality and marriage
- Different/similar economic pressures, leading to different/similar expectations with regard to major
- Different/similar economic pressures, leading to desires or pressures to move to a new location
