The Assignment:
Students will write a 3 – 4 double spaced essay about a particular pop culture item that has evolved over a period of time (or is the result of a process of evolution).
Your paper needs to cover several areas:
A summary of the artifact and why it is interesting or needs to be studied
A detailed discussion of the aspects of the pop culture artifact that is interesting to you.
A history of the artifact, where it came from, how it was made/formed, how it evolved
Influences or precursors to the artifact (for example, there were other soda’s before Coca Cola; where did guitar driven rock music come from before Elvis?)
An explanation of why it is important for us to understand this cultural artifact, it’s relevance in today’s world.
Theoretical or analytical frameworks (from course materials and/or your research) that allow use to better understand the social impact of the artifact.
Paper Specifics:
The paper should be 3-4 double spaced pages, and use APA style citations (both for in-text citations and a reference page). Your cover page and reference page do NOT count as part of the 3 – 4 pages.
Break the paper up into headings and subheadings as appropriate, using the topics provided above. Keep paragraphs short (4 – 6 sentences), with one main idea per paragraph.
Grammar, clear writing, strong research and logical analysis will all play a part in the final grade.
Your paper should include 5 – 6 references, cited in text and on the reference page. At least two of those citations should come from academic, scholarly / peer reviewed work.
You may work on this assignment with a partner. Projects using partners should be 5 – 6 double spaced pages.
Grades are determined based on a variety of factors including, but not limited to strength of research and analysis, thoroughness in addressing the required assignment components, organization and quality of writing, and a comparison to the work of other students in the course.
