Television Criticism

Writing Assignment 5

Due April 2

Vice Versa

Take one of the things "people say about television" and construct an essay which argues the opposite.  It should start like this:  Many people say "(see list of possibilities below)" but, in fact, it's exactly the opposite. (Or something like that.) 

Take a position which is really opposite of the cliché. For example, if you select, "There's too much sex on television," you should argue that, in fact there should be much more sex on television and support this with the positive effects that would result.

Work on your paragraph structure:  In your opening paragraph, preview the arguments and evidence.  The opening paragraph should encapsulate the entire essay in fewer than 50 words.  Subsequent paragraphs should be between 30-60 words, and not longer.  In other words: break up your point into shorter paragraphs.  You should have a reasonable argument and present some evidence for each point.  The flow of paragraphs should run from the general to the specific and back to the general.

Your last paragraph should wrap up. That is, try to summarize without being redundant.  Here's what your outline might look like:

I. Opening paragraph(s). Position and general description of evidence.

II. Evidence paragraphs 1, specific example.

III. Evidence paragraphs 2, another specific example.

IV. Evidence paragraphs 3, yet another.

V. Conclusion paragraphs(s), general again -  about the position and why it's good.

Reminder:  Expectations for all writing assignments

                    TOPICS

There's too much violence on television

Television can make you lazy

Television lies

Television distracts you from tasks

Television is not educational

Television is a gateway/window to the world

Television can influence what we do

Television can give us a wrong impression

Television distorts reality

Television is educational

Television perpetuates stereotypes

Television molds peoples opinions

Television becomes an obsession

Television makes us want to be certain characters

Television acts like a babysitter

Television creates envy for celebrities

Television fuels capitalism

Television keeps us connected to others

There's too much sex on Television

There is nothing educational on Television

There is too much crap on Television

Television presents an unrealistic female body image

There’s nothing but bad acting on Television

Television plays on extremes

Television provides poor role models

Television is politically driven

The news tries to scare people

Television is not as good as it used to be

There’s too many commercials on Television

There’s too much reality Television

Television can control your brain

You shouldn’t believe everything you see on Television

Television is biased

Television encourages procrastination

Television helps escape from reality

Television is a way to get self help

Too much Television rots your brain

There are not enough educational shows

People rely too much on Television for information

Too much Television takes away from reading

Television separates families

Television causes you to get fat

Television is true

Television commercials give false hope

Television creates social norms

(You can also use one of your own... it should be something commonly said and believed)