Discovering Non-Western Memoirs: Using Personal Stories from Diverse Writers in the Secondary Classroom

 

Image from the documentary Two Million Minutes (http://www.2mminutes.com/)

 

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

• INTRODUCTION - A brief introduction to the use of non-western memoirs in the secondary classroom.
• READING NON-WESTERN MEMOIRS - A rationale for the use of multicultural memoirs as well as a list of non-western memoirs for upper level readers.
• APPLICATION FOR THE CLASSROOM
  • WHAT IS STYLE- A lesson plan and presentation materials for how secondary teachers might present non-western memoirs to their students.
  • GRAPHIC ORGANIZER: UNDERSTANDING THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN MEMOIRS AND AUTOBIOGRAPHIES - A graphic organizer to use with students to help explain the differences between fiction and non-fiction, between autobiographies and memoirs.
  • CULTURES POEM - An example of a creative writing lesson in which students use their knowledge of various cultures to write a poem about an experience interacting with a culture other than their own.  Includes an example poem.
• LIST OF RESOURCES FOR EDUCATORS - A list of resources to help educators further their own knowledge and use of non-western memoir writers in the classroom.
• WORKS CONSULTED

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INTRODUCTION:

 

“Memoirs are in essence historical documents. They are timeless perennials that not only describe a period of history, but also address the universality of collective human experiences. History, after all, happens to real people. It isn't just cold facts, but a living, organic changing thing. It is about life, human life, with all its triumphs and failures, its increases and decreases, its courage and weakness, its lights and darks.”

--Eleanor Ramrath Garner

 

            As educator Eleanor Ramrath Garner writes in the introduction to her 2004 ALAN Review article titled “Memoirs In Adolescent Literature,” there has not been enough written about the significance of using memoirs and personal stories in the classroom.  Whether it is because memoirs fall into a grey area somewhere between fiction and non-fiction, or whether it is because of a lack of familiarity on the part of teachers, memoirs are generally a forgotten genre in the world of secondary education.  This is strange given that the genre has been steadily rising in popularity with the general pubic since the early 1990s.  In fact as early as 1996, New York Times writer James Atlas pointed out, “the triumph of memoir is now established fact.” And it is easy to understand why. As many writers have pointed out, memoirs not only expose readers to truths about the human experience, but they also connect readers to the lives of others.  Memoirs, Atlas suggests, are “…a democratic genre -- inclusive, a multiculturalist would say. The old and the young; the famous and the obscure; the crazy and the sane…” Because anyone can be a memoirist, everyone can connect to the memoir.

This is an even more important idea to consider when reflecting on the use of multicultural literature in the classroom.  A great deal has been written about the benefits of using the voices of writers from a variety of backgrounds in the classroom setting.  Caroline Cavillo suggests, “One should think of critical multicultural literacy as citizenship or character education, precisely because it concerns itself with issues of power, domination, authoritarianism, and the diversity of human beings and their decisions about how to act, think, and behave with others.” It is for these reasons in addition to so many others that the use of literature from non-western writers has become a priority for many educators.  Literature from traditionally under represented populations not only broadens students’ cultural horizons, but it also aids in the articulation of shared and differing values, exposes students to a variety of writing styles and themes, builds empathy, and connects students to a world that is growing smaller through technological advances.

Although a great deal has been written about the importance of including multicultural voices in the classroom, and some has been written about how memoirs might be used, when combined, there are very few educators writing about the use of memoirs from non-western authors as a way to connect students to perspectives and voices from other walks of life. And yet, this seems to be intuitive.  As educator and writer Katherine Bomer points out in her book Writing a Life: Teaching Memoir to Sharpen Insight, Shape Meaning--and Triumph Over Tests, memoirs are “…how we connect to each other, how we find out that other people feel the way we do. It is also how we learn about lives that are vastly different from our own so that our minds and hearts can stretch to understand how life is for others” (Bomer 2). An exploration of memoirs written by non-western authors brings numerous benefits to the secondary classroom. As will be explored in this project, many of these benefits include:

• encouraging students to make connections
• encouraging students to think about how writers engage their readers
• gaining exposure to a variety of perspectives, beliefs, and values
• broadening students’ cultural horizons
• aiding in the articulation of shared and differing values
• exposing students to a variety of writing styles and themes
• building critical thinking skills and reasoning abilities
• building empathy

The use of non-western memoirs in the secondary classroom is a genre that not only needs more exposure but also needs to find its way into the classrooms of American schools.

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READING NON-WESTERN MEMOIRS: 

  Why Memoirs?

