PROMPTAssignment DescriptionThroughout the semester students will be required to write three (3)
blog posts. Each blog post should use ideas from class (both discussions
and readings) to describe, analyze, and evaluate the cultural text
discussed.For this assignment, students step into the role of “cultural
critic.” The tone of blog posts is professional but entertaining.
Students should write for a diverse audience who may not be familiar
with the text or texts discussed, the genre the text is part of, or the
concepts learned in class and applied when analyzing the text (or
texts).Blog Post One: Music (Due with Module 7)Students will choose a song or album and create a 500 – 750-word post
describing, analyzing, and evaluating the song or album. Songs or
albums discussed cannot be part of assigned cultural content.To achieve core area objectives, students will be asked to pay special attention to the following questions:How does what you have learned from class apply to the cultural object? (Critical Thinking)In what way does the production of the cultural object affect the final product? (Critical Thinking)How is the artist/author/musician/actor/director/etc. (artist for
short) positioned in society (race, class, gender, ethnicity, religion,
sexuality, disability)? (Social Responsibility)How does the artist’s position in society affect the production,
consumption, interpretation and reception of the object? (Social
Responsibility)How does the object represent an ethical position? If an ethical
position appears to be missing, what could be the reasons that it is
missing? (Personal Responsibility) GUIDELINESAfter you take notes on the topic of your blog, think about your
paper. Writing is a process, and should not simply answer the above
questions. This is where critical thinking and communication are
important.Generate a thesis (a claim you will make and support throughout your
blog post). Your thesis should be related to ideas from the course
(think about representation, social construction, power, discourse,
etc.).After you have a solid claim, identify reasons you have for making your argument and evidence that supports it.Your blog post should be well structured. Each paragraph should be
coherent and cohesive. They should contain reasons and evidence that
clearly support your claim (thesis). The reasons and evidence explored
in the paragraph should be communicated in a topic sentence.Always proofread before handing in the final draft. Blogs are dynamic
and multimedia. Be sure to include pictures and hyperlinks to videos
about the topics that you discuss. Also make sure to link to relevant
material.Write each blog post in a word processor before transferring it to
the discussion board. Each post should be 250 – 750 words, standard
12-point font (i.e. Times New Roman, Courier, Cambria), double spaced,
one-inch margins.*A note on citation. Students will be expected to cite everything.
Keep in mind that linking is very important to effective blogging. You
should be linking to everything that you refer to in your blog posts.
All instances of plagiarism will result in failing the assignment and
will be processed under the Honor Code.
