Assignment: Indian Civilizations (FC)

Prof. Aparna Vaidik, Hamza Farooqui and Ishan Bhattacharya

The assignment for this class is an 1800-2000 word research paper. This assignment is designed to
capture your learning within and beyond the class on a chosen theme related to the topics covered in
this course. The assignment is a three-month project and not a task that can be completed in a day
or a week.
The best essays will get a chance to develop it further and get published with the People’s Archive of
Rural India (PARI). Priti David, the Executive Editor at PARI and an award-winning reporter, will
introduce PARI and give a lecture on research-writing on Jan 30. Priti David works with educators to
bring rural issues into the classroom and curriculum, and with young people to document the issues
of our times. Through her lecture, you will gain insights into the significance of fieldwork and
interviewing someone; how to locate your topic and your protagonist in a historical and
socio-political setting; the stages of researching, outlining, and drafting a critical essay.

The Essay-Writing Process

Part I|Background Research|Jan 30 to Feb 28|20% of essay grade

Background Research:
1. Start by inquiring into the material, visual, and/or literary sources that make important
interventions in the chosen theme (the thought and method in PARI articles and class readings
will be instructive here). Combine it with a search for secondary sources on JSTOR.
2. Research the history of the topic, the laws associated with, the current situation and
experiences, how the theme is portrayed in the media, sequence/chronology of the theme.
3. You may want to look up videos, documentaries, films, literature, government reports, court
judgements, Assembly debates, newspaper articles, interviews of people associated with the
theme - any information available in the public domain.
Written Submission by Feb 28: You will submit a write-up of 2-3 paragraphs (500-750 words)
declaring your chosen topic and summarizing your background research. The documents will state
what your topic is; why you wish to work on your chosen topic; what you think is its significance;
your findings from the research; list of the sources you have collected; and the bibliography.
Mandatory Office-Hour Meeting anytime in the month of February: Reach out to your
Teaching Fellows for assistance with your research. During the DS, they will discuss the PARI
articles and how to work with different sources.

Part II |Fieldwork|March 1 to 31|20% of essay grade

Fieldwork:
1. Planning the Fieldwork: Equipped with the basic knowledge of the theme, you will do fieldwork
which involves finding the protagonist of the story you wish to tell and interviewing them.
Keep in mind some important questions you need to ask yourself: who will talk to you, and will
have the time to talk to you? Where will you find them? How will you talk to them? What
language and vocabulary will you use? What do you find yourself gathering from engaging in

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 someone else’s life-world, what we call the ‘field’? What will you wear? What do you need to
carry? What will be the logistics? Plan to finish your fieldwork maximum by March 20, if not
before.
2. Preparing the Questionnaire: The questions should explore the life and experience of the
protagonist/s (if they allow you an entry). The aim is to understand their frame of reference.
Remember they are not your data.
3. Seeking Informed Consent: Obtaining informed consent (oral or written) from those people whose
stories, photos, and videos you choose to incorporate into your essay is imperative. Informed
consent means that the people who are a part of your project must understand why their
concerns and expressions are being asked for, how it will be represented, and to what end.
Those who you ask to assist your study should be as clear about the reason, process and
outcome of your research, as you yourself are.
4. Identification details of the protagonist (or a set of protagonists): make sure you get their name, surname,
age, caste, district, village, family + ask them to share their contact details in case you need to
connect with them again + the date and time of the interview, how many times you met them,
where you met them
Written Submission by March 31: You will submit your fieldnotes and/or interview transcript.
Don’t translate the interviewer’s language into your English vocabulary right off the bat. Remain
with the vernacular expressions and attempt to understand their importance so that you can
meaningfully cite them in your essay.
Mandatory Office-Hour Meeting anytime in the month of March: Please make sure you meet
your Teaching Fellow to discuss fieldwork related issues - how to get started, where to find your
protagonist, troubleshoot problems etc.

Part III|Writing & Peer-Review| March 30- April 30|20% of essay grade
Final Draft to be submitted on April 20: The draft should include:
1. Topic statement stated as a question: What question is your research answering?
2. Your thesis/argument: What is the answer to your research question?
3. Enter the theme through the Protagonist’s story: A summary of your protagonist's life and
experiences. What inferences can you draw from the interview?
4. Tie the protagonist's story to the Background Research: How does the story of your protagonist
connect to the larger story of post-colonial history of India?
5. Incorporate Other sources: How do other sources (film, literature, newspaper materials, paintings,
cartoons, advertisements, popular prints) connect with and take forward the story?
6. Bibliography: Provide a list of the various articles, books, cinema and literature you have
looked at and worked in so far.
Peer- review of the Draft from April 20 to 30th: Your Teaching Fellows will share your draft with
one other peer to give you detailed feedback on your draft and assign a grade (likewise you will
review one essay). This activity will be done online.
Mandatory Office-Hour Meeting anytime in month of April: Please make sure you meet your
Teaching Fellow to discuss your first draft

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Part IV|Final Submission|May 11|40% of your essay grade
Incorporate the peer comments before making the final submission. It is important to keep in mind
that the quality of this paper will depend upon the research methods and skills that you are able to
practice and implement, as it will depend on the nuance and sensitivity of your insights.

What Happens when any Submission is Late?

● Deadlines are firm. Please bear in mind the huge class size and the impossibility of
continuously granting extensions or accomodations.
● Requests for extensions will not be granted, except for illness or family emergencies of
which the Teaching fellows are to be informed before the assignment is due.
● Late submissions will be penalized by a 1/3 of a letter grade a day (B+ becomes B),
including weekends and holidays.

Can You Appeal the Grade?

● You are always welcome to discuss a paper, but if you want the grade reconsidered, you must
first submit a four-paragraph written appeal in which you evaluate your paper in each of the
four criteria: thesis, organization, evidence, and style.
● Remember that a grade does not measure whether you worked extra hours on the
assignment and it certainly does not reflect a value judgment about you as a person.
● A grade constitutes an evaluation of the quality and analytical rigor of the thesis,
organization, evidence, and style of a single piece of work, so ensure that your written appeal
addresses your finished paper in terms of those criteria rather than the time and effort
expended on it.
● Appeals must be submitted no later than one week after graded papers are returned to class.