As Katherine Bomer writes in her education text Writing a Life: Teaching Memoir to Sharpen Insight, Shape Meaning--and Triumph Over Tests, memoirs help readers connect. She writes that memoirs are “…how we connect to each other, how we find out that other people feel the way we do. It is also how we learn about lives that are vastly different from our own so that our minds and hearts can stretch to understand how life is for others” (Bomer 2).

·          Reading memoirs encourages self-reflection

·          Reading memoirs exposes students to various beliefs, experiences, and events outside of their daily lives

·          Reading memoirs teaches students about other perspectives

·          Reading memoirs encourages students to make connections

·          Reading memoirs encourages students to think about how writers engage their readers

·          Because memoirs can be written by anyone, they demonstrate to students that anyone can be a writer

 

      But Why Non-Western Memoirs?

Like many other educators and writers before her, Bomer understands that exposing students to a variety of cultures and perspectives has unlimited advantages for students.  Namely, she writes that ““…learning about someone else’s life invites us our own self-perspectives but also broadens our knowledge and understanding of lives that are outside of our narrow experience” (Bomer 12).

·          Broadens students’ cultural horizons

·          Aids in the articulation of shared and differing values

·          Exposes students to a variety of writing styles

·          Exposes students to a variety of themes

·          Builds critical thinking skills

·          Builds empathy

·          In an world growing smaller through technological advances, non-western literature helps our students become better global citizens

 

     Non-Western Memoirs for Upper Level Readers:

 

China/Tibet	TITLE	AUTHOR		DESCRIPTION
	Chinese Cinderella	Adeline Yen Mah		Blamed for the loss of her mother, who died shortly after giving birth to her, Mah is an outcast in her own family. When her father remarries and moves the family to Shanghai to evade the Japanese during WWII, Mah and her siblings are relegated to second-class status by their stepmother. (Publishers Weekly)
	Falling Leaves	Adeline Yen Mah		Adeline Yen Mah was the youngest child of an affluent Chinese family who enjoyed rare privileges during a time of cultural upheaval. But wealth and position could not shield her from abuse at the hands of a cruel stepmother. Falling Leaves is a continuation of her earlier memoir Chinese Cinderella.
	Leaving Mother Lake: A Girlhood at the Edge of the World	Yang Erche Namu		This memoir transports readers to the remote reaches of the Himalayas, to a place the Chinese call “the country of daughters,” to the home of the Moso, a society in which women rule. Namu is driven to leave her mother’s, to pursue a singing career in the city, and in the process, defy the tradition that hold Moso culture together. (book jacket)
	Woman Warrior: Memoirs of a Girlhood Among Ghosts	Maxine Hong Kingston		The Woman Warrior is the memoir of a young woman growing up Chinese American in Stockton, California.  She attempts to find her voice amidst the "story-talkers" and the ghosts of her girlhood.
	Freedom in Exile: The Autobiography of the Dalai Lama	The 14th Dalai Lama of Tibet		The exiled leader of Tibet recounts his life, from the time he was whisked away from his home in 1939 at the age of 4, to his escape from Tibet in 1959, to his winning of the Nobel Peace Prize in 1989. The backdrop of the story is the 1950 Chinese invasion of Tibet. Yet the Dalai Lama's story is one of hope.  (Amazon.com)
	The Autobiography of a Tibetan Monk	Palden Gyatso		Palden Gyatso followed his heart into the monastery at the age of 10 to study under his uncle, also a monk. By his mid-20s, when he should have been preparing for college, he instead found himself behind the bars of a Chinese communist prison. For 30 years, he endured interrogations, starvation, and torture.  (Amazon.com)
Africa	They Poured Fire on Us From the Sky	Alphonsion Deng, Benson Deng, and Benjamin Ajak		Raised by Sudan's Dinka tribe, the Deng brothers and their cousin Benjamin were all under the age of seven when they left their homes after terrifying attacks on their villages during the Sudanese civil war. Well written, often poetic essays by Benson, Alepho and Benjamin, recall their childhood experiences, their treacherous trek and their education in the refugee camp. (Publishers Weekly)
	Kaffir Boy: The True Story of a Black Youth's Coming of Age in Apartheid South Africa	Mark Mathabane		Mark Mathabane grows up in the midst of devastating poverty and the cruel streets of South Africa's most desperate ghetto, where gang wars and police raids were his rites of passage.  Yet armed with the courage of his family and a hard-won education, Mark raised himself up from the squalor and humiliation to win a scholarship to an American university.  (Amazon.com)
	Ordinary Man: An Autobiography	Paul Rusesabagina		Over the course of 100 days in Rwanda in 1994, some 800,000 people were slaughtered. Rusesabagina—inspiration for the movie Hotel Rwanda—used his facility with words to save 1,268 of his fellow countrymen, turning the Belgian luxury hotel under his charge into a sanctuary from madness.  (Amazon.com)
	Aké: The Years of Childhood	Wole Soyinka		Aké: The Years of Childhood is a memoir of stunning beauty, humor, and perception--a lyrical account of one boy's attempt to grasp the often irrational and hypocritical world of adults that equally repels and seduces him.
India	Monsoon Diary: A Memoir with Recipes	Shoba Narayan		Monsoon Diary weaves a fascinating food narrative that combines delectable Indian recipes with tales from her life, stories of her eccentric family, and musings about Indian culture. Narayan recounts her childhood in South India, her college days, her arranged marriage, and visits from her parents.  (Amazon.com)
Middle East	The Other Side of the Sky	Farah Ahmedi		Farah chronicles her journey from war to peace.  Equal parts tragedy and hope, determination and daring, her memoir delievers a remarkably vivid portrait of her girlhood in Kabul, Afghanistan, where the sounds of gunfire and bombs shape her life. (book jacket)
	West of Kabul, East of New York: An Afghan American Story	Tamim Ansary		In a friendly and often humorous style, Ansary charms readers with colorful stories of his life in Afghanistan and America, and shows what it is like to belong to two very different cultures. His mother  was Finnish-American and his father was an Afghan from a distinguished and talented family engaged in the country's first attempt at modernization. (School Library Journal)
	Reading Lolita in Tehran: A Memoir in Books	Azar Nafisi		In 1995, after resigning from her job as a professor at a university in Tehran, Azar Nafisi invited 7 of her best female students to attend a weekly study of great Western literature in her home. Since the books they read were banned, the women were forced to meet in secret, often sharing photocopied pages of the novels. (Amazon.com)
Japan	The Dream of Water: A Memoir	Kyoko Mori		A poignant and honest memoir by a Japanese American woman who returns to her homeland after many years' absence. Mori explores the emotional and spiritual complexities of having severed ties with loved ones, and how a change in time and place recasts, taints, and illuminates one's perception. (Amazon.com)
Latin and South America	When I Was Puerto Rican	Esmeralda Santiago		Esmerelda and her seven siblings live in a corrugated metal shack in Puerto Rico. She is uprooted as a result of poverty and her parents' quarreling. The girl goes to New York, where her grandmother lives, and must rely on her intelligence and talents to help her survive in her new world.
	I, Rigoberta Menchu	Rigoberta Menchu		"This is my testimony. I didn't learn it from a book and I didn't learn it alone... My personal experience is the reality of a whole people." Born in the mountains of Guatemala into the Quiche, one of twenty-three mestizo groups, Rigoberta Menchu tells her story.
Non-fiction Booklists - www.seemore.mi.org/booklists/nonfic.html			List of Memoirs on Nancy Keane's Children's Literature Webpage - http://nancykeane.com/rl/324.htm

