Sunday, April 15, 2007

Blog buddy work with Liz, Author of Desperate for Desperate Housewives

Where has your Blog buddy shown strong analytical work (be specific—is it a particular post, a type of analysis, a site for analysis that seemed to click more so than others, etc)?

I believe that blog post #3 was very strong analytical work. The blog post was very concise and to the point. I definitely got an understanding how “Desperate Housewives” enforces both hegemonic and counterhegemonic norms. I especially loved the way the quotes were used. The quote about black men being sexual monsters is extremely relevant, for it enforces the point my blog buddy was trying to make about the black characters being portrayed on the show in a negative light.

How could your Blog buddy use this strength for the final Blog post and presentation?

The quotes being used to answer the assignments so far have been really relevant. It’s definitely more important to have a few quotes that are relevant from one source than a lot of quotes from many sources. Continue to use 1-2 sources and only use quotes that are applicable to the assignment, even if that means only 1-2 quotes are used. A couple of really good quotes will show you have a grasp of the material and give you plenty of room to give your own analysis. I think the analysis you did on idealistic families is great! Perhaps you can quotes about the family and talk about idealistic families in your final blog post if possible.

Think about the following statements in relation to your Blog buddy’s Blog and then provide feedback on each area (constructive praise/criticism):

The Blog is on a topic that has been clearly evident in the Blog posts throughout the semester

With the exception of the first blog post and the extra credit assignment, every single blog post has been analyzing “Desperate Housewives.” Every single post about “Desperate Housewives” mentions some sort of gender message given by the show. In addition, my blog buddy mentions other issues that intersect with gender, such as race, class and sexuality.

The Blog is on a topic that seems to interest my Blog buddy


My blog buddy definitely seems to be interested in her topic. She gives tons of examples from “Desperate Housewives,” proving that she must watch the show. She even admits to being an “avid viewer” of the show since it first aired! She found lots of great articles!
My Blog buddy’s topic is one that has produced a good set of posts that were analytical used gender as a primary category of analysis

The posts make analytical arguments.

Each post mentions gender as the primary category of analysis. Other issues such as race and class are mentioned as well, but she makes sure to link these issues to gender. She makes sure to steer away from her opinion as much as possible, and notes that it is a difficult thing to do. Each post answered the question at hand and usually stayed on topic.

The posts are understandable and each post logically outlines and supports the argument presented.

My blog buddy mentions how she originally did not analyze what “Desperate Housewives” says about pop culture. By stating this and then analyzing the many things the show does say about pop culture, she shows that she now can see that it’s more than just a T.V. show. Her posts discuss idealistic families, motherhood, race, working women, etc. She does not psychoanalyze the individual character, but rather points out what the actions of the characters say about popular culture.

The posts were clear, provided insight, evidence, and analysis to connect the topic with the assignment for each of the posts

The posts are short, sweet, and to the point. This makes the posts relatively easy to understand. They are logical and each paragraph tends to stick to one particular point rather than jumping from point to point all over the place.

The sources cited in each post are relevant to the topic and help to aid the understanding of the argument and/or assisted in proving the argument.

The posts always answered the question asked. There were plenty of examples given from the show that proved the point my blog buddy was trying to make. My partner made sure not to give opinions. She kept herself distanced enough from what she was writing to simply analyze and not judge. The points made applied with the topic she was addressing.

The quotes used illustrate a broad range of course readings throughout the semester.

The posts did not exceed the 1-2 sources recommended per post. Not that many quotes were used, which helped my partner find more effective quotes (quality over quantity). The quotes showed that my blog buddy had a grasp on the readings and how they applied to her topic.

The quotes were clear and succinct; additionally, the material was presented so that I could differentiate the Blog buddy’s ideas from that of the author cited.

My blog buddy used quotes from the King Kong article, the Kilbourne article, two chapters in the “Gender, Race, and Media book, and the Courtney Love article. This was definitely a wide enough range of articles for the assignment. The topics ranged from black men and porn to motherhood, which really gives the blog a lot of variety and covers a lot of important points about gender and pop culture.

I thought it was great when you...

I thought it was great when you brought up race issues several times in your blog posts. I think the fact that the only black characters on the show were portrayed as violent gives the viewer a huge message about race. It’s also important that you mention how the black son has a mental disability. The few depictions of African Americans on the show are being depicted as defective in some way, which is giving the viewer an extremely powerful message.

I found it confusing when you…

I was a little confused when my blog buddy referred to “the normative perception of a ‘housewife’ in U.S. society. What is this perception? I think more detail needs to be given about what a housewife is perceived in order to make that point valid. Try to be specific and not use broad terms such as society if possible.

You’re really great at…

My blog buddy is great at using relevant quotes in the assignments that pertain to the point they are trying to make in their blog posts. The quotes are always blended into sentences and never sound choppy and awkward. They are very concise and to the point.

