Evaluating Arguments in Documentary Film and TV News Shows You will be evaluating a documentary, news or factual feature episode (of your choosing as long as it is not a fictional or dramatic film and is considered an authoritative source) that pertains in some way to one of your chosen topics for this course (Homelessness – Sacramento) in order to demonstrate your understanding of the rhetorical strategy of evaluation argumentation. More specifically, you will be identifying and evaluating how effectively (or ineffectively) the filmmaker/director/producer uses logos, ethos and/or pathos as well as any other rhetorical tools in film/video to support their argument/position. Choose Strategically A note regarding your choice of a documentary to evaluate for this assignment: Do yourself a favor and choose a documentary that is, at the very least, related to your Subject/Question at Issue from your Diagnostic or your Career Worksheet and that you have been continuing to develop in this course. More Details You are required to write a 3- to 5-page essay (a minimum of three FULL pages using MLA Formatting Guidelines), using the tools of effective argument to evaluate the film as an example of a contemporary argument. From your copious notes on the documentary you have chosen (see required Worksheets noted below), you should be able to develop an analysis of the film and determine the extent to which it presents an effective argument, based on the following: Logos: Premises, either implicit or explicit, to support his/her position Choices made by the filmmaker to SUPPORT these premises (facts, research, ) Ethos: Tone of the filmmaker (editorial choices, music, film style, interviewing techniques, ) Consider the filmmaker’s Authority in terms of his/her evidence: is the evidence sufficient? is the evidence typical? is the evidence consistently accurate? is the evidence relevant? Filmmaker’s use of convincing and authoritative outside authorities, experts in the subject Filmmaker’s attempt to represent and refute opposition’s arguments Pathos: How does the filmmaker engage the viewer’s emotions? What underlying assumptions or implied premises are used to cause viewers to feel more sympathetic to the subject, even if they disagree with the argument? Is emotion used responsibly, or is it false or gratuitous? Ultimately, the question you should answer in your evaluation is: Does the filmmaker present an effective/ineffective argument, and why is/isn’t it effective? Of course, a key component is being able to articulate exactly what the filmmaker is arguing for–what exactly is their thesis? This is something you should clearly identify in your introduction paragraph so that you can in fact answer the question above in your thesis (i.e. “The director effectively demonstrates through the use of ethos, pathos and logos in her documentary that Americans should invest in elderly care programs.”). Your goal in this essay is to create your own initial claim that asserts an argument about the filmmaker’s success or failure to persuade an audience to believe the filmmaker’s position/claims. You can agree/disagree with one of the filmmaker’s themes or show that the filmmaker has or hasn’t fully considered the problem and explain what the filmmaker does or should have focused on to be more successful. To illustrate the success or failure of their argument, you must illustrate how the filmmaker accomplishes (or does not accomplish) integrating logos, ethos, and pathos in presenting their argument.
