Your third paper is a formal research paper that will rely on your using scholarly sources to help you forward your argument.
You will select one film from the film list on your Canvas page, and you will make an argument about what the film proposes. In other words, you will put forth an argument based on the content of the film. For example, if I were using the film Guess Who as my primary source, I might argue that the film addresses the topic of masculinity in America. I might elaborate on that topic to argue that the film establishes a battle between the older more established power of whiteness and the younger more nascent power of blackness to conclude that the era of the 1960s has fundamentally changed the character of American masculinity.
Your job is to find a discussion in your film that you would like to engage and pursue.
Think about the following:
1. What topic does the film discuss?
2. How does it approach the topic?
3. What position does the film take?
4. What literary theory might be best to approach this film? (feminsim, marxisim, queer theory, cultural studies, psycholoanalytical)
You will present your argument about your film in a clear and scholarly manner, using vetted secondary sources that speak to the topic .
I would like your paper to submit to the following basic guidelines:
Approximately five to six pages in length. You must have at least five five complete pages. You can stop anywhere on page 6.
must have an abstract
double space
12 font
New Roman Times font
1 inch margins on all sides
submit as an attachment in Word
must have title and must be centered
page numbers on top right with last name
separate WC page
must use at least four secondary sources; three of your sources must be vetted scholarly sources.
do not begin your paper halfway down the page
Grading Criteria
Have you followed the directions of the basic guidelines? If not, I will be dropping your grade by one letter grade.
Do your paragraphs have clear topic sentences that guide your paragraphs?Have you followed that topic sentence?
Do you have a clear thesis with a claim and a qualification of that argument? Have you followed that thesis through your paper?
Have you used your research appropriately to advance your argument? Is it an integral part of your argument? Do you actually use it or just throw it in?
Do you advance your argument? Do you build and deepen your argument?
Have you documented appropriately?
Have you checked for grammar and spelling?
Is your discussion whole and logical? Does your discussion flow clearly and logically?
Do your paragraphs use the rubric of state explain, and illustrate?
Does your argument move in depth and clarity?
Please do not do the following in your paper.
Do not use first and second person, unless it is part of a quote
Do not ask questions, unless it is part of a quote
Do not cut off discussion with the expression “this shows that . . . “
Please use an active voice
Please indent paragraphs
When speaking about art, including film, we speak in present tense.
Here is a list of the movies that are up for consideration for your second
and third paper. Please select one film to use as the primary source of
your second paper. I suggest that you select a topic that you are
interested in learning about – a topic that you can investigate and live
with for a while.
Please also know that you will be expected to find secondary sources
that will assist you in discussing what this film does and how it does it.
Papers that do not use appropriate academic scholarly sources that are
vetted by peers in the field will not be considered appropriate for a
passing grade.
Glory
Thelma and Louise
Boys Don’t Cry
Imitation of Life
Bamboozled
Something New
Fences
The Kids are All Right
12 Angry Men
The Crying Game
Get Out
Midnight in Paris
Fatal Attraction
Night of the Living Dead
The Woolf of Wall Street
First Blood
Like Water for Chocolate
The Postman Always Rings Twice
The Fantastic Mr. Fox
The Birds
Election
Gaslight
(pick one of the movies)
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