Writing Assignment #3:
Queer Anthropology and the Problem of Community
The third writing assignment focuses on queer anthropology since the 1990s. For this paper, you will synthesize course materials in an intersectional analysis that describes divisions, hierarchies, biases, and norms that uphold structures of power within what is generally described as a homogenous queer “community.â€
You will approach the problems of community like an anthropologist. Here are some prompts for you to consider as you shape your paper:
- Who has been excluded from the “community�
- How do “community†practices, norms, structures, and metaphors center whiteness, urban spaces, the United States, and specific identities? (Think: the idea of community itself, coming out, visibility, etc.)
- How does activism on behalf of the “community†reinforce structures of power?
You need to cite at least one reading from each of the following weeks of class: The Problem of Community (Joseph & Valentine), Immigration (Manalansan & Decena), and Metronormativity (Thomsen). You may cite readings from previous weeks, but it is not required.
Go to Canvas.umn.edu, Login: AHME0359 Password: Barlinaliahm@2004
Go to ANTH 3047W, Click Modules on left hand side, Scroll down to weeks 12,13,14 where you’ll find the readings.
You also must:
- Use accurate time- and place-specific terminology to describe sex, gender, and sexuality. Remember, for example, that the idea of an LGBT let alone an LGBTQIA+ community did not exist in the 1990s;
- Demonstrate that you have read and watched all of the relevant materials
- Provide correct page numbers from the readings in your in-text citations.
Since this is a Writing Intensive course, you will also be graded on your writing. Your assignment must be three pages long and include:
- A heading with your name, the date, and ANTH 3047W;
- An appropriate title
- An introduction
- A main argument in the first paragraph of your assignment
- Topic sentences that support the main argument and reflect the content of the paragraph
- Transitions between paragraphs, when appropriate
- A conclusion that reviews the content of your essay
- Proper in-text citations using the Chicago Manual of Style
- Evidence that you copyedited for spelling, grammar, and punctuation errors by containing few of these errors
- The following formatting: Times New Roman font, 1†margins, double-spaced text, no breaks (small spaces) between paragraphs, an indentation at the beginning of each new paragraph.
