Your task is to analyze the ideological dimensions of a mediated text (The pursuit of happiness). The goal is to explain how messages within a text contribute broader messages or controversies regarding power and identity in society.
Paper should revolve around an interpretive claim (a type of thesis statement) that addresses at least two explanatory theoretical concepts that indicate why the film is socially significant.
In this case, the two concept I have chosen is, postracialism and The American Dream.
The two concept should form the basis of your thesis statement. Here are some sample thesis statements:
Beauty and the Beast is a hegemonic negotiation that incorporated feminist themes in a movie that ultimately embraces patriarchal beliefs about romance and women’s social roles.
The Twilight film franchise is a postfeminist melodrama driven by the influence of abstinence discourse in mainstream politics.
The episode “Indians on TV” from the series Master of None addresses the problems associated with stereotyping and Othering of South East Asians in mainstream media.
The body of your analysis should make a case for why the concept or set of concepts you have identified is/are relevant to the text you have selected for analysis. To orient the reader to your analysis, you should provide a brief description of the text’s premise or story early in your essay. In subsequent paragraphs, you should:
elaborate on important aspects of the text’s narrative development and/or composition. Note the important of message construction. You need to explain how meaning is conveyed in the text, and you should integrate concepts about the formal dimensions of narratives, images, and/or moving pictures as they are relevant to how messages about power and identity are constructed within any mediated text.
explain HOW formal dimensions of the text relate to a particular aspect of the social context. This paper should discuss a “real world” social or political issue that relates to themes or issues in the text. To fully explain the context, you may need to do some outside research and include it in your essay.
For example, Thomas Salek analyzes The Wolf of Wall Street in the context of the 2008 mortgage crisis. Casey Kelly analyzes the Twilight series in the context of the abstinence movement.
Some brainstorming questions to help you get started include:
When was the text released? Does the text mention or relate to any social controversies?
Did any characters represent stereotypes? OR do they defy stereotypes?
Does the text depict any social conflicts (such as those of race, class, gender, or sexual orientation)? What was the outcome of the conflict? What lessons might we draw about current social problems based on the text’s resolution?
Did this film prompt you to think differently about a current social controversy?
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