Is There Not A Correspondence?

Is There Not A Correspondence?

Next week we will be discussing the affects of movies. For your assignment, write the usual one page, double spaced paper on:

A movie or television show that portrayed a situation you have experienced, such as:

• College life
• Dating
• Work
• Cultural & Ethnic experiences (Joy Luck Club, American Me come to mind)
• Or other "specific" "real life" "experiences"

Is There Not A Cause?

And then write about how true to life that film was to your experiences. Did the film accurately capture your experience? Or did the film entirely miss the mark? Or did the film become so ingrained and foundational to the culture, that your experience cannot be thought about outside the context of the film ("It was unreal the way we looked into each others eyes/I made that last second 3-point shot/dove out from that out-of-control, burning vehicle/etc., like something out of a movie!").

Is There Not A Cost?

Then, discuss the implications, if any, of forming perceptions based on movies and television.

Video Game Week

Hello Golden Bears,

As you may have heard, next class will cover the issue of video games and its effects on minds. Next week's homework will take the form of an interview. As usual, it need only be one page double-spaced.

As we saw in the video clip in class today, there are many reasons offered by those who play video games for extensive periods of time (addicts) and those who are friends and acquaintances with those same people, in explanation of their habits. We heard opinions arguing for and against these video gamer trends.

For your assignment, interview someone you know who plays a lot of video games. The purpose of the interview is to uncover why someone will be willing to commit a large portion of their time to playing video games. Although I do not have any set questions you must ask, some suggested questions can be

• What is it about video games that is so satisfying to the player?
• What motivations do video game players have for playing games for long hours?
• Have they ever missed important events or commitments to play video games?
• Do friends from online gaming networks take priority over friends from "real life?"
  
• Can someone be addicted to video games? Compare it to other kinds of addiction. Do they have anything in common? Or is it all an exaggeration?
• Is there a need to justify the amount of energy and time spent on video games?
  
• And other questions
  

Also, pay close attention to the kind of language used by the video game player's responses. Is there any sort of value system that his/her language reflects (ie., as we saw in the video clip in class, much of the video game players' language had to do with inclusion and being part of a greater community. One interviewee referred to players like himself as "Smashers.")

Once again, have fun and be creative with the questions. Try to get at the heart of what motivates avid video game players.

Yours,

David