Self relexity and Spectatorial distanciation in the films “Weekend” and “Do the right thing”

Limit is 1000 words

 

This is an analytical response paper. It is not a research paper nor an assignment where you merely give your opinion. An analytical response paper actively engages with the ideas presented in the readings and lectures, in an informed manner. You are being tested on your reading, writing and comprehension of the course material. You are therefore required to actively show that you have read the course material and are intelligently able to discuss, analyze and critique the ideas encountered in your readings and in lectures.

 

Introduction

 

  1. In the introduction, present the main argument or thesis statement
  2. ii) Include three supporting arguments. Present a succinct outline (1-3 sentences) of three supporting arguments you will be taking up to support your main argument.
  • Your introduction should have no more than five well-crafted and thoughtful sentences.

 

 

Body

While each supporting argument can have several paragraphs, each paragraph should be between 4-7 sentences.

 

Conclusion

Present a well-articulated conclusion that converges the 3 supporting arguments presented in the body of your assignment.

Tie it all up in 4-5 well thought-out sentences.

 

  1. ANALYTICAL CONTENT

Comprehension and interpretation of course materials rather than only a summary or description. The best work not only describes theories, but also critically interprets them. Compare and contrast different approaches and identify their strengths and limitations. Try to be as balanced and impartial as possible.

 

  1. DEVELOPMENT OF ARGUMENT

Organize your materials as effectively as you can to support the orderly development of an argument. Do not leap from point to point. Take nothing for granted. Simply quoting assertions does not count as evidence. All assertions must be supported with the best evidence you can find. Evidence is provided by drawing upon the analysis and interpretation of findings. Support your main and subordinate points systematically and logically by way of illustration/example. Show persuasiveness and depth in the development of your argument.

 

  1. THESIS STATEMENT AND INTRODUCTION

Your thesis statement should be clearly expressed as the main argument you are making. It should be set within the introduction that gives your reader a context for an overview of your argument. In the introduction, state the aims/objectives of your assignment in explicit and specific terms immediately. Get to the topic immediately: long, general and winding introductions, which are not closely related to the topic, are a waste of space. Waffle, in particular, is guaranteed to lose marks. Make sure you only cover the key issues and do not try to cover too much.

 

  1. PARAGRAPHING

Each paragraph should be clearly linked to your thesis statement and to the various developing stages of your supporting arguments. Each paragraph should develop a single point and should be between 4-7 sentences. Do not write one-page paragraphs!

 

 

Minimalize quotations, maximum 2

 

THE QUESTION TO BE ANSWERED IN THE ESSAY

 

In mainstream Hollywood cinema, the impression of reality is created, reinforced and maintained through the mise-en-scène (eg. eye-level framing, natural lighting, natural colour, synchronized sound etc.) and continuity editing techniques (eg. the shot-reverse-shot, the 180 degree axis rule, the cutaway, inserts etc.). These conventions maintain the spectator’s identification with the protagonist and story, and do not draw attention to the artificial nature of filmmaking. What is real is thereby extended into film through the artifice of cinematic conventions, presenting the impression that the reality generated in film is natural, true and real. Hollywood filmmaking conventions are critiqued for reinforcing and maintaining the dominant social order (or ideology) in this way.

 

In counter-cinema, which runs counter to Hollywood conventions, the impression of reality is disrupted, deconstructed and denaturalized. In counter-cinema, the mise-en-scène (framing, lighting, colour, sound/music, dialogue) and continuity editing techniques (the narrative progression and plot logic) are disrupted and challenged. These disruptions draw attention to the film as artifice, rather than present film as a self-evident or true reality. This non-realistic and denaturalized style is referred to as self-reflexive filmmaking. Counter-cinema, therefore, actively seeks to disrupt and challenge the dominant Hollywood paradigm of realism. Instead of spectatorial identification with the characters and story, self-reflexive films cause spectatorial distanciation, to varying degrees.

 

Choose two stylistic elements that show self-reflexivity causing spectatorial distanciation in Godard’s Weekend (1967) and Spike Lee’s Do the Right Thing (1989). Consider why the filmmakers utilized these stylistic choices. Do these choices give rise to meaning that challenges or subverts dominant ideology? If so, analyze how the filmmakers challenge or subvert dominant ideology, and if they have been successful.

 

Sources that can be used and cited:

Marxism and Media Studies: Key Concepts and Contemporary Trends, Wayne Mike:
                        “Signs, Ideology and Hegemony,” 173-182.

 “Counter-cinema (also ‘oppositional cinema’)”:
        https://faculty.washington.edu/mlg/courses/definitions/counter-cinema.htm

“The Last Weekend,” Gary Indiana:
         http://www.criterion.com/current/posts/2554-the-last-weekend

The Philosophy of Spike Lee, ed. Mark T. Conard:
                        “(Still) Fighting the Power,” Elizabeth Hope Finnegan, p. 75-94.