Writ 121 Essay 4: Television and Movies: Friends or Foes?

Note: again, the above links in the pull-down menu are for your convenience to find specific aspects of the assignment as you work on your essay.  However, I suggest you read through the entire page first, to get a good overview of what you're to do.  Furthermore, I imbed mini-lectures throughout the page.  I want you to learn from and reflect upon the assignment page, not just find out what you need to do.

Introduction

What's the difference between exposition and argument?

There are three basic purposes for writing to an audience:

Entertainment: to give an audience pleasure. Novels, poems, plays, short stories, movie scripts and such have entertainment as the primary purpose.

Exposition: to present your audience with insight, understanding, information and such about your topic, to help them see why your point of view is valid and to enrich their understanding of the world.

Argument: to convince your audience to think or act as you want them to.

The last two purposes are usually the primary ones used in academic writing.

However, all types of writing involve persuasion, the art of convincing others to accept what you say as so. Even in a novel, a writer wants to persuade a reader that the details present are accurately presented, that the characters are believable, like real life people.

As you know, the essays for our class are exposition. 

• You are not necessarily setting out to persuade us to think or act as you want us to.

• You are showing us why your position should be considered valid, among other possible positions or viewpoints.

• Though of course, you've probably already noticed in writing your previous essays that you want to persuade us to consider you as a credible writer and to consider your assertions as worthy because of the evidence and thoughtful position that you present.
  • And we all would like others to think as we do, or act as we want them to act even if that's not are main purpose.
  • And of course, we also want readers to enjoy what we read.

Exposition--------------------------------------------------------------Argument

On the farthest end of exposition is pure information presentation, such as a reporter might present on the Kobe Bryant case.

On the farthest end of argument would be a fully developed legal argument where an attorney focuses all of his or her faculties on convincing a jury to convict Kobe Bryant.

What we're dealing with here is somewhere in the middle, academic writing that sets out to persuade others to consider our point of view valid, but one among other valid positions. 

Remember our conversation scenario in essay 2? You are adding insight to the conversation that takes place among audience members, this class, the articles we read together, and other sources found in our broader society.

I realize the distinction between exposition and argument is a fine one at times, but I hope it is one that is worth considering.

We will not be dealing with argument in this class; you can delve further into the finer arts of argument by taking WRIT 122.

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Topic Questions

Moving on, with this essay, we are going to focus upon something we've all had experience with in popular culture: movies and television. So based on our readings from Common Culture (CC), I'd like you to develop a discussion where you set out to give us insight  concerning some aspect of television and/or movies.

Here are some possible ways to approach the subject:

1. Ehrenreich in "Spudding Out" harkens back to an earlier era when people were more active, more involved with friends and activities than we are today (161).

• Paul Reiser, on the 1996 Emmy Awards, made a joke saying much the same:

Before TV we had to go out and make our own friends. Now we can see them on NBC, they're much better looking than most of those we can find, and we can get rid of them in thirty minutes.

• Has television weakened our culture? Were people more active before TV? Were people more socially involved?

None of us can answer such a question conclusively, and I'm pretty sure most of us--even Mike and me!--weren't around prior to TV (before 1946).

However, we might have parents, grandparents, other relatives or neighbors who were.

Interview one or two who lived at least through their teenage years without TV.

• How do they see TV changing their lives?

• Were they more active, or simply more bored?

• Were their lives richer before TV--or narrower, more provincial, limited?

If you choose to do this for your essay, make sure to read through chapters 10 and 16 in WW about "Profiling People" and "Conducting Field Research."

• And your prewriting should include interview questions and notes on the interview(s) you conduct.

• However, watch out. Just because your relatives and/or friends had certain experiences, this does not mean that they represent most Americans.

To be convincing, you need to find support from somewhere else as well, such as a newspaper or magazine article, that supports your position.

2. Robert Kubey and Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi present intriguing research about the addictive power of television, and the possibility of television influencing viewer attitude and behavior. Other researchers, such as Leonard Eron (in the Frontline video we watched) and George Gerbner (see "Life According to TV" by Harry Waters in CC), make powerful assertions about how movies and TV have affected us detrimentally--making us more violent, sexually irresponsible, racist, misogynistic and fearful .

However, Sydney Pollack also presents an effective position by asserting that movies only reflect the values and attitudes that already exist in our society.

• Which of these writers/researchers do you find more convincing?