I wish you could focus (more) on/alter/edit/explain/expand on/etc these three things…

I think you should focus more on how sexuality is portrayed on “Desperate Housewives.” It is mentioned briefly in a post about one of the housewife’s sons, but I think the sexuality about the actual housewives needs to be discussed.More should be said aboutPerhaps you can focus more on how the show serves as a outlet to overwhelmed and underappreciated wives and mothers.I think you can also focus more on how economics and social class plays a role in the amount of power the housewives on the show have.

15 comments:

Lizzaydizay said...

I believe that blog post #3 was very strong analytical work. The blog post was very concise and to the point. I definitely got an understanding how “Desperate Housewives” enforces both hegemonic and counterhegemonic norms. I especially loved the way the quotes were used. The quote about black men being sexual monsters is extremely relevant, for it enforces the point my blog buddy was trying to make about the black characters being portrayed on the show in a negative light.

Lizzaydizay said...

The quotes being used to answer the assignments so far have been really relevant. It’s definitely more important to have a few quotes that are relevant from one source than a lot of quotes from many sources. Continue to use 1-2 sources and only use quotes that are applicable to the assignment, even if that means only 1-2 quotes are used. A couple of really good quotes will show you have a grasp of the material and give you plenty of room to give your own analysis. I think the analysis you did on idealistic families is great! Perhaps you can quotes about the family and talk about idealistic families in your final blog post if possible.

Lizzaydizay said...

With the exception of the first blog post and the extra credit assignment, every single blog post has been analyzing “Desperate Housewives.” Every single post about “Desperate Housewives” mentions some sort of gender message given by the show. In addition, my blog buddy mentions other issues that intersect with gender, such as race, class and sexuality.

Lizzaydizay said...

My blog buddy definitely seems to be interested in her topic. She gives tons of examples from “Desperate Housewives,” proving that she must watch the show. She even admits to being an “avid viewer” of the show since it first aired! She found lots of great articles!

Lizzaydizay said...

Each post mentions gender as the primary category of analysis. Other issues such as race and class are mentioned as well, but she makes sure to link these issues to gender. She makes sure to steer away from her opinion as much as possible, and notes that it is a difficult thing to do. Each post answered the question at hand and usually stayed on topic.

Lizzaydizay said...

My blog buddy mentions how she originally did not analyze what “Desperate Housewives” says about pop culture. By stating this and then analyzing the many things the show does say about pop culture, she shows that she now can see that it’s more than just a T.V. show. Her posts discuss idealistic families, motherhood, race, working women, etc. She does not psychoanalyze the individual character, but rather points out what the actions of the characters say about popular culture.

Lizzaydizay said...

The posts are short, sweet, and to the point. This makes the posts relatively easy to understand. They are logical and each paragraph tends to stick to one particular point rather than jumping from point to point all over the place.

Lizzaydizay said...

The posts always answered the question asked. There were plenty of examples given from the show that proved the point my blog buddy was trying to make. My partner made sure not to give opinions. She kept herself distanced enough from what she was writing to simply analyze and not judge. The points made applied with the topic she was addressing.

Lizzaydizay said...

The posts did not exceed the 1-2 sources recommended per post. Not that many quotes were used, which helped my partner find more effective quotes (quality over quantity). The quotes showed that my blog buddy had a grasp on the readings and how they applied to her topic.

Lizzaydizay said...

My blog buddy used quotes from the King Kong article, the Kilbourne article, two chapters in the “Gender, Race, and Media book, and the Courtney Love article. This was definitely a wide enough range of articles for the assignment. The topics ranged from black men and porn to motherhood, which really gives the blog a lot of variety and covers a lot of important points about gender and pop culture.

Lizzaydizay said...

The quotes were very clear and succinct. I could tell that the quotes were from the author due to the citations at the end of every sentence containing a quote. You never just randomly had a quote thrown into the blog posts. There were always a few words before the quote and an explanation that let the reader know the point of using the quote.

Lizzaydizay said...

I thought it was great when you brought up race issues several times in your blog posts. I think the fact that the only black characters on the show were portrayed as violent gives the viewer a huge message about race. It’s also important that you mention how the black son has a mental disability. The few depictions of African Americans on the show are being depicted as defective in some way, which is giving the viewer an extremely powerful message.

Lizzaydizay said...

I was a little confused when my blog buddy referred to “the normative perception of a ‘housewife’ in U.S. society. What is this perception? I think more detail needs to be given about what a housewife is perceived in order to make that point valid. Try to be specific and not use broad terms such as society if possible.

Lizzaydizay said...

My blog buddy is great at using relevant quotes in the assignments that pertain to the point they are trying to make in their blog posts. The quotes are always blended into sentences and never sound choppy and awkward. They are very concise and to the point.

Lizzaydizay said...

I think you should focus more on how sexuality is portrayed on “Desperate Housewives.” It is mentioned briefly in a post about one of the housewife’s sons, but I think the sexuality about the actual housewives needs to be discussed.
More should be said about
Perhaps you can focus more on how the show serves as a outlet to overwhelmed and underappreciated wives and mothers.
I think you can also focus more on how economics and social class plays a role in the amount of power the housewives on the show have.