In this essay, you will write a 4- to 5-page essay (around 1250-1600 words) in
which you analyze a scene in relation to its genre. The scene is attached (5 minutes long from Velvet Goldmine, 1998). The scene is from a film that operates
with a given genre even as it modifies and revises elements of this genre. The essay’s
argument will address this issue of genre revision: how does this scene alter, revise, or
perhaps even critique key generic elements and/or structures?
The paper, therefore, will need to establish first how the scene in question
operates at least somewhat according to genre conventions. The paper will then explain:
(a) how the scene complicates or revises the genre so as to produce a new and/or
surprising experience of these genre conventions, and (b) the significance of this revision. This assignment asks to generate an interpretive
argument about the scene through description and analysis. The paper, though, should focus on the scene selected, and not the entire movie (entire movie used just for context).
A few questions to keep in mind for this essay (essay need not
answer these exact questions, but they should help start thinking about generic
issues): consider how the
scene handles the relationship between narrative events and musical numbers.
How do the musical numbers suggest utopian feelings or experiences? How do
the utopian feelings generated by the musical numbers comment on narrative
events and conditions (if at all)? To what kinds of social problems do the musical
numbers seem to be offering a utopian response? You do not need to do outside research for this paper. You should, though, refer to some of the concepts
and arguments concerning particular genres from our course readings (especially the
Maltby, Schatz, and Dyer essays). Please include a Works Cited list using MLA Style to cite source (just the movie Velvet Goldmine, since that will be the only source used)
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