Assignment:
Essay
In this 4 to 5 page double-spaced essay, I would like you to analyze how one of the films we've watched this semester develops certain ideas about race. Over the course of the semester our lectures and discussions have covered a wide range of topics, any of which might provide the foundation for a thesis statement. For instance, we have discussed how ideas regarding Third Cinema are reflected in films such as Black Girl and Bush Mama. We have thought about the way that race and gender converge in blaxploitation films such as Super Fly or Foxy Brown. We have considered how Cheryl Dunye'sThe Watermelon Woman develops a complex notion of race, sexuality and memory/history.
We have thought about how time, blackness and queerness interrelate in Marlon Riggs' Black Is... Black Ain't. And these are just a few of the points we touched upon over the past few months. Your thesis must concentrate on a film and race, and it must be specific about what particular aspects of the film you want to look at and what particular ideas about race you wish to discuss.
A persuasive analysis entails breaking the film down into sets of significant details that you feel contribute to the overall message. So, for example, if I were to write about how the film Get Out! develops notions of white supremacy, I would perhaps analyze the particular camera angles, settings, perhaps the styles of clothing worn by certain characters, facial expressions, lighting, dialogue, body movement, and so on. Any details I find that contribute to the message I'm seeing are worthy of discussion in my essay. I would then consider an effective way to organize the essay so that I can lead the reader through my interpretation of these details.
So, for instance, I might devote one section of my essay to the dialogue, and in this section, devote specific paragraphs to exchanges between certain characters. Then, I might have another section dealing with camera work, with similarly focused paragraphs.
In other words, your analysis should have focus and a coherent organization. Your essay should develop a nuanced account of what the film is saying about race and, most importantly, how this message is constructed. Do not just summarize the film. Explain your interpretation. A good way to discern whether or not you are developing your own interpretation is to ask yourself whether you've supported your argument by pointing to specific moments from the film. Also ask yourself whether or not anyone in the class could have written this essay. If the answer is yes, perhaps you need to think a bit more analytically and develop a more precise thesis statement.
Along with your analysis, you should engage with one of the secondary readings dealing with race and film that we've looked at thus far.
This secondary source shouldn't take up more than roughly a paragraph of the essay. Use the secondary source to help frame or enrich your own reading. Essays should be grammatically flawless and follow MLA Guidelines, including correct margins, font, and citation.
Readings:
Can One "Get Out?" The Aesthetics of Afro-Pessimism
Author: Ryan Poll