Two--Inside Llewyn Davis

assignment sheet.docx

English 102: Proctor

Analytical Essay Guidelines

Assignment: For our next assignment, you are to write a 4-6 page analytical essay on Joel and Ethan Coen’s Inside Llewyn Davis (2013); this thesis driven essay should answer an interpretive question regarding the film. Generate a thesis that addresses this prompt. Please include a title, heading, margins, and page numbers in proper MLA format. The paper should be double-spaced in 12-point Times New Roman font. The essay must be submitted to Canvas by the due date.

***Secondary Source Requirement: You must use multiple direct quotations from the secondary source material supplied by the instructor. The best use of quotations is to develop your analysis through supporting claims in the body of the essay. Use of a secondary source is required; be sure to list all sources (secondary and primary) in a Works Cited page. Proper MLA citation format is also required.***

Approach:

· You may explore the role of a single motif.

· You will want to explore how the motif shapes the nature of an idea; more than identifying a theme, how does the text define a concept or promote a viewpoint?

· You have latitude to self-determine here. But, yes, you will want to watch the film again while taking careful notes. The film is available for streaming through the Swank Motion Pictures database.

Potential topics:

· Circularity is a dominant motif in the film. The film begins with its ending, numerous journeys are round trip, and the records that play the ‘timeless’ folk songs do so by going round and round. Often this motif is shown to be in tension with the demands for productivity by Llewyn’s society. What do the Coens communicate with this theme and its contextualization?

· The cat (which is both one cat and three) seems an important symbol in the film. He makes a return journey like his namesake, Ulysses. He (or she) is Llewyn’s only friend. Moreover, the film seems to grant the cat both spiritual and moral weight as Llewyn’s abandonment of the cat strikes us as a transgression. Write an essay in which you assert the significance of the cat in the film.

· The film challenges us to separate or combine the artist and their art. It explores to what degree our apprehension of the artist should be connected to their art. We may not like Llewyn, but how does that affect our feelings about liking his work? Write an essay in which you explore the evaluation of the artist and their art.

· The film is about a specific moment in the history of pop music—the American folk revival of the fifties and sixties. Write an essay on how the film utilizes musical performance to communicate.

· A topic of your own development…

Introduction and Thesis: Bottom line: the essay MUST have a thesis. A thesis is a statement that comes as the last sentence of the introductory paragraph. It is not a statement of fact: it is a claim that you will support with the body of the essay.

· So, “In Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, Ferris is able to outwit all of the adults” is not a thesis.

· “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off is about rebelling against authority” is not a very good thesis.

· Something like, “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off uses an idealized teen hero to model what a meaningful, productive—rather than merely lazy—rebellion against flawed authority might look like” is much better. Of course this thesis could be improved to define what effective rebellion “looks like.”

Form: This multi-paragraph essay should begin with an introduction culminating in a thesis statement, present a series of body paragraphs that begin with topic sentences, and end with a conclusion. You must support claims with specific evidence from the text: this means that you will have to specifically describe formal elements of the film and use quoted dialogue from the film. Imagine that your reader has seen the film a year or so ago; you will have to describe evidence to give your reader a vivid mental picture of the evidence.

A Word on Style: Style is a complex concern, but as the most basic level we want to employ formal collegiate prose. Analyze using the present tense; avoid slang or casual phrasing; use the third-person and do not use personal pronouns (I, you, me); choose active verb constructions whenever possible.

Feel free to visit my office hours for help developing a topic or evidence, or even just to run an idea by me. The ACE and NetTutor are also available for assistance; be sure to supply this assignment sheet to your ACE tutor or NetTutor.