Ethics in Cinematic Arts

by | Feb 9, 2019 | Arts

PART ONE

Students will write a thoughtful, reflective paper that analyzes and critiques an important ethical issue affecting the media while defending a clear thesis. The paper should integrate a sophisticated expression of a Christian worldview throughout, relating to defense of the thesis. Students will submit the paper in three phases: Phase 1, Topic Selection, discussion of the ethical issue’s nature and statement of the research thesis; Phase 2, Annotated Bibliography, a minimum of 12 sources is required for a “C” paper (75%). No more than 1/3 of the references may be internet based; Phase 3, The Final Paper written and documented according to Modern Language Association guidelines for publication. Make sure that you analyze and critique the ethical issue rather than merely reporting what others have said about it.

Details:

  1. Use footnotes or endnotes to document quotations, identify secondary sources, and define terms the typical reader would not understand.
  2. Papers are due on Wednesday, December 6 at 2:35 pm. Late papers will be docked one third of a letter grade for every school day they are late. No exceptions.
  3. Your paper should include 5,000-7,500 words (approximately 20-22 pages), excluding the bibliography. This is the standard expectation of all senior thesis assignments.
  4. Papers should be typed, double-spaced with one-inch margins. Quotations of more than four lines must be single-spaced, indented, and displayed without quotation marks. You must include page numbers at the bottom of each page. Consult MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers, 6th Ed. for other mechanical details.
  5. Neatness and proper grammar are essential. Carefully correct all errors in spelling, punctuation, grammar, etc. Professionalism is required and assumed in the “real world.” Now is a good time to get into the habit.
  6. While content is obviously important, clarity and logical progression of the argument are very important.
  7. Write simply and express your thoughts in a straightforward manner. Prepare the paper as if your intended audience consisted of college-educated readers. Do not write the paper for the instructor. To improve your writing style, study Strunk and White’s Elements of Style.
  8. Avoid extensive quotation and paraphrasing—only use quotations to support your points.
  9. Beware of plagiarism. Be certain that you understand what plagiarism is and how to avoid it. Document carefully and cite all sources of information in footnotes and endnotes. Do not force the reader to guess whether a given idea or expression is yours or somebody else’s.
  10. Complete this project on the honor system. Do your own work. This is not a group project.
  11. Please make a copy of your paper before turning it in to the instructor.
  12. Computer problems are not a legitimate excuse for late papers. Print a hard copy of each draft and keep a back-up copy of all computer files.

PART TWO

  1. An ideal senior thesis should offer a cogent analysis of a complex topic while defending a clear thesis. It should also include all of the following elements:

 an obvious thesis on a debatable contention
 convincing and well-supported arguments in defense of the thesis
 full and fair consideration of opposing positions
 judicious use of primary and secondary source material
 good organization with an effective introduction, clear divisions, smooth transitions, and a strong
 conclusion
 stylistic finesse in clarity, tone, word choice, sentence structure, and paragraph construction
 correct and consistent use of a standard citation form
 mastery of standard grammar, good usage, and appropriate mechanics

  1. An ideal senior thesis includes a sophisticated (complex, refined, insightful, mature, intellectually appealing) expression of a Christian world-view. The expression of a Christian world-view should occur throughout the paper and should be related to the thesis and the arguments in defense of the thesis (it should not be an aside in the conclusion). Understanding of a Christian world-view may be demonstrated in one or more of the following ways:

 Explaining why an issue/topic is important to the Christian faith or to Christian believers
 Employing theological doctrine, church tradition, biblical materials, or Christian experience
 Applying a particular Christian ethical stance
 Delineating a variety of Christian positions
 Studying a particular Christian thinker, tradition, or school of thought
 Attempting to define a Christian world-view
 Comparing a Christian position with a secular perspective or that of another religious tradition
 Examining the experience and/or behavior of Christians, Christian tradition, or Christian practice

  1. An ideal senior thesis includes a thorough and/or complex integrative and cross-disciplinary emphasis. This integrative and cross-disciplinary emphasis should appear throughout the thesis in one or more of the following ways:

