Media Studies Response Paper
Please pay more attention to wordiness, active verbs, and pronouns
Write a substantive response of at least 750 words aimed at a general audience.
I.) Options for Papers (Pick only one option.)
– Respond to Jean Kilbournes main ideas from Killing Us Softly 4.
– Respond to Jackson Katzs main ideas from Tough Guise 2.
– Respond to Sut Jhallys main ideas from Advertising at the Edge of Apocalypse.
– Respond to Jennifers McLunes main ideas from Hip-Hops Betrayal of Black Women.
– Respond to Gerard Butlers main ideas from Violent Media is Good for Kids.
– Alternate Option. Watch the David Fincher directed film Fight Club. Its available to stream for a few dollars on YouTube and Amazon. Or, the DVD is available for free at the Normandale library.
o Pay attention to the aspects of consumerism and masculinity. Discuss the undercurrents of truth that drive the satire.
Please realize two things: the subject matter of this film is gritty and in-your-face; and, YOU ARE NOT REQUIRED TO WATCH IT.
Its simply available for people who want some edgier material to write about.
II.) Requirements of the Paper
The paper is worth 150 points. It must be at least 750 words long, not including the Works Cited.
Write the paper for an informal audience. Make it interesting.
Here are the things Ill be looking for.
* Provide an appropriately focused thesis statement. For this paper, the thesis does not need to be placed in the last sentence of the introduction. It can be placed anywhere in the essay, or it can be implied.
* What about the film or article appeals to you and why? Why should anyone care about the piece to which you are responding? At some point in the essay, make these things apparent.
* Provide enough summary for someone who has not read or seen the piece about which you are writing to understand you.
* Develop relevant supporting details.
– If you wish, you may use personal experience and/or aspects of narrative, but if you do, please focus on the uniqueness of the situation. Avoid generic, one-size-fits-all explanations.
– If you wish, you may allude to other examples from contemporary culture.
* One idea must lead logically into the next. The paper must flow.
* Do not fall prey to the logical fallacies, unless youre using bad logic to be funny, in which case, your strategy must be apparent to the reader.
* Adhere to MLA citation rules.
* The paper must be free of sentence-level errors.
* You should have a voice in the paper. Put some personality into it. You have some wiggle room to be wordy and/or conversational if you are doing so to put personality into the paper.
* The paper must be interesting. Interpret this requirement as you will.
– You can have a catchy attention getter.
– You can be funny, angry, or cool
– You can do literally anything you think a general audience might find amusing.
The Works Cited page does not count toward the 750 word requirement.
Two outside sources are required. The article or film you are writing about does not count as a source.
The sources can be standard, credible sources. For this paper, media scholars, sociologists, psychologists, or business strategists might be appropriate.
Or, a social critic, philosopher, or comedian might also be appropriate. Hey, its an informal paper.
