Contemporary Media Criticism/Reasoning

Final Project

2009-03-20T13:25:00.001-07:00

Choose a subject that we have discussed during the term and create a project inspired by that topic. It is open to any media. Please write a short explanation of the project and what inspired you. Include a title and description of your project and submit here for presentations at the beginning of class Friday March 27.

Chapter 10: Discrimination

2009-03-13T12:31:00.000-07:00

For this assignment, you have two options. We will present these next class.

Option 1:
Write about a time in your life that you have felt discriminated against. Use descriptive language. This should be at least a paragraph long.

Option 2:
Create an image of discrimination. It can be about a personal experience or something about society as a whole. You may use photography, drawing, painting, collage.. If you are really ambitious you can even make a video.

Have a nice weekend!

Malcolm X

2009-03-06T09:57:00.000-08:00

Hi Everyone,

I was going to give an in-class writing assignment after the film, but the film is really long so I've decided to wait until next week to discuss the film and go over some things in the book before posting an assignment. Have a good weekend and see you next week!

Rachel

The Sea Inside

2009-02-20T10:51:00.000-08:00

In this film, the main character spends almost thirty years trying to win the right to end his life. Give a brief reflection on the film. Was there any way the film uplifted you even though it was a sad topic? Reflect on that question (yes or no, and why). Using your book in Chapter 5, what are some examples of ethical argument(s) that could be used to either grant his wish or deny it? Was there anything that happened in the film that you think should have changed his mind about his decision?

Juno

2009-02-13T12:05:00.000-08:00

Like many popular films, JUNO perhaps enables the audience to explore in fantasy the boundary between the permitted and the forbidden. Does the film end by reaffirming the social status quo? Write a paragraph reflection dealing with your opinion on that. In what ways does the film transgress social norms?

Next, did you identify with the way Juno and Bleeker dealt with the situation? Was there anything that frustrated you in how they handled it? List some of these things, and make reference to Chapter 4 if possible on which writings do you think Juno was most aligned with. Why?

Aristotle and Moral Virtues

2009-01-23T13:25:00.000-08:00

Look over Chapter 1 section on Aristotle again and think about the lecture. According to Aristotle, moral qualities can be destroyed by both excess and deficiency. A virtue is a mean or balance between these things. Courage, Justice, Modesty, Gentleness, Friendliness are listed as examples. Choose a virtue either listed in the lecture or on the section on Aristotle's Moral Virtue in the book, then think of either a fictitious character from film or literature or real human being that posses these qualities. Describe how this virtue balances between two extremes and how this person fits.

Platos Cave

2009-01-16T12:34:00.000-08:00

For Homework read Chapter 1.

You have two choices.. if you choose option 2, please post a discription of your project and if possible a link illustrating it.

OPTION 1:

Write a reflection comparing the film the Matrix to what you learned in the lecture about Plato's Allegory of the Cave.

Below is a link to the Allegory of the Cave from Plato's book THE REPUBLIC:
http://www.historyguide.org/intellect/allegory.html

Be sure to include examples of some things you found in common. In the film the Matrix.. what realm do you think is most like the cave, most like being in the sun.. What are the shadows? Think about some of the terms discussed in the lecture.

OR,

OPTION 2:

Create a work of art, video, website or interactive project that illustrates Plato's myth of the cave. This can be low tech like a drawing or collage or this can be done with a camera and computer programs. Feel free to encorporate current events or issues in the work.

We will discuss at the beginning of class next week.

Final Project

2008-12-12T13:13:00.001-08:00

Art Project on Recent Topics

2008-11-21T13:12:00.000-08:00

Research one of the recent topics: Euthanasia or Animal Rights. Or, if you would like you can choose to Research the philosophy of Nietzsche. Make an art project in reaction to one of these topics.. and perhaps the discussions that we have had in class. Write a short reflection here describing your project. These will be presented at the beginning of class next time. Have a good Thanksgiving!!

Midterm Exam

2008-11-07T13:25:00.000-08:00

Choose a subject that we have discussed during the term so far and create a project inspired by that topic. It is open to any media. Please write a short explanation of the project and what inspired you. Include a title and description of your project and submit here for presentations at the beginning of class Friday November 14.

Moral Reasons and Aristotle

2008-10-24T13:03:00.000-07:00

Plato's Cave

2008-10-17T13:40:00.000-07:00

Welcome

2008-10-10T13:45:00.000-07:00

Hi! For homework please introduce yourself here on this site. Please include your name as it appears on the attendance sheet, where you are from, and your major.

Please get the text book and look over first chapter.

Final Project

2008-09-19T11:51:00.000-07:00

Dancer in the Dark

2008-09-12T11:47:00.000-07:00

Write a short reflection on the film Dancer in the Dark. Do you feel the message in the film is in support or is more against death penalty? Or do you get neither message? Take a look at Abolitionist Arguments (against Capital Punishment) and Retentionist Arguments (for Capital Punishment) in the book (Chapter 7) for our in class discussion next week. You may give your opinion about the issue in your post if you would like to express it, but it is not a requirement for the assignment.