 

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APPLICATION FOR THE CLASSROOM:

 

Introductory PowerPoint for Using Non-Western Memoirs:

  Non-western Memoirs.ppt

 

Introductory Lesson Plan: What is Style?

Subject:           Tenth grade honors English class focused on world literatures.

 

Lesson:            The tenth grade English students are about to begin their study of non-western memoirs. As an introductory lesson, students will discuss what constitutes a writer’s or a genre’s style.  This will then be applied to memoirs, giving students a clearer understanding of how memoirs differ from other writing styles.

 

Objective:        Having read two memoirs as part of the summer reading assignment, the tenth grade honors English student will think critically about how to apply the term style to the genre of memoir writing.  Using this information, the student will demonstrate his or her knowledge of the terms through individual brainstorming and small and large group discussions.  Additionally, the student will be able to apply his or her knowledge through an in class reading.     

 

Materials:         The students will need the literary terms section of their class binder, something with which to write, and a copy of the prologue from Esmeralda Santiago’s memoir When I Was Puerto Rican.  The teacher will need a PowerPoint to introduce the concepts and definitions of style and memoir.

  

Standards:       The following Pennsylvania standards will be addressed in this lesson –

1.2.11.    Reading critically in all content areas

A.      Read and understand essential content of informational texts and documents in all academic areas.

·         Differentiate fact from opinion across a variety of texts by using complete and accurate information, coherent arguments and points of view.

·         Distinguish between essential and nonessential information across a variety of sources, identifying the use of proper references or authorities and propaganda techniques where present.

·         Use teacher and student established criteria for making decisions and drawing conclusions.

·         Evaluate text organization and content to determine the author’s purpose and effectiveness according to the author’s theses, accuracy, thoroughness, logic and reasoning.

