In your final project for the course, you will be performing
a content analysis with a group. This
assignment is designed to give you practice analyzing media texts in a
lower-stakes assignment (i.e., one that is worth a smaller percentage of your
grade).
Step 1: Pick a
movie in which a heterosexual romantic relationship is one of the central storylines
(or the central storyline). Any romantic comedy or Disney princess
film would be suitable, but you are not limited to these genres.
Step 2: Select
three excerpts from the movie that feature the romantic relationship, and write
a brief (2-3 paragraphs) analysis of each
of the three excerpts. Each
analysis should start with a brief description of the excerpt, followed by a
more in-depth analysis that answers the following questions:
- What does this excerpt communicate about what men are “supposed” to act like or want in relationships?
- What does this excerpt communicate about what women are “supposed” to act like or want in relationships?
- How does this scene relate to some of the content analyses we have read in this class? Does it seem to exemplify any of the codes used in any of these studies? Alternatively, does it seem to run counter to any of the codes used in these studies?
Step 3: Now think
about the overall narrative of the film. What does it communicate about what men and women are
“supposed” to act like or want in relationships? Note that your conclusions may be diametrically opposed to
one or more of the analyses you conducted in Step 2; movies often contain contradictory messages!
Step 4: Write a
blog post that contains:
- An introductory paragraph that provides a summary of the movie you analyzed. Be sure to include a description of the relationship you analyzed.
- Each of the three analyses you wrote in Step 2.
- The analysis you wrote in Step 3.
- Some kind of multi-media content that ties into the content of your blog post. Some possibilities: video clips of the excerpts you analyzed, still images from the film you analyzed, other?
- In-text citations and a reference list using APA citation. For help with APA citation style, refer to the “APA citation guides” folder on CTools.
In-Class Presentation
You will also be presenting your analysis in class on Thursday, July 12, so you should have a
sense of what you will be writing even if you have not yet written your blog
post. These presentations will be
very informal, so you will not need to prepare anything formal for the
occasion. (That said, if you have
a burning desire to make up PowerPoint slides for the occasion, you have my
blessing.)
Be prepared to discuss the excerpts you analyzed and to talk
a bit about your analysis of each.
You should have those excerpts with you to show to the class.
