Meaning of Success
Assignment: Informal, no less than 2 pages discussing the word you will use for your Definition paper.
Consider this your first rough rough draft of your definition Essay.
Language is embedded in culture, religion, nationality, gender, religion, etc. The way we personally define a word or idea often comes directly from experience, environment, and background. If concrete words such as tree and girl can be misperceived in regular conversation, then what happens when abstract words, such as terrorist, patriotism, love, wife, husband, leader, freedom, etc. are used in situations where meaning is shared?
In NO Less than two pages You may use any ONE of the following questions as a starting point for your Definition Essay, or you may simply choose one of the three words you began exploring in the last module in no less than two pages. This is an informal assignment, which means you may use first person, “I.” However, you will still be expected to use proper essay form and proofread before turning in.
1. Remember a day when someone used a word that made you angry or evoked an unusual emotion. For example, someone might have labeled you as a member of group you didn’t believe you belonged in, such as lady, conservative/liberal, boy, girl, woman, teacher, student, wife, follower, leader, responsible, etc. You might remember a time when someone called you a name to either insult you or compliment you such as feminine, masculine, angry, beautiful, intense, mean, shy, insecure, false, giddy, etc. Explain why the word or term evoked the emotion it did. Discuss how each of your definitions of the word informed the meaning you attributed to the word. Look back on the moment and examine what you disagreed with, was it the definition of the word itself, or the situation in which it was applied to, and how can you tell the difference?
2. Define a word that carries with it, a great potential for controversy. Some historically controversial words include “obscenity,” “freedom,” “man,” “democracy,” and more recently “terrorism,” “patriotism,” “marriage,” and “family.” Think about how the word you chose might have changed over time, or how it might change across cultures, races, classes, religions, nations, etc. Come to your own conclusion about the true definition of the word and write a response explaining what the word means to you in terms of your own understanding about the world and humanity.
3. In the essay, “I Want a Wife,” Brady critiques accepted societal gender roles. Is her assessment of the term correct in today’s world? If not, how has it changed? In addition to her definition of “wife” she also defines, to an extent, “husband”. Is this definition still the same? How has it changed? Write a paper that defines what it means to be a husband, wife, mother, father, son or daughter in today’s society?
4. Stereotypes appear in movies and on television–; the loner; the tragic hero; the charismatic cowboy; the every woman, the manly man; the reality hero; the broken women and so on. Isolate a particular stereotype you recognize in several films or TV shows and define it as it appears in popular culture.
