Media/Art Worldview Analysis research paper
“There is no way of writing well and also of writing easily."
Anthony Trollope
Description from syllabus:
Media Worldview Analysis (research paper)
Description:
Three-paged, double-spaced research paper (1) expounding and analyzing a worldview other than Christian Theism and (2) examining a piece of media or work of art that expresses this worldview, analyzing and evaluating the role the worldview plays in the piece. Must use at least three academic sources, cited properly according to supplied guidelines.
Assessment: Assessed according to fulfillment of assignment description, cogency of analysis, use and quality of sources, and writing quality (grammar, syntax, clarity) as indicated in rubric on Canvas.
Note: All written assignments, including this one, must be completed in order to pass the course
Note the rubric posted below this assignment description. The Assignment/Purpose:
Do the following:
Choose a worldview that you are interested in from the following list (Note: If you want to choose something that is not on this list—e.g., Scientology—email for special permission. If granted, be sure to include a note in your paper that you were given special permission to write "off the list." You may not choose Christian Theism.)
Naturalism (you can chose simple Philosophical Naturalism, if you choose . . . i.e., atheism)
Naturalism: Nihilism
Naturalism: Atheistic Existentialism
Naturalism: Secular Humanism
Deism
Pantheism (Particular eastern religions are fine: Hinduism, Buddhism, etc.)
New Age
Postmodernism
Polytheism
Animism (or ancestor worship)
Islam
Wicca
Any other world religious viewpoint (Sikh, Hare Krishna, etc.)
Select some example of media or art (song, film, visual art, poetry, commercial, etc.) that illustrates or embodies this worldview. The artwork can be a book, short story, song (lyrics or instrumental), painting, movie, short film, sculpture, commercial, billboard, YouTube clip, etc. The artwork cannot be art discussed/shown in this class or artwork used in a sample paper. Banned Substances List (Do not use any of the following):
Disney's Pocahontas
Disney's The Lion King
Disney's Hercules
Disney's Brother Bear
Mulan
Star Wars
The Truman Show
Avatar (the James Cameron Film)
The Matrix
Momento
Inception
Winter Light
Eat, Pray, Love
Life of Pi (film or book)
Fireproof, The Passion of the Christ or any other overtly "Christian films"
Beatles' songs that are Eastern in influence
John Lennon's Imagine
The Book of Mormon musical
Literature written by Jean-Paul Sarte
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Visual art from Elaine Bradford
Visual art from Daniel Chang
Visual art from Yves Klein
Write your paper. In your paper, you must analyze and evaluate the chosen worldview as it is expressed in the work of art.
(A) Statement of thesis
Tell me in the first few sentences what you intend to argue (no later than the end of the first paragraph). For example, "The Truman Show serves as an example of atheistic existentialism by creating a false world and having the main character make meaning for himself by choosing to leave that world."
(B) Exposition of the chosen worldview
After your thesis, you will need to give a brief exposition of the chosen worldview and its major tenets, using at least three sources (for suggestions see Mind Your Faith Appendix and the Worldview Bibliography Download Worldview Bibliography posted on Canvas).
Guidelines for sources:
These must be academic, peer-reviewed sources (not Wikipedia or other popular, non-academic websites).
At least one of your sources must be sympathetic to the worldview (e.g., Sartre on Existentialism, Dawkins on Naturalism) or at least neutral (e.g. Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy)—not written from a specifically Christian perspective.
No more than one peer reviewed online dictionary or encyclopedia of philosophy (the Stanford Encyclopedia is the standard, but the Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy is also peer reviewed).
At least one printed book.
Only one source may be used that was assigned for the class (Horner, Sire). (C) Short description of the chosen art and how it embodies the chosen worldview
Tell me what art you have chosen and why you have chosen it. You will likely need to give a very brief explanation of the art in case readers are not familiar with it. (Keep this short; do not give me the entire plot of the film, for example.) Give only a brief summary of the work; do not fill the space of your paper telling what happened in the movie. If you use a song or poem, do not include the text in your paper. You must analyze the worldview’s role in the work. Then you will need to state clearly how this art embodies or illustrates the chosen worldview. Note: you will be graded on how well you connect the worldview and the art, not whether we agree or disagree with your claim. (This is the fun part of academic arguments; you can make a crazy argument, but if you do it well, it is still a good argument). Be sure to tie the art to your exposition of the worldview—that is, if you emphasized postmodernism as a kind of relativism in your exposition, it is best to emphasize how your art also emphasizes relativism.
Questions to ask yourself to get ideas for how to do this assignment well:
Is the fundamental worldview lying behind the “message” of the work?
Are there characters in the story that have different worldviews, which are expressed in the characters’ lives and actions?
Is there a conflict of worldviews?
Does the art/film show the “consequences” of the worldview “ideas”?
(D) Analysis and critique of the worldview as it is expressed in the art
Finally, evaluate the worldview as it is expressed in the work. Do not write a movie or song “review” or merely give your own personal interpretation or impressions of it. Analyze it thoughtfully and carefully from a worldview perspective. Become a culture analyst. If you use sources to help you analyze the work (which is also encouraged), you must cite them appropriately. Ultimately, however, the analysis must be your ideas and insights in your own words. Be sure to include some biblical analysis of the worldview as it is expressed in the art. Not everything in your analysis must be explicitly tied to Scripture, but I need to see evidence that you are attempting to think biblically in this assignment. (For example, "The hopelessness expressed in this nihilistic film is nowhere to be found in biblical Christianity. Instead, the Christian knows that God has given us a hope from Jeremiah 29:11 and that hope is grounded in Jesus' work on the cross.") Note: (D) is the most important part of your paper and therefore should be your longest segment. It also holds the most weight in the rubric for content.
Hints:
If you choose to use a film as your art, resist the temptation to spend too much time summarizing the entire plot.
If you choose to use a film as your art, It is OK (perhaps preferable) to focus on one character or scene for your paper
Feel the freedom to think of "art" broadly-- you can use advertisements, reality TV shows, comic books, etc.
If you want to include a copy of your art in your paper, it is OK but not required (such as an image of the art, the lyrics of the song, etc.)
Guidelines for Citations:
Use Chicago/Turabian format for citations. Consult the “Citation Format” document posted on Canvas (“Getting Started” module). Also check the Chicago/Turabian website Links to an external site..
I advise you to use endnotes, but you may use footnotes if you choose (footnotes/endnotes not included in your total word count).
Include a bibliography (not included in the total word count).
The library website and the librarians are available to help if you have questions about this kind of academic formatting.
You must cite all three of your sources somewhere in your paper.
You must use at least one word-for-word citation and at least one not word-for-word (or thought-for-thought) citation (see the "Citing and Citations" writing video that you watched at the start of the class for this wording).
Grading Details for Content:
The chosen worldview must be understood and explained properly. The explanation of how the art serves as an example of the worldview must be clear. The analysis of the art and the worldview must be analyzed, showing that the student has thought biblically about the worldview as depicted in the art. All explanations must be accurate and coherent.
Sample Paper: Sample Worldview Analysis Paper Download Sample Worldview Analysis Paper
Formatting Details:
Your paper must be three pages (between 600 and 800 words, excluding notes and bibliography), you will lose points if it is not within this range. At the end of your paper include the word count of the text, e.g., 650 words. It must be double-spaced with 12-point font, with 1-inch margins. (I recommend Times New Roman, but it is not required.) Submit on Canvas as Word document or PDF file. Title Page is optional.
WARNING: This paper requires citations so be sure to cite properly. I advise you to watch the three videos found in the Getting Started module to refresh your memory and ensure that you do not plagiarize. Also, see the "Citation Format" document, also posted there