Themes of Government in Pop Culture
Objective: Students will be able to analyze song lyrics and popular movies in order to discuss pop culture’s methods of influencing public opinion and conveying political beliefs. These studies will provoke students to think about ways they are influenced to judge and form opinions regarding government on a daily basis, even when they are unaware.
Directions:
- Students must select 3 songs with lyrics that are trying to convey a message about the government.
- Print out the lyrics and highlight the parts within the song that relate to government or tell you how the artist feels about government.
i. Make sure the name of the song and the artist are on the top of the page!!
- If you were from another country, what would you have “learned” about the U.S. government from listening to this song?
- Students must select 2 movies with themes that relate to government
- Write a 1 page summary for each movie that provides:
i. a BRIEF summary (5-7 sentences max)
ii. Explanation of how the movie is related to government.
iii. What is the attitude towards government? Mention TONE and THEMES
iv. If you were from another country, what would you have “learned” about the U.S. government from watching this movie?
Final Product:
v A cover page with your name and period.
v Must be typed, double spaced, Times New Roman, size 12 font.
v Make sure the name of the song or movie that you are discussing is on the top of each page.
v Should be 6 pages total: cover, song, song, song, movie, movie
v May choose to complete 3 movies and 2 songs instead.
Due Dates:
v A Day – May 16th
v B Day – May 17th
Grading Rubric:
| 3 Songs with Government Related Themes | 2 Movies with Government Related Themes | Printed and Highlighted Lyrics with answer to analysis question for each | Summary of movies with explanations of tone and theme as well as answer to analysis question | On Time, Typed, Cover Page |
| 10 | 10 | 30 | 30 | 20 |
