Need help with the motivation letter for masters

Hey mountain hiker... ive seen all different people from around the world that you've helped... hopefully you can help me polish up my draft of the letter of motivation ... here it is

Dear Sir

I would like to apply to your Master of Arts in English language and literature programme at the Département de langue et littérature anglaises Autumn/Fall semester 2012 at the University of Geneva. My main objective is to further my academic career.

I graduated from the University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka in 2010 with a specialized degree in English literature and language. My main academic interests are Post-colonial studies, Comparative literature, Modernist Literature, and Neo-Classical as well as Absurdist Theatre. Also, I have pursued a keen interest in Classical Literature and Greek and Roman History more or less through independent study and this has added to the texture and depth of my engagement with English Literature. My BA dissertation was an extensive study of nostalgia and recollection in the “University Novel” in Sri Lankan English Literature. It looks at how the exponents of the University Novel look back in nostalgia in order to recreate their experiences in the past. These nostalgic reconstructions of the past are unrealistic, subversive and imaginary. The writers create an imaginary ahistoric domain in which reality is either subverted or conveniently forgotten. My first chapter, ‘Those were the Best Days of My Life’: A Study of Nostalgic Reconstructions in the University Novel, will be published in the forthcoming Sri Lanka Journal of the Humanities 2012 edition.

I’m currently employed at Gateway College Kandy as a Teacher of English Literature. I have also worked as an Instructor in English at the English Language Teaching Unit of the Faculty of Arts at the University of Peradeniya. Moreover, I have privately coached students offering Greek and Roman Literature and History at the national secondary school final examination (i.e., General Certificate of Education: Advanced Level) for over five years.

For my Master’s thesis I would like to research Neo-Orientalist trends in Sri Lankan diasporic writers. The tensions, frictions, fetishes, exoticization, (neo-)orientalism, revision and reimagination in these expatriate Sri Lankan writers, whose narratives and ideologies claim some affinity with a post-colonial Sri Lankan identity beyond the country’s territorial borders and the state. My study will focus on the phenomenon of expatriate re-imaginings that are motivated by complex set of emotions, linked to the circumstances of their expatriation. I will also attempt to study the renditions of local writers of Sri Lanka, how they mimic the subject position of the expatriate writers and employ neo-orientalist and exotic features to market their literature to the west. My study will observe the authenticity of the descriptions presented by these writers in their respective novels, whether the inclusion of certain themes serves a narrative purpose or whether they serve a more clandestine one. I completed my secondary education in Chatswood High School, Sydney, Australia. Having once myself been a member of a diasporic community has immensely contributed to my understanding of the challenges, desires and the identity-making processes of an expatriate writer. I am interested in working with Dr. Martin Leer and Dr. Simone Oettli, who have published extensively in the field of contemporary literature giving emphasis to various aspects of post-coloniality.

As the Secretary of the Sri Lanka Association for Commonwealth Literature and Language Studies (SLACLALS), which is the local chapter of the international Association for Commonwealth Literature and Language Studies (ACLALS), I’ve helped organize the 5th SLACLALS conference, ‘Post-colonial or Postmodern?’, held in 2010 and the 6th conference, ‘The 21st Century Post-colonial: Issues and Challenges in Literature and Language’, held in 2011. I was also the chief organizer of the literary conference SLAM 2010.

Furthermore, I’m a published poet. My first collection of poetry, ‘Froteztology’, was launched at the international Galle Literary Festival in February 2011. My poems engage with the socio- political and economic concerns of Sri Lanka during the critical period of the ethnic war and other issues like language policy. I am pleased to say that my work has been generally well-received, with some critical acclaim. My second literary publication was a translation of the poetry collection titled “Under the Aborted Sky”, by Kasun Dinesh Kumara (A Sinhalese poet) published in 2011.

I want to study at University of Geneva because of your outstanding educational system, focused on gathering relevant work experience, and your excellent facilities. I also want to further my proficiency in the French language. I am a fairly competent French speaker and reader having successfully completed the Diplôme d'études en langue française (DELF) B2 and Niveau Diplôme (four year degree) at the Alliance Fran?aise de Kandy. I am a member of the Executive Committee of Alliance Fran?aise de Kandy since 2007, having served as Treasurer in 2009, 2010 and in 2012.

Given my past history of commitment to excellence and my academic profile, I am confident that I will bring a high level of energy and enthusiasm to your program. I am sure to exceed your expectations, because of both my academic and interpersonal skills as well as the experience gained from my involvement with literary conferences, trainings and work experience. I will enrich the program by enabling fellow students and professors to benefit from my ambitious and open nature. Furthermore, my international background and interdisciplinary education will add more diversity to your program.

Thank you for your time.