Sasha Otanez

ENGL 2630

Reflection Paper

Andrea Malouf

Contemporary World Literature taught me so many things it almost doubles

as a history class along with a literature class. In order to understand the readings

fully, background information is needed and I think without taking this class I would

have never known what I know now. Before this class I knew very little about

colonialism. Through videos and stories we learned about how the British colonized

mostly all over the world and the different impacts that has. While I was aware of

the British Empire colonizing different places, I never realized how destructive it

was. Through personal accounts and looking at history afterwards, I have a much

better understanding. I was able to feel the devastation, to be astounded at the

ability to validate the awful things that occurred. This has made me want to question

everything before I just assume. I have learned there is certainly more than just one

story and unfortunately we are mostly taught the Western side of the story. We

watched a video about the Middle East failure of post colonialism and we read a

book that accompanied it. Without that video I dont think I would have a good

understanding of the book or ever know any of that information. I learned about

places I wouldnt be able to find on a map. I was able to see how colonization

affected the failure of post colonization. Everything started clicking and making

sense with what I thought about the present world and what I previously knew
about the past. This class made me more conscious of why things are the way they

are and it made me want to research more in the future about things I am not well

informed about. There was a video about Southeast Asia post colonialism and it

served the same purpose of informing me. It amazed me how much I didnt really

know about the world, and also made me wonder why I had never asked questions

before in my life. Ive always been fine with the history and information given and

have never expanded my views and I dont really know why. This class made me

realize there is so much more in the world I dont know about and all I have to do is

be willing to learn. There are so many works of literature out there just waiting to

be read and understood that could change my life and viewpoint. This course is

hopefully a stepping-stone for a better future. It is a push in the right direction in

order to become a more educated and understanding person.