Documentary Film Analysis

AP Language and Composition

Journal Entry : November 3, 2014

What is the last documentary film that you watched?

How does a documentary film deliver the message?

What is the purpose of a documentary film?

The Purpose Through the lens of documentary film makers, the general

public is often reintroduced to a topic that they are already familiar with.

Documentary film makers use the documentary to create a platform for their message; a message which often times is heavily biased.

The purpose of this teaching unit is to use the analytical lens which we all possess, to find the deeper meaning or the purpose for documentary film making.

Terms Find time to define the following terms:

Documentary documentarian Genre fiction non-fiction Accuracy objective Subjective propaganda

Day 1 : A Sneak Peek Today you will view a short documentary called Caine’s

Arcade. Using Aristotle’s Appeals, and your previous knowledge of

analysis, you will find the purpose of the documentary. Following the viewing of Caine’s Arcade, you will write a brief

review which includes how the documentarian appeals to the audience. Is he objective or subjective?

Journal Entry : November 4, 2014What are some challenges that documentary film makers may face while filming?

Do documentary films tell the truth?

Essential Information The difference between accuracy and truth The difference between objective and subjective The difference between subjective material and propaganda The difference between sharing one's own perspective and

telling the whole truth about an issue or event The role of evidence in determining whether all perspectives

are equally valid The techniques that documentary filmmakers use to show

reality (especially when merely pointing the camera and recording cannot fully capture an experience)

Emotional Separation: Staying Objective

“[Journalists] feel terribly torn by their sense of obligation to get the story yet the emotional drain on them that the story evokes also can be very damaging,” -Jeffrey Dvorkin, program director for the University of Toronto Scarborough’s journalism program.

“There has to be a way in which the journalist is able to professionally handle these emotional challenges.”

Photographer Kevin Carter Photographer Kevin Carter won a Pulitzer Prize for his photograph that

depicted famine in Sudan (1994). Carter went on record to state that he waited approximately twenty minutes

to capture the image of a vulture stalking what appeared to be an extremely malnourished young child.

After taking the picture, Carter interrupted the vulture and scared the predator away from his prey. He stated afterward that the scene caused depression, and that he immediately wanted to hug his daughter.

Once the photo hit mainstream media outlets, he started receiving harsh criticism such as, "The man adjusting his lens to take just the right frame of her suffering, might just as well be a predator: another vulture on the scene.“

At the age of 33, Kevin Carter’s body was found with an apology letter after an apparent suicide.

Photographer Kevin Carter

Journal Entry : November 5, 2014What are your thoughts about the results of the election yesterday?

How do you feel about the future of education in Oklahoma?

Journal Entry : November 6, 2014

How has the documentary changed your perspective on Sea World?

Can you blame a company for the actions of a wild animal? Explain.

Journal Entry : November 10, 2014Are you mentally prepared for the winter?

What is your favorite part of the winter?

Just remember that this classroom is twenty degrees colder than the outside temperature.

Journal Entry : November 11, 2014

Discuss the concept of “food deserts.” Where, nationally, do food deserts exist?

What is the difference between hunger and food insecurity?

Journal Entry : November 13, 2014What are your thoughts about the novel thus far?

Are you able to make a connection to the narration?

Journal Entry : November 14, 2014It’s Free Write Friday!!!

Write five complete sentences for full credit.

Journal Entry : November 18, 2014In a well-developed written response, prove to me that Elroy Berdahl doesn’t exist in the chapter On the Rainy River.

Provide a minimum of four quotes to support your answer.

Daily ClassworkJournal Entry / DiscussionHandout : On the Rainy River / Enemies / FriendsRead : (In Class/Homework) How to Tell a True War

Story (67-86)Objectives :

Analyze the ambiguity of war storiesEvaluate / Analyze the novel as “war literature”Analyze the chapter On the Rainy River as social

commentary / internal conflict

November 19, 2014How do you feel about Tim O’Brien as a narrator?

What gives you this feeling?

November 20, 2014Briefly discuss what you have found thus far in regards to the theme of guilt in The Things they Carried.

4-5 sentence response

The DentistWhy does O’Brien feel the need to tell the story of Curt Lemon and the dentist?

What is ironic about Lemon’s incident with the dentist? Would the irony have been as strong if O’Brien had placed this anecdote before the chapter describing Lemon’s death? Explain.

Why does Curt Lemon ask the dentist to pull his healthy tooth? How does this request illustrate the theme of shame?

Daily ClassworkJournal Entry / DiscussionPPT : Written response questions over The Dentist

Read : Chapter 9 – Sweetheart of the Song Tra Bong

Objectives : Discuss themesDiscuss structure / placement of vignettes

November 21, 2014It’s Free Write Friday!!

Take time to reflect on the week, or to express your need for Thanksgiving break.

November 24, 2014Discuss the concept of superstition the chapter Stockings.

Is it ok to be superstitious, or are superstitions nothing more than lies?

In what way is Kiowa a character foil to Dobbins?

Daily ClassworkJournal Entry / DiscussionHandout : Stockings and ChurchRead : The Man I KilledObjectives :

Discuss themesDiscuss structure / placement of vignettes

November 25, 2014What was the purpose of repetition in the chapter The Man I Killed?

How does that add emphasis the story?

Is it a positive coping mechanism?

December 1st, 2014Explain how the Viet Cong soldier’s death, as retold in The Man I Killed and Ambush, coincides with the concept of time.

Explain how the narration changed in the two vignettes and how that affects storytelling.

Ambush and Style• How does the narrative technique, the way the paragraphs are

structured, contribute to the different themes of the novel? (Ambush)• Explain how O’Brien copes/coped with the fact that he killed a man.

(Ambush)• What kind of literary device does the narrator use to describe the

scene in the village where the young girl is dancing? What effect is created in this scene? (Style)

• How do the actions of the young girl contradict war? (Style)• In what way does the girl relate to the soldiers? (Style)• From what you know so far, how much do you dislike Azar? Why?

(Style)