 Using theorists, concepts, literature, examples, illustrations, and/or arguments from multiple
 disciplines
 Demonstrating how different disciplines might benefit from the analysis presented in the paper
 Analyzing the assumptions of and influences on a movement, thinker, period, debate, etc.
 Discussing the various contexts in which an issue is framed and debated
 Illustrating the social, political, religious, and/or economic implications of the topic and thesis

Sample Solution

Sample solution

Dante Alighieri played a critical role in the literature world through his poem Divine Comedy that was written in the 14th century. The poem contains Inferno, Purgatorio, and Paradiso. The Inferno is a description of the nine circles of torment that are found on the earth. It depicts the realms of the people that have gone against the spiritual values and who, instead, have chosen bestial appetite, violence, or fraud and malice. The nine circles of hell are limbo, lust, gluttony, greed and wrath. Others are heresy, violence, fraud, and treachery. The purpose of this paper is to examine the Dante’s Inferno in the perspective of its portrayal of God’s image and the justification of hell. 

In this epic poem, God is portrayed as a super being guilty of multiple weaknesses including being egotistic, unjust, and hypocritical. Dante, in this poem, depicts God as being more human than divine by challenging God’s omnipotence. Additionally, the manner in which Dante describes Hell is in full contradiction to the morals of God as written in the Bible. When god arranges Hell to flatter Himself, He commits egotism, a sin that is common among human beings (Cheney, 2016). The weakness is depicted in Limbo and on the Gate of Hell where, for instance, God sends those who do not worship Him to Hell. This implies that failure to worship Him is a sin.


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God is also depicted as lacking justice in His actions thus removing the godly image. The injustice is portrayed by the manner in which the sodomites and opportunists are treated. The opportunists are subjected to banner chasing in their lives after death followed by being stung by insects and maggots. They are known to having done neither good nor bad during their lifetimes and, therefore, justice could have demanded that they be granted a neutral punishment having lived a neutral life. The sodomites are also punished unfairly by God when Brunetto Lattini is condemned to hell despite being a good leader (Babor, T. F., McGovern, T., & Robaina, K. (2017). While he commited sodomy, God chooses to ignore all the other good deeds that Brunetto did.

Finally, God is also portrayed as being hypocritical in His actions, a sin that further diminishes His godliness and makes Him more human. A case in point is when God condemns the sin of egotism and goes ahead to commit it repeatedly. Proverbs 29:23 states that “arrogance will bring your downfall, but if you are humble, you will be respected.” When Slattery condemns Dante’s human state as being weak, doubtful, and limited, he is proving God’s hypocrisy because He is also human (Verdicchio, 2015). The actions of God in Hell as portrayed by Dante are inconsistent with the Biblical literature. Both Dante and God are prone to making mistakes, something common among human beings thus making God more human.

To wrap it up, Dante portrays God is more human since He commits the same sins that humans commit: egotism, hypocrisy, and injustice. Hell is justified as being a destination for victims of the mistakes committed by God. The Hell is presented as being a totally different place as compared to what is written about it in the Bible. As a result, reading through the text gives an image of God who is prone to the very mistakes common to humans thus ripping Him off His lofty status of divine and, instead, making Him a mere human. Whether or not Dante did it intentionally is subject to debate but one thing is clear in the poem: the misconstrued notion of God is revealed to future generations.

 

References

Babor, T. F., McGovern, T., & Robaina, K. (2017). Dante’s inferno: Seven deadly sins in scientific publishing and how to avoid them. Addiction Science: A Guide for the Perplexed, 267.

Cheney, L. D. G. (2016). Illustrations for Dante’s Inferno: A Comparative Study of Sandro Botticelli, Giovanni Stradano, and Federico Zuccaro. Cultural and Religious Studies, 4(8), 487.

Verdicchio, M. (2015). Irony and Desire in Dante’s” Inferno” 27. Italica, 285-297.

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