Final Blog Wrap Up

For your final blog entry, you will need to do two things.

1) Write a brief post highlighting what you felt was the most helpful and least helpful part of the quarter.

2) Produce a meme with a picture taken from the following photobucket page: http://s122.photobucket.com/albums/o256/theinfraggablecrunk/Class%20Lols/. You will select a photo from that page and then upload it to a meme creator either at http://builder.cheezburger.com/builder/ or at http://www.quickmeme.com/make/. You should include the URL to your meme or just the image file on your blog post. You are free to make whatever meme you'd like, but try to keep it tasteful.

You can see some previous examples of these class memes here: http://s122.photobucket.com/albums/o256/theinfraggablecrunk/Previous%20Class%20Memes/. Some are better than others, but I expect your crop to be the best to date.

Commonplace Topics

Wednesday's blog entry is two-parted: first, you should post a brief description of what your topic is and what you hope to accomplish with it (i.e., what should your audience take away from it?) by Tuesday at midnight. Second, you should go back and comment on a post other than your own, commenting whether or not you think it will be effective and providing feedback (remember, your goal is to provide assistance, so provide clear and specific feedback). The comment should be posted by midnight Wednesday.

Commonplace Blog

http://www.mhlearningsolutions.com/commonplace/

For this blog assignment, you will need to follow the above link and select a single Commonplace article. You should then post a comment to this blog entry with a link to said article commenting on how that article is either similar or different from the ARP style of writing. To do so, be certain to call attention to specific elements of your selected article, such as language, sources, topic matter, etc.

Where is the Love?

http://www.mhlearningsolutions.com/commonplace/index.php?q=node/5513

For this post, read the above essay from Commonplace. After you have done so, post a response to this post that can answer any of the following: what is the primary argument here? How is that argument conveyed? What about his format is similar to the ARP? Different? How effective is this essay?

ARP Thesis Statements

For Monday's blog post, we will follow the same format as the research question post in order to post your thesis statements for your ARP rough drafts. To do this, you will need to supply two comments. Your first comment, due before class, will be the thesis statement you are currently working with for your ARP. After class, you will need to come back and comment on one of your classmate's thesis statements, providing feedback on how to make it more effective. You will be aided in this process by following the reading for Monday from Writing Analytically, specifically paying attention to the section on weak thesis statements (255-64).

Boondocks: Guess Ho's Coming to Dinner

This video is an excerpt from an episode of the Boondocks. This show often tackles heavily satirical topics, and this excerpt is no exception. What are the issues of gender and sexuality that are being raised here? How do they intersect with the racial dynamics of the video? If this is satire, what is the message the episode is aiming at? What is it trying to say about sex and gender?

Research Questions

For this blog post, use the comments to post possible research questions based on your primary source as we discussed in class on Tuesday. Remember, strong research questions lead to further research and exploration while weak research questions are those that can be quickly answered, causing an end to any further investigation.

In addition to posting your questions, you should also offer advice and/or suggestions on other people's research questions in a second comment that can be posted later. The goal here is to help your classmates, so comments such as "your questions are good" don't offer a lot in regards to constructive criticism.

Guiness Banned Advertisement

For this video, consider first the specifics of the video itself. What is this video saying about sex and sexuality? What are the gender dynamics being performed here, explicitly or implicitly? How does this sell the product and what message is being pushed here?

Furthermore, you should also consider this video in light of the advertisment of alcoholic beverages in general. Is there a trend of alchol advertisements using sex, and if so how does this video fit in with that tradition? Does this video follow the usual format or does it push beyond the usual boundaries? This commercial was banned in some countries, including the U.S.; what about this video makes it beyond the norm for American television? If you have experience with beer and alcohol advertisements from other countries, how does this compare to other culturally specific advertisement campaigns?

Twilight for Guys!

For this blog response, watch the video below. Afterwards, apply the same analytical framework that we used in class on Thursday to this video and post a response on this post answering one or more of the following questions, or even other issues that you see in the video. What are the assumptions this video makes about the male and female genders? About sexuality? What does this video ultimately say the sexual/gender dynamics of the fans of the Twilight franchise?

From the recent political debates about women’s health to the popularity of television programs such as Jersey Shore and Toddlers in Tiaras, it is clear that Sex, Sexuality, and Gender play a large role in contemporary American culture. These dynamics are interwoven in every media source we consume on a daily basis, often to such an extent that we are not aware how the portrayal of these issues can shape identity and public opinion. In this course, we will look at texts, video, and images to answer the following questions: How does the portrayal of gender shape “normal” behavior? How is sex used and misused to sell products? How do gender dynamics play out in television/film? In the news? In advertisements? How does media affect our preconceptions of gender and sexuality, and how do our preconceptions affect how we approach media?