Posted: June 25th, 2015

Writing week 2 part 1

Directions

After viewing the movie, Mildred Pierce, write a paper consisting of Part 1 and Part 2. Read the Part 1 and Part 2 descriptions below carefully, and respond to all questions in your paper.

Part 1
Look at Bordwell and Thompson’s explanation of random events versus those events connected by causal and temporal relations (pp. 77-81). Now create your own list of random events (NOT events from the film Mildred Pierce) and assign causal and temporal relationships to the events to create two different narratives. Having looked at the definition and explanation of diegesis, list the particulars of the diegetic worlds in which your narratives would take place. (100-120 words)
Reread the explanation distinguishing plot from story and depicted from inferred events (pages 75-77). Take special note of, the illustration on p. 77. Now review the opening three minutes and 30 seconds of Mildred Pierce (from the very first opening credits until she goes into the bar with Wally). Explain the distinction between diegetic and nondiegetic material, drawing your examples from this clip. Then, create a list of the inferred and depicted events in the clip, putting the inferred events in parentheses. Finally, explain the difference between plot and story based on this clip. (100-150 words)
To demonstrate your understanding of how characters in narratives are created and how they produce causes and effects, select one character, other than Mildred, and produce a list of character traits based on the means of characterization discussed above. Then, in a concise paragraph (200 words), note how some of these traits play a causal role in the narrative. Use abbreviated dialogue quotations when citing what characters say and what others say about them. Who is the protagonist in Mildred Pierce? Who is the antagonist? Support your assertions with reference to the definition in this week’s lesson on narrative film.
As Bordwell and Thompson note, in a narrative film, viewers actively look for causal motivation in order to explain the connection between filmic events. If they don’t find satisfactory explanations for the effects, they generally judge the narrative as weak or badly crafted. To demonstrate your understanding of this concept, explain how and where the screenwriter includes the causal motivation for the murder. This information is indicated in various ways and places throughout the film. Since a person commits the murder, character traits may be included here. (200 words)

The book is on my Kindle account, using Kindle and then log in with my username [email protected], password is guanruiqi. Then you can download Film Art: An Introduction on you device.