1.3.11      Reading, Analyzing and Interpreting Literature

B.      Analyze the relationships, uses and effectiveness of literary elements used by one or more authors in similar genres including characterization, setting, plot, theme, point of view, tone and style.

C.      Analyze the effectiveness, in terms of literary quality, of the author’s use of literary devices.

·         Sound techniques (e.g., rhyme, rhythm, meter, alliteration).

·         Figurative language (e.g., personification, simile, metaphor, hyperbole, irony, satire).

·         Literary structures (e.g., foreshadowing, flashbacks, progressive and digressive time).

 

Anticipatory Set:         

Activating Prior Knowledge (5 minutes) – Having previously discussed various genres, the teacher will begin the lesson on style by asking students to complete a brief brainstorming activity.  The teacher will direct the students to open their notebooks and respond to the following prompt: “Take a few minutes to brainstorm any words or phrases that come to mind when someone asks you to examine a work’s (or a specific author’s) writing style.” This activity will lead to further discussion of what constitutes style.

 

Lesson:                       

What is Style?:  (10 minutes) Following the brainstorming activity, the teacher will have the students turn to the person sitting next to them in order to share their responses.  Then, the teacher will ask for volunteers and together the class will create a list on the board of the characteristics of style.  The teacher will then show students a definition of style (on a PowerPoint) and the class will clarify their initial responses, adding the definition to the literary terms section of their binder.

• Style is not what is written, but the way an author puts together words, phrases, and ideas.
• Style is “…the literary element that describes the ways that the author uses words – the author’s word choice, sentence structure, figurative language, and sentence arrangement all work together to establish mood, images, and meaning in a text” (Gardner).
  • Diction – Does the writer use a great deal of jargon? Does the piece rely on slang or more formal vocabulary?
  • Sentence Structure – Does the writer rely on short, terse sentences? Does the writer string together multiple clauses and phrases? Does the writer use parallel structure within the text?
  • Point of View – Does the writer tell the story from a first person point of view? Is the writer’s third person point of view biased?
  • Narration Style – What figurative language devices does the writer use? Metaphors? Similes? Personification?
  • Tone – Do the writer’s words convey sincerity or is the writer being sarcastic?
  • Sentence Arrangement – How does the writer chose to organize the elements of the story? Are sentences arranged chronologically or is the story written as a stream-of-consciousness piece?

 

Applying our Definition: (15 minutes) The teacher will then distribute copies of the prologue from Esmeralda Santiago’s memoir When I Was Puerto Rican. Students will be given the following directions: “Keep our descriptive words and definition for style in mind as you read the following piece.  As you read, take note of words, phrases, or passages that clue you in to the work’s style. As you read, ask yourself: How is this written?” Following their reading, students will compare their text notes with a student sitting next to them. Then, as a class, the students will create a list of stylistic characteristics for this particular text.

 

Understanding the Style of Memoirs: (5 minutes) The teacher will tell the class that this particular passage is considered a memoir.  The teacher will display a definition for memoir and have the students record the definition into the literary terms section of their binder.

·         A memoir is a non-fiction text that

o        Focuses on a specific period in the writer’s life

o        Uses a narrative structure

o        Describes events and explains/shows the significance, usually of high emotional content

o        Reflects on a significant relationship between the author and a person, place, or object 

o        Centers on a problem and resolution

o        Remains in first person

 

The teacher will then ask students to consider how the Santiago piece fits the definition for a memoir. The teacher will engage the class in how the genre of memoirs differs from other genres such as fiction, biography, and autobiography.

 

Closing Activities:     

Review and Reminders (1 minute) - Conclude the lesson by reviewing what we learned about style. This lesson will act a s springboard for reading, discussing, and analyzing the style of non-western memoirs in a later class.

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Understanding Different Writing Styles: What is the Difference Between Memoirs and Autobiographies? 

·         What is a personal essay?  Having read the prologue to Esmeralda Santiago’s When I Was Puerto Rican, students will brainstorm on the board characteristics of the three types of essays they have been asked to write in school – narrative, informational, and persuasive.  With the teacher’s help, the students will come up with a grid similar to the one found below.  Students will then copy these notes into their binders.

