Lesson Three - Emma Watson Speaks to the UN

Introduction

Lesson Three - Emma Watson Speaks to the United Nations
Duration - 1 block (1 x 80 min + homework)

"The more I spoke about feminism, the more I realized that fighting for women’s rights has too often become synonymous with man-hating. If there is one thing I know for certain, it is that this has to stop. For the record, feminism by definition is the belief that men and women should have equal rights and opportunities. It is the theory of political, economic and social equality of the sexes." - Emma Watson

On Saturday, September 20, 2014, British actor and Goodwill Ambassador for UN Women, Emma Watson, gave a speech about gender inequality and how to fight it. In doing so, she launched the HeForShe initiative, which aims to get men and boys to pledge to join the feminist fight for gender equality. In the speech, Ms. Watson makes the very important point that in order for gender equality to be achieved, harmful and destructive stereotypes of and expectations for masculinity have got to change. 

Lesson

View the video of Emma Watson's speech to the United Nations.

You may also want to read her speech.

Review the notes and rubric on writing a personal response to text.

View the tutorial on writing a personal response to text.

Assignment

(40 marks)

Open a new Word document. Label it E101U2L3surname 
In this document, write the good copy of your personal response to text as outlined below.
Submit this assignment using the Dropbox for U2L3 Emma Watson personal response

Reflect upon the ideas and impressions suggested by Emma Watson.
What does her speech suggest to you regarding self-discovery?
Support your idea with reference to the text presented and to your previous knowledge and/or experience.

In your writing you should

• select a prose form that is appropriate to the ideas you wish to express and that will enable you to effectively communicate to the reader (short essay, diary entry, journal entry, newspaper article, editorial, interior monologue, short story, personal observation, etc.)
• discuss ideas and impressions that are meaningful to you
• respond from a personal, critical and/or creative perspective
• consider how you can create a strong unifying effect

(Your assignment will be marked using the "personal response to texts" rubric.)

Resources

Website
Text of Emma Watson's Speech

NOTES
personal response to text

RUBRIC
personal response to text

VIDEO

Conclusion

Emma Watson concludes her speech by stating, "If you believe in equality, you might be one of those inadvertent feminists that I spoke of earlier, and for this, I applaud you. We are struggling for a uniting word, but the good news is, we have a uniting movement. It is called HeForShe. I invite you to step forward, to be seen and to ask yourself, 'If not me, who? If not now, when?'" Are you ready to rise to such a challenge?