Description
End Term (Final) Essay Description
You will:
1. analyse a media text of your choosing (it could be a social media campaign, a film, a transmedia project, a YouTube channel, etc) that you would like to understand from a critical theoretical perspective. It must be different from the MidTerm you wrote.
2. Analyse the media text using three ideas (the ideas cannot be from the same author)/authors examined in class.
3. Make sure your research allows you to expand your understanding of each chosen ideas/authors. Use the list below to create your critical theoretical lens.
SUBJECT: Film Fight Club
Grade breakdown for project:
The final paper will be graded based on the following criteria:
– Research Focus (20%): Purpose/Position Statement
– Analysis (30%): Critical analysis
– Evidence (30%): Appropriate & reliable sources:
Use of academic and peered reviewed sources.
– Writing Quality & Adherence to Format Guidelines (20%):
Use of proper grammar, spelling, sentence structure & paragraph structure, style parameters, MLA formatting, proper citations, grammar and spelling.
– Length & Timeliness (deduction up to 10%) Objectives:
The Final research paper is an opportunity for you to explore in greater depth some of the theories/issues we have begun to explore in this course, only with even greater expertise than in your midTerm. To do so, you will explore theorists and/or ideas that relate to what you are thinking and experiencing in terms of media theory.
Subject List
Use this list to write your paper. It is a “lensing system”, that can be used to analyze a media text. Use it to come up with your paper’s subject and to focus your research efforts. Synthesize your research in relationship to your topic. If a perspective or subject that you would like to explore is not listed discuss it with your instructor. This is a flexible assignment – make sure it is appropriate for this course and that it does explore media theories.
To develop the Subject of your Paper, select your target.
For example:
Imagine you want to write about a transmedia project that’s a pre-COVID reality TV show called Dorm Life. It’s about living in a Ryerson Dormitory. So, you would thus arrive at your title and subject like so – pick one or two of these and use that to frame your analysis of Dorm Life:
The learning objectives are as follows:
• Research authors to understand their main contributions to media theory
• Demonstrate your understanding of the material.
• Demonstrate your ability to define, describe and discuss major media and communication theories.
• Communicate information, argue / analyse accurately and reliably, in written form.
• Examine media from a critical and digital media literacy perspective.
• Critically reflect upon production work.
• Understand and demonstrate the use of scholarly research methodologies and systems as well as autonomous, collaborative and peer based research and evaluation skills.
• Demonstrate an appreciation of the uncertainty, ambiguity, and limits to knowledge, and how this might influence analyses and interpretations.
• Use your writing skills to make media theory accessible and form compelling arguments.
• Demonstrate your mastery of MLA formatting for text and citations.
Requirements:
• Length: 5 or 6 pages (1200 – 1500 words)
• Provide a Title that describes your thesis, as demonstrated above.
• Use 3-4 Academic Sources: Use your personal library, school library, Virtual Library, or Internet for research. Specify at least 3 academic references: you can use texts from the suggested reading list if they are helpful. You may use more references – these numbers are minimums.
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