Koyaanisqatsi

2008-09-05T13:03:00.000-07:00

In class, we watched the film Koyaanisqatsi which is a Hopi word meaning life out of balance. This is the url for the film:

http://www.koyaanisqatsi.org/films/koyaanisqatsi.php

If you missed class, you should visit the website and try to do the response based on the images in the photo gallery. It will be a bit more difficult.. but please try. You may be able to find this film in a public library, so that is another option. There is a lot of info about the film on the website, including a link to reviews written about the film to give you an example. It may be helpful, but please come up with your own responses.

On the film's website, the director states, "KOYAANISQATSI attempts to reveal the beauty of the beast! We usually perceive our world, our way of living, as beautiful because there is nothing else to perceive. If one lives in this world, the globalized world of high technology, all one can see is one layer of commodity piled upon another. In our world the "original" is the proliferation of the standardized. Copies are copies of copies. There seems to be no ability to see beyond, to see that we have encased ourselves in an artificial environment that has remarkably replaced the original, nature itself. We do not live with nature any longer; we live above it, off of it as it were. Nature has become the resource to keep this artificial or new nature alive....

....The film's role is to provoke, to raise questions that only the audience can answer. This is the highest value of any work of art, not predetermined meaning, but meaning gleaned from the experience of the encounter. The encounter is my interest, not the meaning. If meaning is the point, then propaganda and advertising is the form."

Choose a passage in the film and describe what was happening and what it looked like. Write what it made you think or feel.
Some questions that came to my mind:
Were you feeling emotional or intellectually detached? Did you find meaning in the encounter? Think about nature vs. technology, time passing, permanence, or other topics that you find relevant to this film. Did you find the film to be more spiritual or scientific? or both?

Do The Right Thing

2008-08-29T13:27:00.000-07:00

Read Chapter 10 on Discrimination. Write a reflection on Spike Lee's film Do The Right Thing. It could be good to reflect on a certain scene or character in the film and what it means to you personally. This will be presented by you in our discussion at the beginning of class next week.

Midterm

2008-08-22T07:30:00.000-07:00

Today in class please read your responses from last week.

Then you will be watching a film that deals with the idea of cloning which is the next topic.

Your midterm will be due by next Friday at the beginning of class.

Assignment:

Chose a topic from that we have covered in weeks 1-5 of this class. Write an essay covering the complexities of the topic that you choose. Write it in a word processing program so that you can check for spelling and grammar and then paste into the blog. Please refer to the book for arguments written about the topics and cite the book at least twice. You may reference any films or current events or even books on the topic.

*Use your text book as a reference at least twice.

The Sea Inside

2008-08-15T13:07:00.000-07:00

Juno

2008-08-08T11:55:00.000-07:00

Aristotle and Ethics

2008-08-01T11:50:00.000-07:00

Plato's Cave

2008-07-25T11:44:00.000-07:00

For Homework read Chapter 1.

Also write a reflection comparing the film the Matrix to what you learned in the lecture about Plato's Allegory of the Cave.

Below is a link to the Allegory of the Cave from Plato's book THE REPUBLIC:
http://www.historyguide.org/intellect/allegory.html

Be sure to include examples of some things you found in common. In the film the Matrix.. what realm do you think is most like the cave, most like being in the sun.. What are the shadows? Think about some of the terms discussed in the lecture.

We will discuss at the beginning of class next week.

Belle de Jour

2008-07-18T10:55:00.001-07:00

Catherine Deneuve (Belle de Jour [1967])

Belle de jour is a 1967 French film starring Catherine Deneuve as a woman who decides to spend her days as a prostitute while her husband is at work. The title is the French name of the daylily (literally: "beauty of the day"), a flower that blooms only during the day, although the name almost certainly is also an ironic reference to "belle-de-nuit" (literally, beauty of the night, lady of the night), a French term for prostitute. The film was directed by the Spanish director Luis Buñuel, based on the 1928 novel of the same name by Joseph Kessel. Buñuel is known as a surrealist. All of his films deal with dream and fantasy in some way. In Belle de Jour the two most crucial themes are morality and sexuality.

Discuss how the lead character's inner demons poke up through every-day malaise.
What are some ways that the lead character escapes into fantasies? Describe at least one scene from the film.
Do you think this film has a moral?
Do you find yourself identifying with Severine for betraying her husband and the social norm.
Give your opinion.

Final

2008-06-13T10:12:00.000-07:00

Choose one topic from midterm on that really struck you. Write a paragraph or two describing your ideas about the topic. Have they changed at all since the beginning of the term. Is there any response to former posts from other students? Please respond.

Don't forget to give me your name!!!

Environment

2008-06-08T04:14:00.000-07:00

Ok.. Write a short reflection about the film and your opinion on Environmental issues. Please read the chapter as well.

Final Exam is Friday.

Animal Rights

2008-05-30T08:33:00.000-07:00

HI Everyone. Please read your chapter on Animal Rights and write a brief reflection on your position. Should animals be treated similar to humans. What do you think of testing and experimenting with animals? What about vegetarianism? Explain the way you feel the way you feel.

