Seneca College of Applied Arts & Technology
School of English & Liberal Studies
FINAL EXAMINATION
Course Title: CUL604 Term: Winter 2022
Course Code: NBA/NBB
Value: 30%
Professor: Carla Ionescu Time: 2 hours
School of English & Liberal Studies
Student Name:
Student Number:
EXAMINATION AIDS PERMITTED (check applicable boxes)
☒No Additional Material Allowed
☐ Scrap Paper (to be handed in) ☐ Notes
☐ Dictionary – English only, printed ☐ Calculators (non-programmable only)
☐ Textbooks ☐Formula Sheets (attached)
☐ Please Specify: _______________________
Students are expected to complete their exams in accordance with the Academic Integrity Policy’s commitment to honesty, fairness, trust, respect, responsibility, and courage. Cheating, Collusion, Plagiarism, and other violations of the policy are offences that will be reported to the Academic Integrity Committee.
INSTRUCTIONS:
FILM: The Conjuring (2013)
Part I: Please choose only ONE of the following questions, do not answer both. Answers for each question should be approximately 200-300 words each, language can be informal but please make sure grammar is correct and academic. You can use examples from the film as evidence if you feel it supports your answer.
1. Suppose someone said, “You wrote about The Conjuring for the final exam in your film course! I saw that movie. It was entertaining–uplifting and all that, and yeah, I know it won a bunch of academy awards. But why would anyone want to pay it special attention?” How would you respond (and thus demonstrate the benefits of paranormal studies)?
2. Using The Conjuring as your sole example, describe the way Hollywood presents the supernatural using the genre of horror and fear.
Part II: Please choose only ONE of the following questions, do not answer both. Answers for each question should be approximately 200-300 words each, language can be informal but please make sure grammar is correct and academic. You can use examples from the film as evidence if you feel it supports your answer.
1. At first glance, The Conjuring is a subjective film–rarely “objective.” Virtually every scene is motivated by the Perron family refusing to leave their home. Thus, since the film is virtually a collage of chronologically of frightening ghost stories, its range might be restricted. What’s wrong with this incredibly simplistic observation?
2. This question, prompts you employ the concept of “depth” as a means of opening up The Conjuring. First, by what means–objective or subjective–are we as viewers granted access to the emotional/cognitive states of the film’s characters? Second, how successful is the film’s reliance on this means of generating psychological information about its characters? Does the audience feel anything at all for the Perron family?
Part III: Please choose only ONE of the following questions, do not answer both. Answers for each question should be approximately 200-300 words each, language can be informal but please make sure grammar is correct and academic. You can use examples from the film as evidence if you feel it supports your answer.
1. Are there any scenes in The Conjuring where comedy is created, or developed? Describe one such scene. Does comedy play an important role in paranormal story telling? Why or why not?
2. Why is it that most paranormal films imply or clearly state that they are based on a ‘true’ story? How does this affect the audience? How does it affect some of our cultural assumptions of the paranormal? Does is it make the supernatural appear more “real”?
3. Ed and Lorraine Warren were probably the most famous paranormal experts in the United States—they investigated a slew of high profile cases, including the Amityville House—and founded the New England Society for Psychic Research. To this day, though Ed died in 2006, Lorraine maintains almost every detail of The Conjuring is accurate. She was a major consultant on the first film, as well as the subsequent sequels and prequels. Do you believe they are reliable sources to tell this story?
Part IV: Everybody must tackle this final question. It centers on the assumption that nobody enjoys films for purely formal reasons. Content always matters. Answers for each question should be approximately 200-300 words each, language can be informal but please make sure grammar is correct and academic. You can use examples from the film as evidence if you feel it supports your answer.
1. Does this film The Conjuring have value based only on plot development? Choose one of your favorite characters in this film and discuss how their development has made the film more enjoyable for the viewer.
PART I: /25
PART II: /25
PART III: /25
PART IV: /25
TOTAL: /100
