Critical Perspectives Briefing & First Lecture

• Builds on contextual studies for last year
• Gives ideas for 3rd year dissertation
• Essay writing and structuring
• Time management
• Reading list

Assessment

ESSAY 50% / DISSERTATION PROPOSAL 50%

Teaching materials on MyUCA, Podcasts and more. Library at Rochester should be used also.

Project submission: 

• Draft Version: 10th November 3pm-4pm (hard copy on paper properly formatted with havard)
• Final Version: 15th December 10am-11am (Through turnitin as well as a hard copy on paper)

What is this questions asking you to consider?

What TV broadcast could you consider referencing as case studies?

How viable is this is a choice?

What are the challenges in answering this option and using your chosen case study?

Fiction:

Book or comic into a screen TV NOT Film to TV or Vice Versa

• "Successful" is subjective. Terms of reference. Could be box office successful/ critically successful/ lots of adaptation/ lots of series. barb status and rotten tomatoes as well as broadcast magazine can be a good source.
• "Traces of what it was formerly" Plot
• Audencies change...
• Plot, Character, Tone - how have these changed over the course of a adaptation if it all.

Journalism:

• Speed of citizen journalism can be quicker if we are already at the scene
• Could possibly not follow laws of journalism properly 
• Accuracy is important and mis-representation.

First Lecture

Questions to ask when creating and researching a case study.

• Where it was made, when it was made and who it was made by
• A media product could be made for the same thing in different areas of the world but be different because of the perspective and agenda.
• What has influenced the nature of the media product - it's character: physical or visual?
• Who made it and what are their influences and backgrounds
• Could be creative, critical, conceptual, technological, science bound and connect to contemporary and traditional modes of practice and cultural development

Find out- How it was made - processes, techniques and if it is a small or large production

Look around for critical reception if the piece of media you are analysing. Reviews, articles, critical writing, press work, books etc

What is the purpose of the creator, personal project or a small/mass scale production and who is it trying to serve and who is it benefiting? Does it support a ideological position or not? Is it part of a propaganda campaign or pushing some sort of agenda?

What meanings are being generated by the piece?

What are the social and cultural mechanisms of communication? (Meanings and semiotics)

What are the connotations and meaning being formed, are these "regenerated" intended or not?

Context is important - Consider reviews of meaning after time has evolved or after global events change.

Consider the intertextual relationship that exists now between all media products in culture and all forms of media.

Undertake reading to clarify or expand your opinions and knowledge

This will help you develop  rich case studies and select relevant and interesting examples of creative output to elaborate around and theorise around.

CRITICAL WRITING

Being critical in some way, a clear and confident refusal to accept the conclusions of the other writers.

A balanced presentation of reasons why the conclusions of the other writers may be accepted or may need to be treated with cauton

A clear presentation of your own evidence 

Avoid being over-descriptive of your writing. Make sure you go beyond the account of what happened.

You are not developing an argument with Descriptive writing, you are mearley setting the background within which an argument can be developed.

You have to use a "What" and a "Why" together otherwise it's just a description.

Avoid descriptive writing, otherwise you will get a low grade. Use evidence and arguments to describe more because it will get a higher grade.

PARAPHRASE

SUMMARISE

QUOTE

Are the three ways you reference using Harvard Referencing. 

Good habits:

Time management

Careful note taking

Using references

Use your own words

Rephrasing ideas rather than using sub words

quotation marks where appropriate

Cautious with Internet research 

HOMEWORK:

Setup Tutorial Log

Begin to plan your research and schedule for the coming 6 weeks

Choose at least one book from the reading materials to begin your research

Source adaptation/ news material to analyse and reference

Book a session with a librarian as appropriate