Evaluation Essay
2 December 2019
Essay Notes
Essay is due to D2L Dec. 8, by 11:59 pm- No Late Essays will be accepted
Outlines
Make sure you are evaluating the film on specific criteria associated with documentaries.
For Example:
If I were evaluating Chick fil A, I would pick general criteria that make for good fast food:
Taste- people won’t return if food isn’t good- Chick-fil-A’s chicken is better than Popeyes, their mac and cheese is like my mom’s, I love their fries
Cleanliness of establishment- clean restrooms, dining room is clean, workers are always handing out hand sanitizer and putting placemats out for kids
Consistency- people want to know that no matter which location they go to, it’s going to be the same. All menus are the same. Always tastes the same.
Counter Argument- Price- it is more pricy than McDonalds
For McDonald’s I would evaluate it on:
Price- cheap- always stuff for $1- specials at different times of days, value menu, lots of food for the price
Kids Like It- often have a playground, better toys in the boxes, usually toys are themed around something currently popular
Variety – lots of coffee drinks, desserts, chicken, fish, beef, vegetarian, menu changes- wings, mcrib,
Counter Argument- cleanliness- often trashcans are overflowing, dining rooms aren’t clean, bathrooms are dated
Sample Criteria for Evaluating Documentaries
Historically Accurate- recount facts, place into historical context, true
High Production Quality- music, editing, cinematography
Inspiring/ influential
Raises. Awareness/ Promotes Social Change/ Moves Audience to Action
Dramatic (Storytelling) / Interesting
Easy to follow
Educational
New Perspectives
Pacing (does it drag anywhere?) / flow
Interviews
Archival Footage
Have a position; make an argument
Star Power / Celebrities
Essay Notes
Write in present literary tense: anything happening in an article or in the film is in present tense:
As LA is on fire, clips of the Rodney King trial are showing in the background.
Nichols states that documentaries need to be about “real life” stories (12).
Avoid “you” and “we” (except possibly in intro or conclusion)
Make sure you have an argumentative thesis statement that guides your essay
It should be a judgement of how well the film meets specific documentary criteria
It should not be a judgment of how much you enjoyed the film
Word Count should be around 1,200 words
At the end, make sure you have used the same font/ same size throughout the essay- title, Works Cited and all
More Notes
Don’t rely too much on quotes- the research should be backing up your arguments- not making them for you!
You shouldn’t have long direct quotes- paraphrase them; 4 line or more need to be block quoted
Remember lead ins and parenthetical citation (last name/shortened version of page number): (“Docs” 10) or (Nichols 28).
Most sources are about docs in general- not your specific film
Explain why the author is credible
For this essay, ~20% similarity report would be about right
Turn in and check early- anything over 50% is plagiarism and will be reported
Use the Purdue OWL and the MLA section of our book to answer questions about citation info, adding visuals, etc.
Anything on the Works Cited must be used in the essay and anything used in the essay must be included on the Works Cited
If you need other sources, there are plenty about the specific documentaries and documentaries in general on Galileo Possibly for intro and/or conclusion type doc title in “quotation marks” use list or type “qualities of a successful documentary” narrow it to “full text” determine publication dates
Outline- include 3 sources- pics as needed- each criteria may be more than one paragraph
Intro: hook, context, summary, thesis statement that makes a judgement of how well the film meets doc criteria
Criteria One: storytelling (narrative arc- climax, resolution)
Criteria Two: educational (teaches in an interesting way, new perspectives, etc.)
Criteria Three: well produced (camera work, music, reenactments, etc.)
Opposing Viewpoint: an argument that there are weak portions of the documentary
Conclusion: call to action?
Works Cited: ABC order, double spaced, hanging indent, italicized titles, at least three sources (primary + 2- can use more)
Revising
After you’ve completed your outline, it’s time to draft
After a rough draft, revise:
Revision usually involves moving around paragraphs- maybe change the order of the criteria
Adding transitions- between paragraphs and sentences
Making sure you have backed up your point with evidence
Make sure you aren’t relying too heavily on direct quotes from sources
Editing/ proofreading
Editing is when you are looking at specific word choices and punctuation
Try to vary sentence structure
Vary word choice- if you use “good” or “basically” every few sentences, add some variety
Italicize every film / journal/ magazine title
Quote every article, chapter title
Make sure you use parenthetical citation- anything that isn’t common knowledge
Print out your essay and go line by line
Read aloud and listen for awkward wording
Make sure to grammar and spell check (don’t ignore the squiggly lines)
Apostrophes
Apostrophes are used for two reasons:
1) in a contraction to show were a letter is left out
Can’t= cannot
Y’all= you all
It’s = it is
2) to show possession/ ownership
The girl’s shadow
Brooks' film
Nichol’s chapter explains…
The boys’ field was rained out (multiple boys who play on the field), the boy’s shoe was dirty (one boy and he has the dirty shoe)
Plurals are not possessive
The Joneses like leftover mac and cheese
Students enjoy their winter break.
Capitalization
Proper nouns (Rodney King, San Diego)
Major words in Titles (Three Identical Strangers, LA ‘92, Won’t You be My Neighbor)
Not random words in a sentence to show Importance. It doesn’t Work that Way.
Spelling
When in doubt, look it up
Pay attention to their/ there/ they’re and other homophones
Works Cited
On a new page at the end of the essay
Start at the top of the page and center Works Cited
ABC order, double space, hanging indent
Delete annotations if you are cutting and pasting from Annotated Bib
Read my comments on the annotated bib- if you lost points for an incorrect citation and don’t fix it, expect to lose points again
Final notes
If you have questions, first, look at the assignment sheet. Is it answered there? Then, look at the rubric; is it answered there? What about the book? Then, email me. Don’t rely on someone in your class to explain it to you.
Please try to contact me early b/c Sat. my daughter is being baptized, having her first communion, and we have a reception afterwards and Sunday is my father-in-law’s birthday
Be specific in your questions- I can’t read your entire essay and tell you if “it’s good or not”
Give yourself plenty of time for uploading- DON’T WAIT UNTIL SUNDAY NIGHT AT 11:58 PM
Look at the rubric when you’re revising/ editing- read it very carefully
Have a friend or family member you trust look over it after you’ve proofread first.
Please Don’t…
Email me immediately asking about your grade
Look at the rubric
Read my comments
If there is an error, then let me know
Don’t email me asking what you can do for extra credit
Don’t email me asking ”is there anything I can do to pull up my grade” because “…financial aid, sick pet, transportation, adjusting to college, etc.”
Your grades started at the beginning of Aug.
I will not respond to any “begging” or “pleading” emails.
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