HUMANITIES 1301

DR. PEGGY BROWN

INSTRUCTIONS FOR WRITING PAPERS ABOUT CULTURAL EVENTS



This essay will give your impression, including details, of a cultural event that you attend this
semester. The paper length should be two typewritten pages, double-spaced. This personal
essay should include an introduction, a body, and a conclusion. Please take advantage
of the Writing Center located in the southeast corner of the LRC so that your paper
will be well written.

When you are attending the event, please make mental or written notes of the following:
  1. Exact title of the event.
  2. Names of major participants.
  3. Date and place (name of building and date of the performance).
  4. Details will change according to the event. For example, in a play, you would want to note details of the costumes, the setting, the acting specifics such as facial expressions and interaction of the characters, gestures, movement on the stage or in the space, rhythms within the event--and timing (e.g., is it fast paced or slow moving?). Are there any symbols? What colors dominate the set? How do the actors create illusions? Music? Are there any other things that you observe?
  5. In a musical performance or a dance, you will want to notice some of the same details, such as presentation by the performers, dress, instruments played. You will want to discuss the music played...titles as a start, then how the music made you feel. Lively? Depressing? What changes or movements does each piece make? Can you discern an order of their planned presentation? That is, do you think they are trying to create emotions in their choice of the order of their music or dance pieces?
  6. In one paragraph, what is the purpose of the event--what is it trying to achieve and how?
  7. How well does the company or the performers pull off this effort?
  8. What feelings does the performance evoke? A range of feelings?


The above constitutes your research for your paper. The paper itself will be an essay that
arranges the above information in a pleasing, clear communication of your experience. Of
course you will not be able to include every detail in your paper, but if your research is
thorough, you will be able to distill a paper that seems to recreate the essence of the event and
your response to it.

PLEASE GO TO THE WRITING CENTER LOCATED IN THE LRC FOR HELP WITH YOUR ESSAY IF YOU HAVE NOT TAKEN ENGLISH 1301 OR IF YOU HAVE TROUBLE WRITING

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