Possible Writing Prompts: While the film I Love Hip–hop in Moroccois film is a bit dated at over ten years old, its case study still provides much for us to consider. If, as author Mark Levine contends, “hip–hop has become the music of the age of globalization,” (2008:42) is this a positive or negative phenomenon as faras Morocco is concerned? Can hip–hop cease to be “American” or “African American” and belong to all the world’s musicians? Do Moroccan deejays and rappers risk losing their identity to an American music style, or do they use “the music of the age of globalization” to forge new modern Moroccan identities? Is Moroccan rap a derivative copy of a foreign (American) original for youth who want to be hip, or is Moroccan hip–hop a case of a local appropriation of a global rhythm? What does “Moroccan hip–hop” say both about Morocco and hip–hop in general or American hip–hop in particular? What did you find most surprising or interesting about hip–hop in Morocco
.Essay Assignment: Using Levine’s examples of globalization having both positive and negative potential, describe your opinions regarding the phenomenon of hip–hop in Morocco based upon the film I Love Hip Hop in Morocco. Students may choose to view hip–hop in Morocco positively, negatively, or both. The important thing to do to fulfill the assignment is to 1) evaluate Moroccan hip–hop (positive, negative, mixed) and then 2) support your opinion through examples from the film (and/or ideas from the reading assignment), as well as your own experiences, knowledge, and preferences. Importantly, this is a reflection and opinion paper, not a research paper. There is no single correct answer here, but move beyond merely saying you like or don’t like something to explain why. If, in the end, you feel ambivalent about hip–hop in Morocco, that’s fine, but explain your ambivalence and demonstrate an awareness of positive or negative viewpoints of the subject as expressed by the people in the film or the reading assignment’s author. Use any of the questions raised in the writing prompt above as a point of departure. Butplease do not feel pressured to answer all of the prompts or questions; the assignment is too brief to do that. Rather, view the above prompts and questions as a menu from which you can choose ideas that you wish to discuss. There are additional and more recent news stories about arrest and censorship of musicians in Morocco in the module contents—you may refer to these stories if you wish, but they are optional.•
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