Writing Class 122: Activity Assignment
Instructions: The selection of videos linked below offer samples of the Adam West Batman series, the 1997 Batman and Robin movie, and a recurring animated sketch from Saturday Night Live in the 1990s entitled "The Ambiguously Gay Duo". Choose one Question at Issue from each of the categories below (or create one that fits each category) and write an enthymeme in response to each. For each enthymeme, select one or more of the video clips; for each clip, explain in two or three sentences how you would use it as supporting evidence to argue your enthymeme. (Enthymeme is (statement in answer to Q@I + because + reason):
textual/generic(dealing with the text or video itself, or with its genre):
Is the Batman/Robin dynamic inherently campy?
Could the Dark Knight trilogy have been as gritty and serious with Robin as a featured character?
Does the campy history of the character carry through at all for audiences only exposed to the grittier reboots?
Would bringing Robin back in the next movie(s) change the tone of the franchise?
critical/political (dealing with other critic's responses or social/cultural/political implications):
Might the impulse to dismiss Wertham's critique of Batman as gay be motivated by homophobia?
Would Sontag interpret Batman as a gay character?
- Does establishing a superhero's sexuality really matter in today's TV and movies?
- Does the "reheterosexualization" of Batman in the 1960's show intolerance for homosexuality?
- Does the "reheterosexualization" of Batman in the 2000's show intolerance for homosexuality?
- Does the "telephone poll" killing of Robin in the late 1980's show intolerance for homosexuality?
clips:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RLZQ3OLEJWE (Links to an external site.)- best of Adam West 3:46
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qpoxHvmWPfc (Links to an external site.)- fight scenes ~3-14 mins
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FzhISE-r5ps (Links to an external site.)- Batman & Robin fight scene 3:26
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VK7wRdzg0MM (Links to an external site.)- B&R trailer 2:26
https://www.nbc.com/saturday-night-live/video/tv-funhouse-ambiguously-gay-duo/n10870 (Links to an external site.)
https://www.nbc.com/saturday-night-live/video/tv-funhouse-ambiguously-gay-duo/n10987 (Links to an external site.)