Question

 

 

Assignment must be submitted in Microsoft Word or PDF document in the assignment drop box.

To what extent do calypso, soca, reggae, carnival, and cricket reflect a society? To what extent do

calypso, soca, reggae, carnival, and cricket address contemporary culture and their effects on

Caribbean lives?

For this assignment, you will write a 3 – 4 page essay about a particular cultural subject. It can be

either calypso, soca, reggae, carnival or cricket. The easiest way to think about this assignment is

to pick one cultural subject (calypso, soca, reggae, carnival or cricket) and then make a case for

why it matters.

This essay should draw on research that you conduct into the history or use of that object in order

to make an argument about how the object you have picked influences Caribbean culture or how

Caribbean culture is influenced but it. You must do research, this is a research assignment, use

direct quotations, and have a works cited page. Like the other essays, it should also have a clear

thesis/main argument; strong, single-idea paragraphs; powerful transitions; and the best spelling

and grammar you can manage. You must consider the rhetorical situation – audience, speaker

(you), and subject. Use rhetorical devices and a strong, logical framework.

Choose your Cultural Interest:

• Search Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter for flyers and borrow magazines from the library

to look for advertisements.

• Checkout the Library’s visual collection and search YouTube for videos.

• Create a free account on Pandora or Spotify to find music.

• Conduct background research.

• Or ask a librarian for help finding something.

• After learning more about your topic, go back and watch or listen to it again, this time

with a critical eye. Ask and answer questions about the piece's cultural impact as you

engage with it.

The Write Up:

• A summary of the artifact and why it is interesting or needs study.

• A detailed discussion of the aspects of the culture that is interesting to you including the

ways in which your examination of the topic answers the “what’s different” and “so

what” questions about the topic or your particular analysis.

• An explanation of why it is important for us to understand this cultural representation in

the way you are presenting it.

2

• If you know any West Indians and want to interview them about the topic, you can

include their quotes or quotes from people you came across during your research on the

topic.

• Summative comments about the cultural representation and how a critical analysis of it

presented in the way you have done in the essay reveals certain things about it and

Caribbean society.

• Present in-text citations of scholarship you are drawing on to support your claims.

Cultural expression is very relevant for all of us. So, when writing an interesting cultural essay,

here are some questions to think about:

• Music, carnival, and sports are very important for socializing and maintaining an identity,

how can they affect one’s social life?

• How does the internet change our tastes in the cultural representation you selected?

• What kind of ethical responsibility do artists have when they make music, and are they

responsible for what it causes people to think?

• What does celebrity association do to our view of music, carnival, or cricket?

• How pervasive are racism and sexism in music, carnival, or cricket, and what can be done

to combat this?

• Is music, carnival, or cricket the way social ideals of each generation are defined, and

how can they be used to promote social change?

• How does social media effect what cultural representation and identity?

6 months ago

Answer