Weekly Assignment Due January 24th

Class,


Here's a reminder of your assignment due next Tuesday. First, finish reading Night.  Second, study your vocabulary words from the last two weeks. We will have our flyswatter game review this next week. For those that were absent, I will post yesterday's words. Third, you will write the first three paragraphs of your paper on the ethnicity/racial/religious/political/etc stereotypes. How is this group portrayed in popular culture or the media?

 

1.     Provide an introduction--some kind of interesting opening discussing stereotypes in general. This should be approximately 2-3 sentences. Next, introduce the group you have decided to evaluate and three examples you will analyze in your essay. Southerners are often negatively represented in media, portraying extreme ignorance, poverty, and racism.

2.     This paragraph will focus on one of those examples. Here's an example: 

                 One of the most popular stereotypes of Southerners is their lack of education. This is portrayed in all types of media, but especially in Disney movies. In the film Aristocats, the characters roam the Parisian streets in search of their home; however, they stumble upon a junkyard run by two “redneck” hound-dogs speaking in a very pronounced, if not exaggerated, southern dialect.  The characters break grammar rules, contrasting the more educated and refined Parisian.  This scene feels out of place geographically, but the takeaway leaves the viewer with a negative portrayal of Southerners in general. If the Parisians speak proper English and reside in an affluent apartment, the denigrated Southerner with their broken grammar and dialect deserve to remain in the junkyard. This stereotype of ignorance usually ties in with the second most common portrayal of Southerners-poverty.

3.     This paragraph will do the same thing as the second but focus on my second point, poverty.

4.     This paragraph will discuss the final claim in your thesis statement. Mine would be racism since that is outlined in my thesis statement in the introductory paragraph.

5.     Here you provide your conclusion. What observations have you seen? Which are true or harmful? What can we learn about the media and these stereotypes? How do stereotypes connect with a larger issue of society?     

      Next week, have your introduction and two body paragraphs written. You may need to do some research here. Can you think of film, television, or other media sources to prove your point? Remember, by the third sentence in the body paragraphs, begin illustrating your point with either a direct quote or a scene that provides the evidence you need to back up your claim. You do not need a quote or evidence in your introduction; however, if you do not have evidence in your two body paragraphs, I will return your assignment for more work. All great arguments provide evidence in order to convince their audience.  

      Vocabulary Words from this week: 

      1. Gauche- lacking social grace

      2. Zenith- the top of a trajectory; the highest point

      3. Futile- incapable of producing any result

      4. Ruminate- to think deeply

      5. Acrimony- tense bitterness in a relationship

     See you all next week! If you have any questions, comment, email, or text me and I will get back to you as soon as possible.