America reunited in film

First, thank you to those that submitted presentations. I hope that posting our findings (in the presentations as well as all of our other assignments this semester) on the class blog has allowed each student to not only discover some information on his/her own, but also benefit from the discoveries of his/her classmates.

I do want to make one clarification about last week's subject. This semester we have examined issues of oppression concerning race, class, gender and sexuality. Now, as we discussed in our second week of the course, our use of the term sexuality refers to sexual orientation. So, explanations of sexuality (in your film analysis papers and your final exams) should refer not to sex in general, but specifically to sexual orientation. (Some of the responses from last week made me think that despite the very specific concepts introduced in the readings, films, and blog post, some students have not understood the term sexuality).

Some Resolution

Here is a clip from Good Night and Good Luck. Notice how Edward R. Murrow's character acknowledges the potential of the media to clarify issues that we have addressed in the course. Notice also that this potential is dependent on the individuals that make up the media industries and audiences. Since you and I will undoubtedly be a part of at least one of those groups, and since these cultural issues will undoubtedly affect our lives in some way, I hope that we engage ourselves in these issues and we encourage the media to join us.



It's been a great opportunity teaching you this semester. I hope that you have benefited from the material that has been introduced. I appreciated many of your responses, in both your papers and weekly assignments, and I hope that you have found my approach to the course helpful.

Now, this Friday our 3rd Film Analysis paper is due, our last quiz is due, but you will not have an assignment due. Remember to email your quiz responses to Jennifer and email your papers to me, both by 11:59pm Fri.

Quiz

According to Meulener's article, what are the three “rungs” of the “ladder” that leads to diversity? Explain each.

Final Exam

The final exam will be posted on Bb on Monday, Dec 10th. You will have until Friday, Dec 14th at 11:59pm to complete it. The exam will be short answer and essay. It will be cumulative, covering concepts from the textbook readings, films, and blog posts. It is a "take-home" format, so you are free to use your notes, the texts, and any other reputable sources to help you in your responses. However, you must acknowledge these sources, using proper quotations and citations (using MLA format). The exams will be submitted as "Turnitin" assignments to make sure that your responses are definitely your own. When I post the exam, I will send out an email explaining in detail the procedure for submitting the exams using Turnitin. If you have any questions, please let me know.