Instructions from professor: You will write an analysis (4-5 pages, properly formatted, of a motion picture (TITANIC 1997) based on -- or inspired by -- particular events, situations, or even individuals in American history. Using The Story of the Titanic As Told by Its Survivors by J. Winocour, evaluate the degree of accuracy with which your chosen film depicts its “historical” material. 1. Questions to consider include the following: Does the film follow the basic facts? If not, to what degree does it depart from them? If characters bear names of real people, do they resemble their historical counterparts, in personality and/or action? If the main characters are fictional, how accurate does the film seem once we accept the characters` existence? Does the film seem to accurately convey the “atmosphere” of the era in which it is set – and if so, how? – or at least avoid seeming too “modern” in characters` attitude or actions? Are events simplified so as to ”streamline” a narrative, or simply to add drama? (You should be specific in explaining why something depicted in the film seems accurate or inaccurate, and never assume that your reader is actually familiar with the film under discussion.) 2. Do the film makers seem to fear that the audience will dislike the main character (or think him trivial, dull, or otherwise undesirable) if history is followed? Is historical reality simply too grim or disgusting to be acceptable entertainment? Have facts or background apparently been “softened” to make things more cheerful or “uplifting”? 3. Consider the “viewpoint” of the film. Who is the hero/heroine/protagonist/narrator? Does there seem a particular reason for choosing the film`s apparent viewpoint, or the characters which it follows? Are certain important things (or people) left out of the film, and if so, why might this have happened? Is there possible justification for certain inaccuracies or “reshaping” of the story -- from a dramatic or other angle? Can you argue that the “real story” (assuming we aren`t getting it in the existing film) would actually make a better film? A worse film? Can a drama`s historical distortion, in some cases, help reveal a greater historical truth? End result: Produce a smooth analytical essay, fitting things into a coherent whole. Remember to explain why you are advocating a certain position or point of view on a subject. However, since filmmakers do wish to provoke emotions in their viewers, you should, when relevant, point out how the film makers use dramatic incidents, music, lighting, and “movie magic” in order to achieve this end, being precise in your explanations. - double spaced - 1-inch margins - Course name: History 152 Instructor: W. Sarf Due date: May 9th - When quoting briefly from your film`s dialogue, or from a research source, simply use quotation marks; for a lengthy quotation, like the one below, begin five spaces from the left margin and single-space. Ex. Shakespeare`s “To be or not to be” has now been surpassed by “Let`s kill all the lawyers” as his most popular quotation. But we can`t say whether this has more to do with public distaste for “self-slaughter” or with the public`s low opinion of lawyers. Many a citizen would vote for the latter suggestion, even while wondering which ambulance-chaser he or she would prefer if faced with a legal crisis. (Bodkin, p. 27) - Include an unnumbered title page complete with title, your name, the course name, your instructor`s name, and the due date, but no pagination. At the top of your first page of Arabic-numbered text you should have, centered, your name and title. - Number all pages sequentially from the first page of text. Film and book titles should be consistently italicized or underlined, article titles in quotation marks. - At the end of the paper, note under the centered heading Historical Source (or Sources) the book or books that you have employed.