Show and Tell 3

Important: If you already used your Free Pass for a Show and Tell, you’ll need to do all remaining ones (including this one) to meet the requirements of the course!

Table of Contents

Details: what, when, where, how

WHEN: due by Mon, March 27, 11.59pm

WHAT: showcase something you learned / researched about Chinese history for the time period ±1911-1949, i.e. course content for weeks 7, 8 and 9.

WHY: This gives you a chance to look back and consolidate what you learned so far. Perhaps you now see connections you did not spot initially (maybe as the result of browsing through your classmates’ posts?), or you have changed your opinions, or discovered a new source, or followed up on a question and want to share?

HOW:

  • Create a blog post, and embed the project (use an iframe), or share a link in the post. (If it’s a text-based Show and Tell, you can of course submit it as the blog post.)
  • Use the words “Show and Tell 3:” in the title of the post; you can further customize the title by adding a title that will draw the reader in.
  • Add the post to the category hst271.
  • Submit your link in the Canvas assignment
  • Most importantly: add a brief self-assessment in the submission comments:
    • What did you do well? What do you want to improve on in a rewrite, or in the next assignment?
      • The Rubric (found below) is a soulless check list, so in the submission comments you get a chance to wax lyrical about what you put into the project, and what you hope the reader gets out of it. If need be, I can help you get that out even more in a “rewrite & resubmit” (–> that is a real thing professional academics do, join the club!)
    • Suggest a grade out of 20 points.

Topics

Here’s a suggested list of topics, but please ping me a message on Discord or talk with me if you have a cool idea and are not sure if it will fit. I’ll do my best to help you make it work!

  • The May Fourth Movement
  • The Warlords dividing China
  • Japanese encroachment on the territory of the Chinese Republic
  • Japanese occupation of Taiwan
  • Shanghai Jazz and/or other aspects of life in the international concessions
  • Modernization incl. train travel, and tourism
  • The difficult start of the Communist Party, incl. the Long March
  • WWII in China, incl. the Dixie Mission
  • The Civil War between the Nationalists and the Communists, the futile attempts of the US to negotiate between the two
  • …

Suggestions for formats

  • An analytical blog post: you analyze a set of materials drawn from the course materials, looking for connections, changes, continuities within the section covered and (once we are beyond the first Show and Tell) across more than one section.
    • 800 words (±10%, excl. notes and bibliography)
    • It’s not a summary.
    • I encourage you to bring in additional scholarly materials. Otherwise you have to do a very deep analysis of what we covered in class/readings.
    • You bring a new insight through a focused look at a particular aspect of the course materials covered so far: this post is more than the sum of its parts.
    • OPTION: You can also do this as a voiced-over power point slide deck, voice-thread, or other video/spoken assignment.
  • An encyclopedia entry (as blog post): you explain in detail an aspect of this part of Chinese history that you found fascinating, but we did not explore in great detail in class.
    • You add at least two sources that were not in the class readings yet. (Note: you can use the Optional Extras/background)
    • You introduce new information and new details on something connected to the history of China (1600-1800).
  • A small digital humanities project, for instance:
    • A detailed timeline (TimelineJS) [e.g. a specific event instead of covering the years 1600-1800]
    • A Storymap
    • A Twine-story
    • A Twitter-thread (series of tweets on a single topic)
    • An short audio podcast episode (± 5min, scripted)
    • A brief video documentary (± 2-3 min)
  • Current event in historical context: China is in the news all the time, and many of the topics have a much longer and complex historical background than journalists explain in their pieces. Use a current news topic as a jumping off point, and dive deeper into the historical connection.
    • 800 words (±10%, excl. notes and bibliography)
  • Primary source analysis
    • Do a deeper dive into a longer source and explore it as a historian would: how does the document/cultural artifact help you understand the history? OR
    • Use two or more primary sources and put them in dialogue, and show how a historian can use these to deepen our understanding of Chinese history. You can trace a genre or topic in time, or you can put two sources from the same time period in dialogue.
    • 800 words (± 10%;  excl. footnotes and bibliography)
    • You can find a list below
  • Examples of creative projects from previous editions of the course:
    • informative click bait, review of a scholarly article, a twitter thread,…
    • a talkshow with impersonations of historical figures
    • Google slide presentations with voice over or presenter notes
    • Prezi presentation
    • script for a play
    • art work, with guided notes explaining the connection to history.
  • Other ideas? Let me know! We can discuss what would work.

