Assignment: Analysis Paper

The communication analysis paper involves analyzing a movie, documentary, television show, or personal experience by utilizing theories/concepts from the course. Even though we usually view film or television for entertainment, as we think more critically about what we view, we can identify important ideas that influence our daily lives. No doubt, this is one of the reasons why films, videos, and television continue to be a popular form of entertainment across a variety of cultures. Typical chapters referenced in this assignment are: nonverbal, Interpersonal, culture, and organizational culture.

For the communication analysis paper, students need to select one or two course concepts/theories from one of the chapters covered in class and research them (through scholarly articles and/or books) for more information. Chapters typically related to a movie analysis include 2, 3, 6, 7, 9, 10, or 11, although one could use chapter 5 for this assignment, most student's choose to analyze organizational, small group, verbal, nonverbal, interpersonal or cultural communication events depicted in media. Students should find at least THREE articles and/or books in addition to their course text. The total number of sources should be at least FOUR. The students must utilize the outside research in their papers when explicating the theories and when analyzing the communication event.

This analysis is meant to encourage you to synthesize and apply the relational communication concepts we have discussed in COMM 265G. Your analysis will involve a brief summary of the communication event (this is not the purpose of the assignment), an explanation of the theories/concepts selected for use in the paper, an analysis of the situation through theories of communication, and an assessment of the effectiveness of the communication represented through the course theories.

In order to meet the expectations of this assignment, please become familiar with these requirements for the paper:

1. The paper should not tell the story of the film or program. The paper should analyze the story and should identify and explain a minimum of two key relational communication concepts that are illustrated in events portrayed in the movie or program. Papers that fail to identify and apply two key concepts will receive no more than a "C."

2. The paper should be at least three but no more than four pages in length. The paper should demonstrate organizational, developmental, and mechanical writing skills at the level of sophistication and professionalism appropriate for undergraduates. Be sure to edit the paper in order to correct any grammatical or typing errors.

3. The paper should be typed, should have one-inch margins on all four sides, double-spaced, and use 12-point font.

4. Incorporate quotations or refer to others' ideas in the paper. Supply appropriate bibliographic citations using APA format. No title page is necessary, but be sure your name is on the paper while maintaining one-inch margins.