• Do movies and TV primarily reflect our values or do they shape the values of the audience?

I realize that some of you might want to assert that movies and TV do both.

• Doing so is fine, but which is more so?

• Reflect or shape?

• Again, you'll need to find at least one other article that you can use to support your thesis.
• And--I suggest you focus on one specific value or attitude, such as body image or sexual behavior, among a specific population, like preteen girls, or college-age men.

3. Ehrenreich provides insight about TV viewers from analyzing her family's behavior. Do the same with your family or friends. 
   • But consider doing so with a focus on a recent national tragedy, such as the anniversary of the 9-11 terrorist bombings and the subsequent war against terrorism. 
   • What insight can you give to us about the part TV has played in our coming to grips with this horrific event? Has it helped? Or has it hindered?

4. There are several other articles about TV and movies in CC, dealing with reality shows, the Simpsons, horror movies and such. You can choose to provide insight dealt with in one of these articles. 

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Remember your audience

We, the members of this class, are your audience.  As I mentioned above, your goal is to provide us insight about some aspect of TV or movies.

To do so, you need to persuade us that your point of view is credible and interesting.

• Of course, there are many ways to do so that WW discusses throughout the text.  However, there are four ways to reach your audience that I'd like to highlight here.

1. Consider the points of view that class members make in chat or in the Discussion Board online conversation forum.

• For example, if you notice  a class member saying  that the Legend of Zelda: The Windwaker is a really enjoyable game, how effectively will you communicate to him or her if you state that only a baby would play on a Nintendo video game system? 

Of course this doesn't mean you can't disagree with each other.  Doing so is inevitable.

But doing so respectfully will get your audience to consider you position valid and worth listening to even if they disagree.

2. Another way to persuade us of the validity and significance of your point of view is by specific, detailed examples from your own experiences and observations.

• If you can show us expertise--

• by sharing an anecdote about TV viewing in your family or

• by showing us the extensive skills needed to be a successful video game
  player--

• then we are more likely to consider your point valid.

• And more likely to consider it interesting.

• Again, review part 3 of the virtual lecture on academic essays about
  developing paragraphs.

However, you do need to avoid the logical fallacy hasty generalization. In other words, just because something happened to members of your family or friends doesn't make it so, necessarily, for the rest of our society.

• In other words, just because Uncle Buford roams the countryside yelling "They're hear, watch out for giant pods!" after watching Invasion of the Body Snatchers doesn't mean most viewers are influenced the same way.

See the next two points to help broaden your evidence.

3. One other way to persuade us of your point's validity is to use other sources.

• If you find

• an informative discussion in a magazine article about the positive values expressed in reality shows,
• a fact from a credible web page (more on this later) about the average number of hours that teenagers watch TV, or
• a relevant quotation from a newspaper about how movies reflect our society's mores about sex,

• you bring in other voices to your discussion that may enrich you position.

Note again, that you have access to a reference librarian online and in the library who would delight in helping you.  Click here for more information.

4. Finally, you can persuade us of the validity and significance of your point of view by using  the shared knowledge of your audience.

• We've read together three articles from CC on TV and movies. You would do well to use one or more of the articles we’ve read together.

• Think of the authors we read as other voices that participate in the conversation about the topic you are giving us insight into, voices that you spring off in agreement, disagreement, qualification and such.

• Doing so broadens your credibility, shows us that your point of view is based not only on your perceptive observations, but also on your consideration of a community of writers and thinkers in our broader society.

• Plus using articles we've read together places your topic into a context that we are familiar with and can give us more insight into your point of view.

• And as I noted above, you don't necessarily have to agree with those we read (or that you read in other articles you come upon in your research).

But you do need to disagree respectfully, as you would with one of us.

Just remember that some in your audience may agree with the position you disagree with. If you insult the author, you may be insulting your audience, who may then disregard what you are asserting.

So, again, you would do well to use support from one or more of the selections we've read together.

• Just remember that if you make a point that could be supported by our reading and you don't, your discussion will be less effective for us.

Also, make sure that when you do quote or paraphrase from someone you put the page number in parenthesis. See WW 431+.

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Using Sources

Therefore based on the discussion above, this essay should include as support for your discussion the following:

• One or more articles from CC

• One or more published sources outside of CC (not a dictionary or encyclopedia)

Also, make sure that when you do quote or paraphrase from someone you put the page number in parenthesis. See WW 431+.

