Project Descriptions
As Chinese learners for years, we used the book Dream of Ding Village as a language resource for intermediate-level Chinese learning. Thus, our projects focus on using the target language, comic, and narrative to retell the critical plot stories and interpret the relationships between characters.
Aimika, Sierra, Jordan, Elicia, and Nicole at SOMS| Multi-media narrative (YouTube)
The dilemma of Ding Village: Establishing and breaking rules
This project focuses on how sick villagers were quarantined in a school and what happened when they were in the school. Especially, we introduced how Grandpa established the rules and how the rules were broken by the villagers. This process shows that Grandpa’s dream and the ways of preventing the spread of AIDS failed.
Alex and Viktor at VAHS | Multi-media narrative (YouTube)
The village‘s dying hope
This project focuses on two characters, Ma XiangLin and Li Sanren. They were not in Ding’s family, but they were important because their tragedies show how desperate individual villagers were. When AIDS happened, they could not save themselves, nor could they save important things.
Aliya and Amelia at VAHS| Multi-media narrative (Youtube)
Grandpa’s loss of power and position
This project tells the process that Grandpa lost his power and position. We re-interpreted the story in order to understand the relationships between 1) the Grandpa, Ding Yuejing, and Jia Genzhu, 2) the thieves in the school, and 3) Ding Liang and Lingling.
Adam and Connor at VAHS |Multi-media narrative (Youtube)
The story of the old village head, Li Sanren
This project focuses on the story of Li Sanren, the old village head. His story is interesting because he changed his idea from no-blood-selling to blood selling; his death was hilarious to some extent, which makes his life even more like a tragedy. Li Sanren’s story shows that in a time and a place that everyone was “crazy,” no individual could survive.
Brita, Josie, Mara at VAHS| Multi-media narrative (Youtube)
Conflicts in and outside of the school
This project focuses on the death of Ma Xianglin and the story of the uncle, uncle’s wife, the uncle’s new lover, Lingling. Each of them has multiple sides and was engaged in different conflicts. Their complicated relationships show that Ding Village would have many tragedies, and Grandpa could not save it by himself.