List all the important visual elements in the advertisement that you will analyze for Essay 2. Post your response below. (10 minutes)
In-Class Writing: Paraphrasing vs Patch-writing
Patch-writing is a form of plagiarism in which a writer reproduces an idea by keeping crucial words, phrases, or sentence structure while swapping out few parts or making minor changes to the structure. A paraphrase however demonstrates that a writer understands an idea and can explain it in a way that is genuinely his or hers. To paraphrase, read the sentence a few times, think about its meaning, then close the text and write in your own words what you understood from the sentence.
Read the Wikipedia entry on morte d’Arthurs and write a paraphrase of the meaning of the term. Post below.
Exercise 2.3
Estimated time: 2 hours
Due by 9:30 a.m. Tuesday, March 13th
The goal of this exercise is to vividly describe your exhibit for your intended reader and to practice lens analysis.
First, review my comments about the potential exhibits you found for Exercise 2.2. If you need to find a different exhibit, you might check these websites: adsoftheworld.com, coloribus.com, adforum.com.
Review the Visual Analysis handout. Then, in one paragraph, vividly describe your exhibit. Start by stating what your exhibit is and when and where it was used (e.g. “This movie poster for King Kong was first released in print in America in 1933.”) Make sure that you focus on elements like: central image, composition, organization, setting, size, colors, shading, and text.
Review the Lens Analysis handout. Then, in one paragraph, argue clearly that some specific aspect or element of your exhibit can be considered a “monster” or “monstrous” according to Cohen.
Post your response as a comment below.
In-Class Writing: Describing a Visual Text (Section 26)
In one paragraph, describe the King Kong movie poster that your group has been assigned. Post your responses below. Make sure to name the members in your group.
In-Class Writing: Lens Analysis
In one paragraph, use a relevant quotation from Cohen to argue that the central image of the Land Rover advertisement is “monstrous.” Refer to the example of lens analysis provided at the end of the Lens Analysis handout. Post your responses below, making sure to list all the names of your group members.
Exercise 2.2
Estimated time: 1 hour
Due by 9:30 a.m. Thursday, March 8th
The goal of this exercise is to identify two possible exhibits for your lens analysis essay.
Research
First review the instructions for Assignment 2. Then conduct some research to find two potential exhibits for your lens analysis essay. Remember that your “exhibit” is the advertisement that you will be analyzing in your essay. It must be a static advertisement (i.e. not a video); for example, a student could choose a highway billboard, a movie poster, an online advertisement, a subway advertisement, a newspaper or magazine advertisement, or even a flyer. However, the advertisement does not have to be in English. Strong advertisements for this assignment are usually primarily visual. You should find:
- one advertisement that contains an explicit or obvious monster or monstrous image. Two examples are:
- King Kong movie posters
- Tarantula movie poster
- one advertisement that does not contain a literal monster but rather is conceptually monstrous. In other words, you should be able to argue that something about the exhibit is monstrous as defined by Cohen. Three examples are:
- Land Rover advertisement
- Levi’s Kids advertisement
- Surrogates movie poster
A great website to search for print advertisements is: http://www.adsoftheworld.com
Writing
Provide a copy of and/or link to each of your advertisements as a comment below.
In-Class Writing: Close Reading “Masters of Desire”
In your groups, read the section “Live the Fantasy” in “Masters of Desire: The Culture of American Advertising” in order to identify:
- key terms
- the main idea
- 3 – 4 other important ideas
Post your group responses below, making sure to list the name of your group members. (20 minutes)
Exercise 2.1
The aim of this exercise is to identify the main idea of “Masters of Desire: The Culture of American Advertising.”
Estimated time: 30 minutes
Due by 9:30 a.m. Tuesday, March 6th
Read the first 5 pages of “Masters of Desire.” Quote 1-2 sentences that you believe represent the thesis or main idea of the essay. Post your response as a comment below.
