1. Bellringer: Dec. 11 Write this down in your notebook and ANSWER the question. Give an example and explain how that example helps prove your answer. Why do people believe the gossip that is heard in the lunch room, on social media, and in the tabloids?

2. How can we determine the truth when storytellers manipulate the way the story is told? Stories We Tell

3. Here’s the easy answer We can determine the truth of a story when we evaluate: A. the background information provided (and omitted) B. the sequence the storyteller reveals the details of the story C. the mode in which the story is presented, including the specific editing choices.

4. Wait – that’s not easy. No – determining the truth of a story is difficult. You have to analyze and evaluate what’s going on and also how a story is presented. (This is why I rarely believe the media’s reports on situations. They are mainly run by corporations who just want my money.)

5. Background information Ask yourself about Motivation of speaker including, What is the bias? Any information hidden? What’s in it for him or her to tell this story? Credentials of speaker Was he or she there? In what capacity is he or she telling the story? Reputation of speaker What do others think of him or her? How do others interact with him or her? Method of giving information orally, written, recorded? Is there an opportunity for revision? For editing?

6. Consider “A Rose for Emily” Motivation: – Why would narrator tell that story – what’s in it for him to reveal this about the “fall” of one of his town’s elite families? – Why did he give us the hints about Homer’s ultimate end? Credentials: – Was the narrator there in the town? – Was the narrator there in Emily’s house? When?

7. Reputation: – What did you think of the narrator? – Did he seem like he was lying about anything or leaving anything out? Why or why not? – How did Miss Emily interact with him? Method of story telling – Did the story seem “off the cuff” or did it seemed well rehearsed? Do you think the narrator in “A Rose for Emily” told us the truth based on your evaluation of him?

8. Sequence of the story Stories aren’t always told in the exact sequence in which they occur. Sometimes storytellers omit information until a later point in the story to create a surprising effect or to emphasize a connection between an earlier occurring detail and the current one. Why did we find out about the SMELL before we found out about Emily buying Arsenic? The author didn’t want us to predict that she KILLED Homer. That way we would be as shocked at the end as the townspeople were when they opened that second floor door.

9. Mode How is the storyteller constructing the tale? Is it through first person experiences? Is it through interviews with others to gain their perspectives? Is it through showing the footage of events (or describing events in third person) Is the theme or main idea given right away (deductive) or do we have to put the pieces together ourselves and wait for them to confirm it (inductive). – “Only Daughter” seemed to be deductive. “Dyaspora” seemed to be deductive.

10. A new problem What’s the problem with eye witnesses (primary sources) – How to be a better eyewitness news video How to be a better eyewitness news video Why are second-hand accounts (secondary sources) even used? – It depends on the account – is it a compilation of multiple first hand accounts? Or is it just some one spreading gossip? How can you believe third-hand accounts? – (Isn’t this hearsay? Well – no: Hearsay is a “statement made out of court that is offered in court as evidence to prove the truth of the matter asserted.” – So unless the matter is being judged in a court or “the court of public opinion,” third hand accounts could be useful. Or not.

11. Why are you even bringing all this up? We will be reading a film. – yes – that’s what I said. – READING a film. You will be reading the film and analyzing it for how we can determine the truth when film, by it’s nature, manipulates how the story is told.

12. As you watch 1.Think about what the TRUTH of the movie is. You could see this as the THEME or maybe the ARGUMENT of the filmmaker. 2.Take notes. A lot of notes. 3.Determine what really happened and how what happened effects the TRUTH. 4.If you are absent, you will have to make arrangements to view the missing parts. You can’t copy someone’s note and think it’s an adequate substitute for actually experiencing the film. No, you can’t borrow my copy.