write an analysis of Philip Zimbardo’s
“Stanford Prison Experiment” that also incorporates one other text (or film) that
we have studied so far this semester.
The primary goal of this assignment is for you to develop a critical
perspective on Zimbardo’s essay that utilizes an outside source to help you
develop your argument.
As we have been discussing in
class, an analysis need not be a complete take-down of the text at hand, and on
the other end of the spectrum, it also need not be a full-scale showering of
praise on the text. Instead, a good analysis
engages specific aspects of the text in order to make a point about what you
believe are the important issues in the text. Think of your outside source as a way to help
you articulate and reflect on the big
picture – the larger issues and questions surrounding Zimbardo’s study (for
example, the nature of evil, or the relation between individual identity and
role-playing, or the complex nature of authority and obedience, etc). A good analysis
will always address one or several of
these larger issues.
Use this big picture issue (which should be addressed by your thesis
statement) as an organizational/structural principle for your essay. In other
words, every point you make in the body of your paper should connect to an
develop what you are arguing in your thesis statement about the big picture. Your second source, whatever you choose, must
play a central role in helping you elaborate argument, and must be mentioned in your
thesis statement.
Format:
This must be a
well-structured essay with an introduction and a conclusion, and with an
argumentative and detailed thesis statement at the end of your introduction and
at the start of your conclusion.
Set the stage by introducing
the main ideas or concerns that you will be discussing in the body of the
essay. Make sure to introduce both texts in your introductory
paragraph, as well as what you will be saying about them. Your thesis statement, coming at the end of
your introduction, should clearly and specifically lay out the original point
you will be making.
Begin your first body paragraph with a short summary of
Zimbardo’s experiment. From here,
transition to your critique of Zimbardo. The
summary must not be longer than a page. Your priority in this essay is
critique, and your critique should be structured according to the needs of the
argument that you are making. This means that there is no set format for how
you bring in your second source, as long as you incorporate it in a way that
sharpens and develops your argument. Do
not spend more than three sentences summarizing your second source, should
you choose to summarize it at all.
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