Next topic is the environment. I'll be posting again soon. See you next week!!!

Bamboozled

2008-05-23T04:37:00.000-07:00

Read chapters 9 and 10 on Welfare and Social Justice with Discrimination. Write a reflection of the Spike Lee film BAMBOOZLED.

United 93

2008-05-16T13:46:00.000-07:00

Read Chapter Eight on War, Terrorism, and Civil Liberties

Write a reflection about the film United 93 and how 9/11 affected you personally.

Next, what is a preemptive war? According to the book, "the justification of preemptive war is the claim that changes in warfare and the character of our enemies thoughout the world make preemption necessary." Do you agree with this justification as it relates to the war in Iran? Why?

Dead Man Walking

2008-05-14T05:29:00.001-07:00

Read Chapter Seven on Capital Punishment if you haven't already.

Write a short reflection on the film Dead Man Walking and then give your opinion for or against death penalty. Take a look at Abolitionist Arguments (against Capital Punishment) and Retentionist Arguments (for Capital Punishment)in the book. Do you agree or disagree? Why?

Midterm Exam

2008-05-09T09:30:00.000-07:00

Please wait for class to begin to write your post. Meet in classroom first.

Chose a topic from that we have covered in weeks 1-5 of this class. Write an essay arguing your opinion about the topic. Write it in a word processing program so that you can check for spelling and grammar and then paste into the blog. Please refer to the book for arguments written about the topics and cite the book at least twice. You may reference any films or current events or even books on the topic. You have an hour to get it posted and then you will watch the film Dead Man Walking. I will assign homework on the blog this evening so pay attention as always.

Good luck. Any questions, email rachel.g.hoffman@gmail.com

Blade Runner

2008-05-02T12:06:00.000-07:00

Write a few paragraphs describing a future that illustrates the possible results of human cloning and or stem cell research. If you would like, you can combine both topics. You create an optimistic or pessimistic view. Try to include moral dilema if you are able. Use descriptive language. Use imagination. Write in a way that the reader is able to visualize your world.

Extra credit if you can put a link to an image that you create to illustrate this world, or if you would like.. you can make a short film and post on youtube. If so, provide a link with your post.

Million Dollar Baby

2008-04-26T12:21:00.000-07:00

Read Chapter 5

The film Million Dollar Baby deals with this issue. Write a reflection based on your opinion of the way the film ended. Use at least one example from the book to back up your opinion.

Juno

2008-04-22T13:59:00.000-07:00

IN CLASS TODAY.. Please wait until class starts to respond!
Like many popular films, JUNO perhaps enables the audience to explore in fantasy the boundary between the permitted and the forbidden. Does the film end by reaffirming the social status quo? Write a paragraph reflection dealing with your opinion on that. In what ways does the film transgress social norms?

Next, did you identify with the way Juno and Bleeker dealt with the situation? Was there anything that frustrated you in how they handled it? List some of these things, and make reference to Chapter 4 if possible on which writings do you think Juno was most aligned with. Why?

Rear Window

2008-04-11T12:33:00.000-07:00

James Stewart (Rear Window) 1954

The director of Rear Window, Alfred Hitchcock, is considered by most to be the master of suspense, but this film is also very much about human nature. Rear Window addresses the idea that it is human to be voyeuristic, not necessarily in a perverse sense, but in a curious sense. We slow to look at accidents or sneak glances at lovers in the park. In media like cinema, television, and the internet we are able to be voyeuristic without guilt, this film takes that to the next level allowing us to watch a voyeur as he watched others.

Read Chapters One and Two in your text book on Moral Reasons and Good Reasoning. In Chapter One a selection from Aristotle's Nichomachean Ethics begins on page 23." Aristotle argues that the highest human good is eudaimonia (total well-being, or happiness). It is, he says, our only self-sufficient goal and the ulitmate goal of all human action. He then argues that human happiness is determined by the proper function of humans, which he defines as "an activity of the soul or a course of action in accordance with reason." Thus, a happy individual should develop virtues (character traits or dispositions) that lead to this goal. Because human reason is both practical and intellectual, human virtues com in two kinds, moral and intellectual."

Can you think of any virtuous actions that took place in the film? Whether an action is virtuous, Aristotle says, depends on both the action and the doer's frame of mind. Three conditions are involved. (1) The agent must act in full conciousness of what she/he is doing. (2) He must "will" his action, and will it for its own sake. (3) The act must proceed from a fixed and unchangeable position. Based on this, describe a scene in the film and discuss why you think Aristotle might consider it a virtuous action. There is a relationship between the lead characters Jeff and Lisa played by James Stewart and Grace Kelly, and the other side of the apartment block, seeing it as a symbolic relationship between spectator and screen. Their relationship can be compared to the lives of the neighbors they are spying upon. Feel free to comment on this relationship and also to expand with examples of relationships between your own life and things you are watching in cinema, television, or on the internet.

Belle de Jour

2008-04-04T11:45:00.000-07:00