Assignment
Before you were enrolled in this course, much of what you knew about Interpersonal Communication may have been learned from personal experience. Before taking this course, your knowledge about IP Comm may have been gathered from our relationships with others, but also comes to us from the media (e.g. television shows and movies) we view on a daily basis.
The goal of this assignment is to choose a popular movie or television show and to explain what lessons we learn about one context of interpersonal communication (e.g. romantic relationships, friendships, etc.) by viewing the medium you have chosen. Furthermore, you will need to identify the concepts that are demonstrated in this movie or television show with research that supports your conclusion.
You are responsible for selecting a movie or episodes of a current television show (preferably within the last 5-10 years) and deciding on one relationship that you will focus on for this paper. You should also choose a relationship within this medium that you feel demonstrates relevant aspects of interpersonal interaction (e.g. conflict, culture, gender) and theories (e.g. Social Penetration Theory; Communication Accommodation Theory) as discussed in our Reflect and Relate text.
Once you have decided on your movie or television show, you will need to watch the film or specific episode(s) and take notes about the characters, their relationship, the context/environment they are in, and their communication (verbal and nonverbal). As you are watching, be observant of the takeaways or lessons for competent interpersonal communication the average person learns without even being aware of them. For an example of one way to approach your paper, see below.
