Final Essay Directions In this class you must write a critical analysis paper. T

Final Essay Directions
In this class you must write a critical analysis paper. This paper must be your own original critical analysis of cultural artifact.
Sample Final Papers
Paper 1 Download Paper 1
Paper 2 Download Paper 2
Your paper must:
Be a minimum of 8 pages in length. They must be double-spaced and typed.
You cannot analyze an artifact that has been used, or will be used in class. If you write about something used in class, you will receive a “0” for the assignment.
Your paper must include a citation page in APA format. This page is NOT part of the 8 pages. If you do not have one, your paper will not be graded and you will receive a “0” for the assignment.
If you wish, feel free to write more than 8 pages. However, please limit your paper to no more than 15 pages.
You are required to provide at least 5 academic sources that supplement your analysis aside from your book.
You cannot use the following sources: “open source” sites (any site that allows the general public to add to the content) like Wikipedia. These sources are great starting points, but you need to cite the original sources.
Examples of appropriate sources include (but are not limited to):
• Entertainment Industry Magazines (e.g. Variety, TV Guide, etc.)
• Newspaper articles (e.g. The New York Times Magazine)
•Academic Journal Articles (e.g. Journal of Communication, Critical Studies in Mass Communication, etc.)
•Television Program Home Pages
• Media Reviews (The NYTimes, Common Sense Media, etc.)
• Your textbook
SUBMISSION:
You must submit your paper as a digital copy must be uploaded to iLearn by the deadline. See the course calendar.
PAPERS WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED FOR ANY REASON AFTER THIS TIME WITHOUT PRE-APPROVAL
PRESENTATION
In conjunction with your paper, you will do a brief (7-10 min) presentation on what you wrote about. This will take place virtually. Please review the directions called “Final Paper Presentation”.
At a minimum, your criticism papers must have the following elements:
I. A (separate) title page
It must have an original, creative title (not simply Criticism Paper # 1 or the name of the program being analyzed). The title is important because it predisposes your reader toward your subject; it functions like an advertisement for the paper to follow.
II. An Introduction
The introduction should include two to three introductory paragraphs that provide:
A rationale for doing the analysis that includes an explanation of why you decided to analyze this artifact and an explanation of the significance of the analysis—an indication about why this analysis is potentially worth the reader’s time to read and think about.
A thesis statement; that is, a declarative sentence in which you succinctly summarize the critical interpretation the rest of your analytical essay develops in detail. (It’s helpful to begin this statement with “The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate…” or “This paper seeks to look at what or how…)
II. A Body
The body of the paper must include the following:
Provide a (brief) synopsis of the artifact you are working with (this should only be 1/2 to 3/4 of a page in length);
A solid description of the critical approach and/or analytical concepts you used to examine the artifact and to explain some aspect of these texts including assumptions. This description should include definitions of key concepts and terms!
(Example: If you are using Cultural criticism, you need to define what gender, roles, etc. are.)
3-4 pages of analysis in which you do the following
Develop your thesis through explanatory paragraphs, each of which should begin with a topic sentence and a transition word or phrase linking it to the paragraph preceding it and to your paper’s thesis or main idea.
In these explanatory paragraphs you must use analytical concepts from your critical method (e.g., the semantic features of drama) to discuss concrete, specific characteristics of specific episodes: examples (of dialogue, scenes, character actions, etc.) from the series you watched and studied. You use these analytical paragraphs to develop and to support the interpretation stated in your thesis (this is what “proof” is in critical research).
IV. A conclusion.
The conclusion of the paper should do the following:
Restate (in slightly different words) your thesis or central critical interpretation.
Briefly discuss the main new insights your analysis discovered and explain the importance or usefulness these interpretive insights may have for your readers’ understanding of (1) this particular artifact, Other artifacts, Future analyses and (2) The relationship between your artifact and society.
V. Reference page(s).
The final pages of the paper are the reference pages. The references are put on a separate page after the paper’s conclusion. The citations on the reference page are listed alphabetically by the last name of the author. The sources of all ideas, words, and concept definitions or procedures that you gained from other people must be mentioned in the body of the paper, and the full citations (so readers can go find them easily) must be listed in the reference pages. In this class, you MUST put all references in correct APA or MLA style.
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