And include a works cited page that presents the sources you use, whether from CC or elsewhere.

• Do note that any essay placed in the portfolio that uses any sources will need to include a works cited page.  See WW 435+, with an example on page 454-61.

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Requirements

This paper is also to be

• 600-800 words in length,
• formatted with MLA style guidelines (WW 431 and sample in Course Documents>Samples from Dan) and
• in RTF format.

And again it needs to include a works cited page for the sources you use.

See the virtual lecture on MLA style, under week 10 of our calendar.

And remember: strive to accomplish the maximum number of words allowed on papers--shorter papers typically are not developed effectively with sufficient detail or with sufficient complexity of thought for a college level audience.

• Also, the more effective essays tend to use more than just the minimum two sources for support.

And make sure to keep everything you do in working this paper, including hard copies of the drafts you produce, because I will need to see all of it if you choose the essay for the portfolio.

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There are four steps that need to be completed as described below to receive full credit for this essay.

Due dates:

• Step 1--prewriting: 3/20/04, Saturday midnight
• Step 2--draft: 3/20/04, Saturday midnight
• Step 3--audience response: 3/25/04 Thursday midnight.
• Step 4--revised draft: 3/27/04, Saturday midnight.

Step 1: Prewriting

(Note: please send under separate email from your online activity letter for week 9, and include writ121prewriting4 in your email subject line.)

Do not send through the drop box.

By 3/20/04, Saturday midnight, e-mail me, as a TXT file or RTF file, some prewriting--note there are three things to submit--starting techniques, annotated bibliography and a working thesis: 

1. Two starting techniques from WW, chapter 7, "Strategies for Starting."

• Please label clearly the techniques you use, based on Fulwiler's definitions in chapter 7.

• Some of the techniques might work better for you using old-fashioned pen and paper, such as clustering.

• Feel free to use something other than the computer, but report to me in your prewriting e-mail what you did, including what topics you explored, and what you discovered through the use of the starting technique(s).
  • However, if you do use the computer for your starting technique, include a copy for me to see--don't just tell me about it.
  • Plan to send me a minimum of 300 words.

2. Also, send me an annotated bibliography of at least six magazine or newspaper articles (from the web or Library Databases) related to your topic
   • use MLA works cited style
   • annotated means including a sentence or two under each citation that explains how the article might help in your essay.

3. And include your working thesis statement.

Again,  make sure to keep everything you do in working this paper, including hard copies of the drafts you produce, because I will want to see all of it if you choose the essay for the portfolio.

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Step 2: Draft

Also by 3/20/04, Saturday midnight, you need to submit a draft of your paper to the Drafts of essay 4 forum on the Blackboard Discussion Board.

• This draft can be in TXT or RTF.

• Or you can copy and paste into the message box.

• And this draft should be as complete as possible--with a beginning, middle, end--though it doesn't need to be pretty or perfect.

• Click here to remind yourselves of the comments I make about academic essays.

Note: it is again very important to keep this deadline. Otherwise other class members will have a difficult time doing the next step. And you stand the chance of not getting sufficient feedback.

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Step 3: Audience Response

By 3/25/04, Thursday midnight, read class members' papers and post responses to the writers in the discussion board. I'll have a link on the Calendar by class Monday, 3/22/03 for further instructions.

• When you submit your revised draft (step 4 below), you will need to have responded to a minimum of three drafts from class members in your batch before I will read and respond to yours.

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Step 4: Revised draft with reflection

Finally, by 3/27/04, Saturday midnight, send a revised draft of Essay 4 in RTF format through the Digital Drop Box in Blackboard.

And when you are in the drop box, click on , not . 

• Add file is for your use, to store files that you want to access later. 
• If you choose Add File, I will not see it, only you will.

• Reflection on Essay 4, which will be available Friday
  5 p.m., 3/26/04 linked to the Calendar.

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Writing Center

Another reminder that you have available the LCC Writing Center online. You should find a link to the Writing Center on your My LCC page under My Organizations>Tutoring and Writing Center Assistance>LCC Writing Center's On-line Writing Assistance.

You can also work with someone f2f in the Writing Center in room 251 of the Arts & Sciences Building. Their phone number is 483-1907, and you can find the open hours at http://www.lcc.edu/lsd/writingcenter/. Best to make an appointment.