Instructions for Response Papers.

From time to time throughout the semester I will be assigning short response papers, basically a one-page response to one of the assigned texts in the online coursepack.

What I will be looking for in these papers is:
1. evidence that you read the text: a brief summary of what the text is about, with some attention to who wrote it and why.
2. evidence that you thought about the text in relation to the art we are looking at in class that week.
3. good writing.

Within these parameters, you can go in any direction you want with these papers. If the text makes you think about the nature of Chinese religions or the politics of the time or contemporary society, please write about it. I am hoping that these papers will stimulate your thinking about Chinese culture and that this will deepen your understanding of Chinese art.

Please refer to the notes in your syllabus about appropriate formats for written work and about plagiarism. (Yes, plagiarism even matters here: if you quote from the text in your paper, please use a parenthetical reference.)

If you have further questions about writing response papers, you might visit the HWS Writes website.

Assignments.

1. "Sacrifice," trans. Arthur Waley, due Wednesday 6 September.

2. "The Summons of the Soul," trans. David Hawkes, due Friday 22 September.

3. Jing Hao, "Notes on the Method for the Brush," due Wednesday 18 October.

4. Mao Zedong, "On Art and Literature," due Monday 4 December.