Narrative	Informational/Expository	Persuasive/Transactive
·          Autobiographies – chronological recollections of a person’s life events ·          Stories ·          Personal Narrative – a reflection on a significant event ·          Memoir – a reflection on a significant relationship between the author and a person, place, or object ·          Personal essay – a reflection about a belief or insight about life	·          Writing to explain or inform ·          Tell what happened when . . .  ·          Write a report on . . .  ·          Explain how to . . .  ·          Describe how to . . . ·          Explain how to . . . ·          Research paper ·          Book reports ·          Character analysis	·          Writing to convince and persuade ·          Win an argument through use of evidence ·          Specific audience in mind ·          Op-Ed ·          Position papers

 

• Next the teacher will ask the students to spend some time thinking about narrative essays, which can be either fiction or non-fiction.  Students will complete the graphic organizer on the following page.  They will then share their responses with a peer.  The teacher and the students will build a class Venn diagram on the board.  Students will add to their own graphic organizers as new information is written on the board.
• Finally, the teacher along with the class will discuss the stylistic differences between a memoir and an autobiography and complete the last portion of their graphic organizer.
• CLICK HERE FOR A COPY OF THE GRAPHIC ORGANIZER:  graphic organizer.doc

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Cultures Poem:

 

Marriages Are Made By Eunice deSouza

My cousin Elena

is to be married

The formalities

have been completed:

her family history examined

for T.B. and madness

her father declared solvent

her eyes examined for squints

her teeth for cavities

her stools for the possible

non-Brahmin worm.

She's not quite tall enough

and not quite full enough

(children will take care of that)

Her complexion it was decided

would compensate, being just about

the right shade

of rightness

to do justice to

Francisco X. Noronha Prabhu

good son of Mother Church.

 

Here Eunice deSouza writes about her experiences with Hindu culture, specifically about what it is like for a woman in Hindu culture.  What is her perspective? What do readers learn about this culture from her poem?

 

Resources for Educators:

 

 

 

The Expanding Canon: Teaching Multicultural Literature in High School

http://www.learner.org/channel/workshops/hslit/index.html

·         Put together by Annenberg Media’s Learner.org, this website explores Native American, African American, Asian American and Latino works through various pedagogical approaches and offers many linked lesson plans.

 

 

Web English Teacher: Autobiography, Biography, Personal Narrative, and Memoir Lesson plans and teaching ideas

http://www.webenglishteacher.com/biography.html

·         This website, put together by teacher Carla Beard, offers many linked lesson plans for how to use personal writing and memoirs in the classroom.

 

 

Supporting Linguistically and Culturally Diverse Learners in English Education

http://www.ncte.org/groups/cee/positions/ 122892.htm

• Together with the National Council for Teachers of English, the Conference on English Education established a number of guidelines to help educators think about intergrating a variety of cultural perspectives and materials into their curriculum.

 

Booklists for Young Adults on the Web: Nonfiction

http://www.seemore.mi.org/booklists/nonfic.html

·         Compiled by librarian Maggi Rohde, this website is linked to many other sites that provide extensive booklists and book reviews for using memoirs with students.

 

Read Write Think

http://www.readwritethink.org/

·         This website, in conjunction with the National Council for Teachers of English and Thinkfinity, offers a wealth of lesson plans for teachers.  Use the search box in the upper left corner to search for lessons on “multicultural memoirs.”

 

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Works Consulted

 

 

Atlas, James. “Confessing for Voyeurs;The Age of The Literary Memoir Is Now.”  New York Times

Magazine. 12 May 1996. 6 August 2008 <http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html

?res=9C03E6D61539F931A25756C0A960958260>.

Bomer, Katherine. Writing a Life: Teaching Memoir to Sharpen Insight, Shape Meaning--and

Triumph Over Tests. Portsmouth, NH: Heinmann, 2005.

Calvillo, Caroline. “Memoir and Autobiography: Pathways to Examining the Multicultural Self.”

Multicultural Education. Fall 2003. BNET Business Network. 6 August 2008 <http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3935/ is_200310/ai_n9322310>.

Dong, Yu Ren. “Taking a Culture-Response Approach to Teaching Multicultural Texts.” English

Journal. Jan. 2005. 55-60. National Council for Teachers of English. 29 July 2008 <http://www.ncte.org/library/files/Publications/ Journals/ej/0943-jan05/EJ0943Taking.pdf>.

Gardner, Traci. “Style: Defining and Exploring an Author’s Stylistic Choices.” Read Write Think.

2002-2008. International Reading Association. 29 July 2008

<http://www.readwritethink.org/lessons/lesson_view.asp?id=209>.

Garner, Eleanor Ramrath. “Memoirs In Adolescent Literature.” ALAN Review. Summer 2004. BNET

Business Network. 6 August 2008 <http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa4063/ is_200407/ai_n9456868>.

“Supporting Linguistically and Culturally Diverse Learners in English Education.” Conference on

English Education. 2005. National Council for Teachers of English. 29 July 2008 <http://www.ncte.org/groups/cee/positions/ 122892.htm>.