Asia Beyond Climate Change Research Assessment

Choose one of the questions:

1. To what extent do you agree with the observation that Since You Went Away remains ‘the definitive cinematic statement about domestic life during the war’? In your response discuss the goals of the filmmakers and the extent to which these were achieved.
2. Why has Rome Open City been described as the quintessential film of resistance, and to what extent do you agree with this assessment?
3. It has been argued that Life is Beautiful explains the clown as a figure ‘who is able to use comedy to resist abjection’. Argue the appropriateness or otherwise of this approach to the subject of the Holocaust in film.
4. How can humour challenge and/or complement the dominant representations of WWII in film? Is humour an appropriate vehicle for the portrayal of the war?

List of core films

1. Since You Went Away (John Cromwell, 1944)
2. Roma città aperta/Rome Open City (Roberto Rossellini, 1945)
3. La Vita è bella/Life is Beautiful (Roberto Benigni, 1997)
4. The Great Dictator (Charles Chaplin, 1940)

(Please note that Turnitin will pick up any AI ChatGPT writing)

Basic Requirements

• You are required to focus on at least one of the films from the core list.
• You are required to refer to and engage directly with at least eight sources. (This total can include three films, at least two of which must have been covered in the course.

In the list of eight required sources, you must include:

1. at least two articles from peer-reviewed academic journals that are not included in the Course Readings;
2. at least one source that engages with the general methodological/theoretical question of the relationship between film and history;
3. at least one scholarly book (other than general books and textbooks) or book chapter that deals exclusively with aspects of the theme/topic under review.
   • You may refer to any of the Course Readings, but these do not count against the minimum required number of sources.
   • Apart from engaging with the film and its themes in a general fashion, you are required to draw on at least 12 specific pieces of evidence from the film/s under review (eg production, character portrayal, particular scenes, dialogue, perspective or point of view, filmic style and so forth) to illustrate points in your argument.
   • Include a filmography (list of films to which you refer) and a bibliography at the end of your essay.

Guidelines for the Research Essay

• Use footnotes, not endnotes and not in-text references.
• The footnotes are included in the word count, but not the filmography and bibliography are included.
• Cite the film/s providing the Title italicised (and the name of the director and the date of release in parentheses). EG Since You Went Away (John Cromwell, 1944).
• Number your pages. Use double spacing. Provide generous margins on all sides.
• Provide URLs for books and all other sources you access electronically.
• If you refer to websites, follow the referencing guidelines outlined in the FAQs below.

You don’t need to summarise the film's whole plot; assume that your reader has seen the film.
You can refer to only three films (two of which must be from the core and supplementary lists above) that can count against the minimum required number of sources.

You can refer to more than eight sources, which strongly encourage you to read widely and to watch several films related to your main theme.

You can reference dictionary and encyclopedia entries as sources.

You can I refer to websites; there are many useful and reputable websites relevant to this course. But you need to explain briefly why the site is reputable and how it complements your research. It is not sufficient simply to provide a URL, even if it points the reader to a well-known site.

Give the full title of the site and, where possible, the name of the institution, or organisation, or individual curating the site. I think it is also good practice to provide any other information that will demonstrate to the reader that this is a reputable source.

The reader should not have to go to the site to find out what it contains or who curates it. Remember, the point is to provide context and to make things easier for your reader. This is the essence of all good writing, not just academic writing.

can refer to YouTube clips; there are many useful clips available on YouTube. It is not sufficient, however, simply to provide the URL. Be sure to give as much information about the clip as well as the URL. (For more guidance, see the previous FAQ.)

You can give the URLs of books, book chapters, and newspaper, magazine, and journal articles I have sourced electronically.