We are excited to announce a new pool of articles/essays for use in WR 112 in 2022-2023, replacing the often dated essays in Globalization, our former anthology. WR 112 instructors should choose 9-11 of the more substantive essays from the following list to use as the expository texts that comprise the first 2/3 of the reading work of the course; select a thematically-linked novel, memoir, or graphic novel/graphic memoir of your choice for the final 1/3 of the semester. This revision of readings is the first step in revising WR 112; look for additional changes to the course for 2023-2024, as instructors will be working to reimagine the WR 112 content and pedagogy through an antiracist lens.

Instructors should plan on transitioning to this new set of readings over the course of 2022-2023. You may also wish to bring in additional level-appropriate articles or essays of your own choosing, as long as they are thematically connected to our Hub unit. Please share any additional essays/articles you are using so that we may add them to our common pool of readings.

In selecting the articles below, we have kept the following principles in mind:

  • Appropriate level of difficulty for WR 112
  • Connections to a rich and diverse selection of longer works (novels, memoirs, etc.)
  • Different genres and types of essays
  • Diversity in the race, gender, and national origin of the authors
  • Easy and dependable access to the article, either through BU Library electronic resources or open access
  • Connection to the Hub theme for WR 112: Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy (see below)

WR 112 and the BU Hub

The BU Hub (general education requirements for all undergraduates across BU’s many schools and colleges) provides a broad and focused learning area of interdisciplinary learning experiences to prepare students for an increasingly interconnected world. Towards such an end, the BU Hub contains six essential capacities:

  1. Philosophical, Aesthetic, and Historical Interpretation
  2. Scientific and Social Inquiry
  3. Quantitative Reasoning
  4. Diversity, Civic Engagement, and Global Citizenship
  5. Communication
  6. Intellectual Toolkit.

WR 112 fulfills one unit in “Diversity, Civic Engagement, and Global Citizenship,” specifically in the area of “Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy” in which students are guided to explore how “our world is interlinked socially, economically, culturally, and politically.”

When choosing readings for WR 112, it may be wise to maintain as a frame of reference the introductory language for this Hub area: “An ability to orient ourselves when outside our cultural comfort zones (abroad, in a foreign-language context, in an unfamiliar neighborhood of Boston, for example) and to work with sensitivity with people from different backgrounds is necessary to success in the workplace and to living a productive, meaningful life.”

Specific learning outcomes for our Hub unit include the following:

  1. Students will demonstrate, through comparative analysis, an understanding of global diversity as expressed in at least two different languages, cultures, religions, political systems, or societies.
  2. Students will demonstrate detailed understanding of at least two cultural contexts through foreign language or culture study at BU, participation in a language or culture living-learning community at BU, or study abroad. This will involve reflection on the challenges and pleasures students discover in orienting themselves in new and unfamiliar cultures.

New Readings by Theme

The articles below are grouped broadly by theme, and, within a theme, are alphabetized by author’s last name. Though some articles are listed under more than one theme, there are of course many more interesting points of connection between articles spanning themes than we are able to note here. Faculty are encouraged to use the themes below as a starting point for populating their syllabus, considering possible connections students might make in a comparative analysis and synthesis.

Download a list of all new readings, with links.