Week 02, Assignment 01 - Academic Integrity Badge
Earning the academic integrity badge is mandatory to pass this course. Please enter your name in a discussion forum below to indicate you've completed this and I will check your records. Also, if you have any questions about academic integrity, please ask below. Plagiarism will not be tolerated in this class and you will be given a zero mark and the dean will be notified.
Week 02, Assignment 02 - Lecture Response
Please write four to six clear and specific sentences about one or more of the TV shows from the 1950s that we explored. You don't have to answer all of the questions below. You could focus on one or two in an in-depth way.
What did you notice about these shows?
What types of families do they show?
What differences did you notice between life today and life in the 1950s, based on these two shows?
What is the depiction of women in these shows?
Consider the role of minorities or LGBTQ people in these shows.
How do these families differ from your own family or others that you know today?
How do you think the depiction contributed to the women’s rights movement of the 1960s?
Week 02, Assignment 03 - I LOVE LUCY
Please briefly summarize the article by Stark about I Love Lucy and post it in this discussion forum called I Love Lucy. This should be approximately 100-150 words.
This should be done using only your own words, describing what the article is about for people who have not read the article.
At the end of your summary, please include a question that the reading provokes for you.
Be sure to include a formal citation for the reading. Please refer to the Word document in course resources on citations and summarizing before you attempt this assignment.
When you have completed this assignment, please comment on at least one of your classmates’ posts, with a comment about something specific that they noted that stands out as important for you.
Summary…
In his essay, “I Love Lucy: The Woman as TV Superstar,” from his book “Glued to the Set,” author Steven Stark (1997) explores some of “I Love Lucy” firsts in the emerging world of television, including being the first sitcom to: be filmed in front of a live studio audience; be number 1 for three years in a row; reach an audience greater than 10 million households; and feature a female in the starring role (p. 35). Stark also explains how Lucille Ball’s superstar power allowed the producers of “I Love Lucy” to use it as a vehicle for exploring difficult issues, such as challenging the perception of women in society, through the relatable character of Lucy who regularly tried “…to rebel against the middle-class mold" (p. 40). Ultimately, Stark argues that this messaging was a threat to advertisers who simply wanted to use television to influence the buying habits of women (p. 41).
Citation…
Stark, S. (1998). I LOVE LUCY: The Woman as TV Superstar. In Glued to the set: The 60 television shows and events that made us who we are today (pp. 35–42). essay, Dell Pub.
Discussion Question…
What’s one television sitcom that you’ve watched (outside of the ones discussed in the Stark essay) that uses comedy as a means of exploring difficult issues? Briefly describe how one issue in the show was explored. In your opinion, was it effective and memorable for you as a viewer?
Week 02, Probe Presentation Project Proposal
I just finished watching season 3 of “The ORVILLE” (2017), which is an excellent science fiction dramedy (which is a term used to describe the mix of drama and comedy). It’s setup in a fairly traditional episodic format, that’s more a throwback to the style of storytelling found on the original series of “Star Trek” (1966), as well as on “Star Trek: The Next Generation” (1987). It started off in 2016 more as a spoof, as it’s created by Seth MacFarlane (who is most famous for television shows such as “Family Guy” (1999) and “American Dad” (2005), as well as “Ted” (2012))), but he only put the more slapstick and juvenile comedic elements into the new show because Fox network demanded it. But overtime the comedic elements have evolved into witty one liners. The show aired its first two seasons on Fox, and after Disney purchased Fox, it’s third season was presented exclusively on the Hulu streaming service.
The show has always tackled stories that touch on a variety of social issues but seasons 2 and 3 really continue it in a much more serious tone. For example, one episode in season three dealt with issues surrounding trans rights. The character Topa (Imani Pullman) felt that how they were just wasn’t right. And they weren’t, because Topa was born as a female in season one, of an alien species that mainly sees males born where any females born are operated on so that they are made male right away. Subsequently, Topa was never told he was born female, but still knew things weren’t right for them.
Another character in season three, Ensign Charley Burke (Anne Winters) also grappled with hating another crewman, Issac (Mark Jackson), because Issac’s race declared war on the planetary union that the Orville ship is a part of. During this attack by his species, Burke’s partner was killed. So she deals with that and the show also deals with issues related to war.
“The Orville” also ties into tv history. I mentioned it is episodic, but the elements that play out across the different seasons, it’s not as entrenched in serialized long form storytelling as say most sci-fi and fantasy shows are today like “Star Trek Discovery” and “Picard,” or “Game of Thrones,” “the Expanse” and many others. What I mean by this is most viewers can sit down and watch any episode and appreciate it for what it is. They don’t have to have watched every other episode that came before, although if they had, they’d appreciate it more deeply. It’s also inspired by “Star Trek,” a show which laid the groundwork for so many other shows that exist today.
Artifact 01 - Hulu. “The Orville: New Horizons | Trailer.” YouTube, 12 May 2022.