Rubric and self-assessment

How to assess your own work? Let’s agree on the following basics. Your work scores high when it displays characteristics that are the result of a resounding yes to the following statements:

  • I leaned into my curiosity to get to the bottom of a question I had, or a topic I wanted to learn more about – within the timeframe specified for this particular Show and Tell.
  • I made sure my contribution helps my fellow students understand a particular aspect of Chinese history better, and is more than a summary of content we covered in class.
  • I hit the word count (±10%, excl. notes and bibliography) if I follow a model suggested by Dr. D
    • OR
  • I consulted with Dr. D on the suitability and feasibility of a creative or digital project as an equivalent amount of work
  • I added footnotes in Chicago Notes and Bibliography style for all information I used, not only for paraphrases and quotations. [See the FAQ on this webpage, scroll down a bit]
  • I added a list of works consulted (aka a “bibliography) in Chicago Notes and Bibliography style
  • I checked the public-facing presentation of my work (blog post or other) looks professional, and is to the best of my ability free from factual errors, grammar and spelling mistakes.
  • I made sure to add hyperlinks and Alt Text where applicable.

Suggestions for literature and movies

1. Literature from the May Fourth movement and beyond

  • Lu Xun. “Ah Q – The Real Story”. In Diary of a Madman and Other Stories. Transl. by William A. Lyell. Honolulu: Univ. of Hawaii Press, 1990, 101-172. [e-book Trexler]
    • What is it? One of the transformative stories in modern Chinese fiction.
  • Lao, She. Cat Country: A Satirical Novel of China in the 1930’s by Lao She. Columbus: Ohio State University Press, 1970. (PDF)
    • I recommend reading this piece by Ian Johnson alongside, to help you find a bit more context: Johnson, Ian. “China: When the Cats Rule”. New York Review of Books. August 26, 2013. (PDF)
    • The excerpt I gave you contains some descriptions of sexual violence; it also throws you in the middle of the story, but you can understand most of what came before. A man has landed with his spaceship on an alien planet, where he finds life in the form of cats. They are under the influence of something called revery leaves, which have a similar effect to opium. It’s easy enough to see how most of Cat Country is a (sad) satire for China in the 1920s/30s.
  • Lao She, Rickshaw: The Novel Lo-t’o Hsiang Tzu. Transl. by Jean M. James. Univ. of Hawaii Press, 1979.
    • What is it?  A novel which documents the hard life of the lower classes in Beijing. Hsiang Tzu [pinyin: Xiang Zi,], a young man nick-named “Camel” makes a living transporting passengers with a rickshaw. He dreams of owning his own rickshaw some day.
    • Available as an ebook in Trexler library

2. Movies and documentaries

  • The Worlds of Mei Lanfang. Directed by Mei-Juin Chen. Lotus Films, 2005.
    • What is it? A documentary about the life of the famous “Peking Opera” (jingju) star Mei Lanfang. He was beloved for his portrayal of female roles, and his life very loosely inspired the movie Farewell to My Concubine, but his family disavows any connection with the fictional character of the movie. The historical man was no less of a legend, and he lived through much of the historical times covered for Show and Tell 3.
    • Available on reserve in Trexler Library: borrow the DVD
  • Farewell, My Concubine. Directed by Chen Kaige. Miramax Films and Buena Vista Home Entertainment, 1999.
    • What is it? This film follows the trials and tribulations of a pair of actors of jingju (known as Beijing opera), with China’s twentieth-century history as the backdrop. The title is taken from the play which made the fame of the two protagonists, who are loosely based on real historical figures from the late third century BCE. The character of Cheng Dieyi (nicknamed Douzi) is very loosely based on the real life jingju star Mei Lanfang. (see above)
    • Available on Canvas on the Canvas Reserves page
  • The Last Emperor. Directed by Bernardo Bertoluci. Yanco Films, 1987.
    • What is it? Epic bio-pic of Puyi, the last of the Manchu emperors, who died a commoner under the Communist regime. (Please note: our DVD is either dubbed in English, or you can pick a subtitled version but none of the sound-tracks respect the multi-lingual nature of the film (Russian, Japanese, Chinese, English), which grates against my sensitivities but it’s the best I can do.)
    • Available on reserve in Trexler Library: borrow the DVD [Canvas reserves page maybe available shortly]