For Tuesday, September 21, by Noon

We're going to do things a little differently from now on. Rather than post the Extract assignments to the site, I want you to email them to me as word files (I have the latest version, so don't worry about file format). Because assignments from now on will require more writing, and because I want to efficiently respond to each piece of writing, you will now turn your extracts in to me as word files. You will NOT post this file to the Extracts site. The site will still be used, but it's going to be repurposed (which I will explain when I get back).

Directions for the assignment:

For this assignment you will obtain four scholarly sources and write a summary and critique for each source. These sources may be either the introduction to a scholarly book or an article published in a scholarly journal. For credit, please complete the following tasks:

1. Look for relevant sources. Use bibliographies from print sources, the WSU library search engine, or other online source aggregation services (JSTOR, EBSCO, Project MUSE) to find four sources that appear interesting to you. Remember, you've already chosen some sources from the bibliography provided by Counihan and von Esterick. It's perfectly okay to use those. In terms of content, the only restriction is that they must be about food, which may include issues of consumption or production (eating or agriculture, for example), or may be focused on a range of issues surrounding a single food commodity. Begin hunting for sources as soon as possible.
2. Obtain these sources, either from the physical library or from the library's online collection of journals. Consider the source by scanning the table of contents and the introduction or first chapter (or, if an article, by looking over the first few paragraphs or pages). If you think the source is going to be pertinent to your interests, keep it. If not, return it and move to another. This is an incredibly important task. You don't want to waste time with a source that isn't a good fit for your interests. 
3. Once you've found your four sources, read them thoroughly and actively (as you've been doing thus far). As a guideline for reading, follow the suggestions outlined in Behrens (esp. the blue box on page seven).
4. Write a summary and critique of each source. The summary you are familiar with, but the critique is likely new. Focus on two questions: 1) will the source be useful to you; and 2) is the argument compelling. The first you will address by matching the interest of the piece with your prospective research interests. You may find that even though the piece is compelling, it may not be suitable or usable in your future work. The second question may be more difficult to answer. Use the strategy outlined in Behrens for assessing the validity of an argument (pages 60-69).

Here are the requirements, in short:

• Four summaries and critiques of four scholarly sources (either intros or journal articles)
• Each summary/critique should be 400 to 600 words long (for a minimum of 1600 words total)
• Use a subheading or transitional sentence to move from one summary/critique to the next
• Begin each summary with the author's thesis, and be sure to use "[the author] argues . . ." forumla
• Email me your completed assignment by Tuesday, September 21, no later than noon
• For examples of good summaries, please see the following: 1, 2, 3, 4. (For two good summaries and an incredible comparison, please see this post.) Remember, these are just examples: they are not perfect but they do certain things very well. Notice especially the opening sentences. Each writer does a good job of representing the thesis of the original article.

As a quick note: the other readings for the week have been pushed back. You will still do them, but they will be due later, and there will be no summaries associated with them. If you have any questions, please let me know right away.