Q: Define critical race theory.
A: Critical race theory is the intellectual and social movement and loosely organized framework of legal analysis based on the premise that race is not a natural, biologically grounded feature of physically distinct subgroups of human beings but a socially constructed (culturally invented) category that is used to oppress and exploit people of colour. Critical race theorists hold that racism is inherent in the law and legal institutions of the United States insofar as they function to create and maintain social, economic, and political inequalities between whites and nonwhites, especially African Americans. Critical race theorists are generally dedicated to applying their understanding of the institutional or structural nature of racism to the concrete (if distant) goal of eliminating all race-based and other unjust hierarchies.
Britannica. (2024). Critical Race Theory. In Encyclopaedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/topic/critical-race-theory
Q: What are the basic tenets of critical race theory?
A:
Introduction: Includes a thesis that directly answers the question.
Thesis: There are six basic tenets of critical race theory: the social construction of race, the normality of racism, the convergence of interest, differential racialization, intersectionality, and the voice of color.
Body: Each of the bullet points is a paragraph explaining a basic tenet, including descriptive details and examples.
- The social construction of race
First, race is socially constructed, not biologically natural. The biogenetic notion of race—the idea that the human species is divided into distinct groups on the basis of inherited physical and behavioral differences—was finally refuted by genetic studies in the late 20th century. Social scientists, historians, and other scholars now agree that the notion of race is a social construction (though there is no consensus regarding what exactly a social construction is or what the process of social construction consists of). Some CRT theorists hold that race is an artificial association or correlation between a set of physical characteristics—including skin colour, certain facial features, and hair texture—and an imagined set of psychological and behavioral tendencies, conceived as either positive or negative, good or bad. The associations have been created and maintained by dominant groups (in the United States, whites of western European descent) to justify their oppression and exploitation of other groups on the basis of the latter’s supposed inferiority, immorality, or incapacity for self-rule.
- The normality of racism
- The convergence of interest
- Differential racialization
- Intersectionality
- The voice of color
Conclusion: Emphasizes how the parts or components described above make up the term, concept, or idea in question.
Together, these six basic tenets make up the foundation of critical race theory and provide it with clarity and coherence, giving scholars essential insights into the study of race within a legal context.
Britannica. (2024). Critical Race Theory. In Encyclopaedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/topic/critical-race-theory
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Q: How is APA different from and similar to MLA in terms of citation?
A: Both APA and MLA employ an in-text citation system and an accompanying list of references (also called a bibliography). The main differences between APA and MLA citation, due to the difference in their intended purpose, are the organization of a source's bibliographic information and the technical name of the bibliography.
APA style requires that academic writers cite using the author–date system in the text, with an accompanying list of referenced sources at the end of the document. This list of references should be on a separate page from the writing, and be titled References. As such, APA is the preferred citation style in many behavioral and social sciences fields, as well as other fields that value the currency of the research.
MLA citation, in contrast, prefers the author–page system in the text. In MLA style, the list of references is called the Works Cited list, also on a separate page from the rest of the paper. Thus, MLA style is more commonly used in the humanities, including literary, cultural, and media studies, where locating the citation within the original source is the priority.
Q: Discuss how loosening the policy around off-campus work affects international students.
A:
International students can benefit from a more flexible and forgiving off-campus work policy because [Argument 1], [Argument 2], and [Argument 3].
Argument 1. Data (citation). Therefore, ... For instance, example (citation). Consequently, ...
Argument 2. Quote (citation). This explains how ... As a result, ...
Argument 3. However, ... Quote (citation). For this reason, ...
In conclusion, a more flexible off-campus working policy will work in international students' favor because [Argument 1], [Argument 2], and [Argument 3].
Q: How can Ocean Vuong's relationship with the Vietnamese language be interpreted through his novel On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous?
A:
Introduction: Includes a thesis that directly answers the question.
Thesis: Ocean Vuong's relationship with Vietnamese, his mother tongue, is an oft-explored theme that is also frequently approached with the same naïveté he prescribes to the white characters that he criticizes in his novel On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous.
Body
Excerpt of primary source to be assessed: An instance of this is when Vuong compares the two seemingly similar words yêu and yếu, in which he writes: "In my language, the one I recall now only by closing my eyes, the word for love is Yêu. / And the word for weakness is Yếu. / How you say what you mean changes what you say." (Vuong, 2019).
Interpretation of quote: In reality, these two words are only esoterically and arbitrarily connected and do not carry the same poetic weight that he insists.
Effects and implications: This comparison only seems to work because Vuong presumes that his audience is predominantly white, and thus lacks the mythical linguistic and metaphoric sensibility that the people of Vietnam supposedly have.
Secondary/supporting source(s): As Andrea Long Chu puts it, "the pathos here thus depends largely on the reader's total ignorance of Vietnamese." (Long Chu, 2025)
Conclusion
Vuong's relationship with Vietnamese, ultimately, is one that is characterized by his forceful detachment from his native land by a tumultuous history, yet at the same time one that he continues to exploit in a relatively childish attempt to become the arbitrator of authenticity, a commonly caricatured symptom of many diasporic poets in literary stardom.
References
Long Chu, A. (2025). The Romance of Being Unreadable. New York, 58(10), 74–78.
Vuong, O. (2019). On Earth we’re briefly gorgeous. Penguin Press.
