ENGL1121
Yuan Ding, Ph.D.
Project III: Research Paper on a TV Show/Movie/Music Video
Introduction
TV exhibits, films and music movies entertain us by evoking (and sublimating) the financial, social, and racial conflicts or anxieties of our time. As Maasik and Solomon observe within the introduction to Chapter 6 of SOL, “you may interpret semiotically a complete system of tv packages, illustrating how the associations amongst, and variations between, varied collection over a variety of years can reveal broad actions inside American social historical past” (399). Nonetheless, because the authors additionally level out, the seeming transparency of photographs on the display, i.e. icons, typically masks their rhetorical nature, in order that we’re tempted to obtain it uncritically as reflections of actuality. Thus, Project III asks you to show a crucial eye in direction of your individual leisure style, and browse past the denotation of a TV present/film/music video to mine its connotative significance.
Overview
For Project III, you might be requested to make a particular ARGUMENT (sometimes a cultural declare) about a TV present/film/music video of your selection. To efficiently fulfill the project, you can be relying on the descriptive and analytical expertise you could have developed up to now by way of the earlier two initiatives. You’ll be able to considerably revise Project I into Project III, however you shouldn’t really feel obligated to maintain your earlier selection of textual content. You might be welcome to decide on one in every of my urged texts (on D2L). Both approach, deal with Project I as an prolonged brainstorm train and jumping-off level.
The analysis part of this project requires you to quote not less than THREE credible outdoors sources. These may very well be opinions from well-liked sources comparable to newspaper and magazines (e.g. the New Yorker, New York Instances, Slate, The Atlantic, LA Instances, and so on), or scholarly writings on mass tradition (peer-reviewed journal articles or books). Along with their credibility, it’s best to consider your sources by way of their relevance to your subject and the helpfulness in deepening your Assessment. Usually, the higher your sources are, the stronger your Assessment can be.
Keep in mind, you’re not pulling a rabbit out of a hat. Slightly, you might be collaborating in an current crucial dialog about a explicit cultural phenomenon. The surface sources you choose ought to both Help your argument, or function a counter-argument, in opposition to which you’ll pitch your declare. Both approach, consider your writing as a part of a bigger crucial dialog. By analysis and writing concerning the subject, you might be contributing to the dialog and collaborating in making sense of the tradition you reside in.
The place do I begin?
With a view to efficiently full this project, it’s worthwhile to analysis the “signal system” to which the textual content of your selection belongs. Because the authors of SOL counsel: “Your interpretation of a film or group of flicks ought to start with a building of the system during which it belongs — that’s, these films, previous and current, with which it may be related. Whereas tracing these associations, be on the lookout for putting variations from movies which can be in any other case like what you might be analyzing, as a result of these variations are what typically reveal the importance of your topic.” (447) Be on the lookout for metaphors, archetypes and paradigms.
To start out brainstorming, ask your self the next questions: (A model of that is within the Brainstorm Worksheet on D2L.)
1. “What style does this film/present/video belong to?”
This “style” may very well be sci-fi, fantasy, horror, romance, drama, sit-com, musical or it may very well be medical, authorized, crime, highschool drama, and so on.
2. “How is that this film/present/video totally different from or much like others in the identical style?”
Chances are high, in the event you like Gossip Lady, you additionally watched different highschool dramas. (In truth, it’s possible your style to comparable dramas that drew you to the present within the first place.) However what make this film/present/video stand out? A present both deviates or conforms to the stereotypes of its style, though it’s generally a mixture of each.
three. A associated Question Assignment: “How is X portrayed?”
X” may very well be something that piques your curiosity, such because the hero or anti-hero, gender, race, class, highschool life, the medical/authorized/law-enforcement career, and so on. This Question Assignment forces you to take a look at the present/film rigorously, and determine archetypes, metaphors, stereotypes, cultural myths, ideology, and so on.
four. Discover issues that puzzle you concerning the present/film/video, like if it appears to be sending two contradicting messages (comparable to in Mad Man, Downton Abby, Glee, and so on.), or if its characters appear contradictory.
A remaining phrase of recommendation: paper relies upon on a good selection of TEXT and TOPIC, two issues you’ll examine totally within the coming weeks. You’ve got learn a honest quantity of articles all through the semester, all of which may function each pattern analyses and credible outdoors sources. Be aware that, as a result of restrict of our time, I solely chosen a handful of articles from the ebook that sparked explicit curiosity in me. Please be at liberty to learn different ones, if they’re related to your analysis. For extra directions on the best way to conduct semiotic Assessment on visible texts, please (re)learn the introductions to Chapters 6, 7, and eight. And be at liberty to select a textual content from my suggestion listing.
Functions
• Study to pose analysis questions and develop a thesis.
• Study to conduct analysis utilizing the ARCC library databases.
• Study to provide an Annotated Bibliography.
• Proceed practising semiotic analytical expertise.
• Familiarize your self with tutorial writing conventions and the MLA quotation type.
Steps
1. Brainstorm for TV exhibits and films, and free-write on potential analysis questions. (Thursday, Apr 7) 5%
2. Annotated Bibliography Draft. (Thursday, Apr 14; See separate immediate) 5%
three. Annotated Bibliography Peer Overview (Saturday, Apr 16) 10%
four. Annotated Bibliography Last Draft (Tuesday, Apr 19) 5%
5. Tough Draft (Monday, Apr 25) 10%
6. Revised Draft (Monday, Might 9) NO GRACE PERIOD 65%
Necessities
• Last Draft is typed, 5-6 pages double-spaced, Dimension 12, Instances New Roman font
• MLA Quotation Fashion
———
Yuan Ding, Ph.D., ENGL1121
Project III: Write a analysis paper about a TV present, a film, or a music video.
Introduction
The financial, social, and racial tensions or fears of our day spring to mind (and sublimated) by way of TV exhibits, films, and music movies. “You’ll be able to interpret semiotically a complete system of tv packages, illustrating how the associations amongst, and variations between, varied collection over a variety of years can reveal broad actions inside American social historical past,” Maasik and Solomon write within the introduction to Chapter 6 of SOL (399). Nonetheless, because the authors level out, the seeming transparency of photographs on the display, i.e. icons, typically masks their rhetorical nature, main us to simply accept them as true depictions of actuality with out Question Assignment. Thus, Project III asks you to
