Short Essays

• Due date: by midnight, April 25 (with the customary 24-hour extension by request, as needed)
• Value: 20% of the final grade
• Length: approximately 5 pages (1350 words)
• All students are required to meet with me during office hours (Wed 1-2, Tues./Thurs. 11-12 or by appointment) to discuss their research questions and theses, how they intend to structure their argument, and the primary and secondary sources to be used. Preliminary discussion of research questions/theses will begin in class on April 18. As a general rule, your thesis will be your answer to the research question you decide to explore. The introductory paragraphs of your essay should serve to engage the attention of an educated reader, albeit one who is not necessarily familiar with the primary and secondary sources you are using, and to clearly state your thesis and/or the research question you will be exploring in the body of the essay. The concluding paragraphs are often a good place to discuss some of the implications of your findings
• General advice: review chs. 4-7 of the Corrigan text for help with formulating a research topic and thesis, further improving your writing style, citing secondary sources, etc.
• Bibliographic information for both primary and secondary sources should be included in a "Works Cited" section at the end of the essay
• Primary sources: one or more of the following films--Miss Mary, Garden of Eden, Sleep Dealer--as well as other optional films of your choosing, to serve as points of comparison/contrast. Thorough and precise analysis of relevant aspects of your primary source/s should be the focus of the body of the essay
• Secondary sources: depends on topic (see below), but try to draw primarily from the required and optional readings in the course schedule
• Potential topics:
  • Critique of cultural imperialism--that is, the manner in which entrenched, albeit largely unconscious, notions of class, gender and ethnic superiority can result in miscommunication and tragedy. Relevant films include: Miss Mary, Garden of Eden, Sleep Dealer
  • Critique of Anglo exceptionalism--that is, the manner in which the English language is encoded as privileged through its association with the United States or the British Empire. Relevant films include: Miss Mary, Garden of Eden, Sleep Dealer
  • Characteristics typical of many women filmmakers, such as the articulation of a female-centered point of view, the blurring of binary oppositions, positive female role models who transgress social norms, the use of film as a means of empowerment/consciousness raising, the exploration of alternatives to the patriarchal "male gaze" and the objectification of the female body. Relevant films include: Miss Mary, Garden of Eden
  • Narrative strategies that invert classical Hollywood norms, including the subversion of traditional cinematic hierarchies and stereotypes, use of multiple perspectives, techniques that call attention to the filmmaking process (thereby sacrificing the illusion of invisibility created by traditional continuity editing), to the "framing" process inherent to both photography and cinema, to the "performative" aspects of social interactions, or to the limitations of nationalist political paradigms. Relevant films include: Miss Mary, Garden of Eden, Sleep Dealer
  • Modes of production that invert classical Hollywood norms, including a democratization of the filmmaking process by making a virtue of low-production values, a focus on collaborative filmmaking, the integration of documentary techniques within fiction films, alternatives to the star system and the industrial complex of Hollywood, creation of small-scale distribution networks such as alternative theatres and film festivals. Relevant films include: Miss Mary, Garden of Eden, Sleep Dealer
  • Cinematic vision of particular filmmakers--María Luisa Bemberg, María Novaro, Alex Rivera. Relevant films include: Miss Mary, Garden of Eden, Sleep Dealer, and other of their films in the Holy Cross collection. These include Camila and I, the Worst of All by Bemberg, Danzón and Without a Trace by Novaro. In the case of Rivera, you can consult his short film, Why Cybraceros? (1997) and some of his other work online at http://www.invisibleamerica.com/movies.html