Analysis and writing

Some key points:

• "Code & text" — A piece of literature or film in its raw form as language and image, before it is interpreted (given meaning). I ask students to remain aware that any "text" they study is the one constructed in their heads. It is an entity that results from their cognition, not an empirical object that is the same for everyone.
• "Objects of analysis" — In brief, this is the aspect or portion of a text that you decide to analyze
• "Analysis" — Analysis, for the purpose of this course, is the investment of time in the informed and disciplined consideration of an object(s) to develop interpretations, observations, and/or tentative conclusions that are credible, interesting, and useful to other readers, by affording clarity to the object or offering new ways to think about it.
• On balance, the written submissions of students favor the presentation of their analysis (new knowledge) over the collection and reporting of factual data.

Some key points:

• To meet the highest level of credibility, use OskiCat (http://oskicat.berkeley.edu with the drop-down menu set at "Available online" for efficient online searches), or access ProQuest Ebook Central, JSTOR, Project MUSE, and such via our library (http://guides.lib.berkeley.edu/az.php and proxy if off campus) for full access to academic books or articles.
• Always use your own good, cautious, critical judgment and independent knowledge when evaluating sources.
• Be aware of publications dates. Use "old" material only when it seems warranted.
• Credibility levels with terms ("CredOne - Academically Credible" etc.) to use in footnotes and bibliography lists, when required:
1. CredOne - Academically Credible. This refers to top-level credibility as defined for my classes.There must be an identifiable author and that author must be independently confirmed by you as qualified for the topic at hand. (That is, if the author on its own says "I'm such-an-such" that is not enough. But if the author was published in an academically credible journal that journal has concluded the author is credible. You don't need to look up a bio to prove it.) The, the work must be published in a academic publication, either a peer-reviewed journal or academic press in the case of a book. Because it has undergone peer-review and professional editing before publication, we can start with an assumption that is is academically credible. We will assume that anything in an academic repository (such as JSTOR) is peer-reviewed. This isn't exactly true but it is close enough. Examples: books published by academic presses such as Duke or Harvard or Colorado or found on our library shelves; academic journals found in ProjectMUSE or JSTOR or EBSCO or on our library shelves.
2. CredTwo - Probably Credible. This refers to high-level credibility as defined for my classes. Although the work is not published in a widely known academic enterprise, the material (probably found on the web) appears to be credible because two critria are met: 1) the quality of the material itself seems well-researched or carefully written within the expectations of academica AND 2) the author has been independently confirmed by you (using information not associated with the source you wish to use) as likely credible for the information you wish to use. Examples: Self-published material where you can find information on the author, encyclopedia articles that include the author's name and you can find information on that individual.
3. CredThree - Apparently credible. This refers to material that is of acceptable credibility for many assignments. Assume it is usable unless told otherwise but handle it with care. This level of material, although not published through a widely known academic enterprise, appears to be credible because the quality of the material itself suggests a likelihood of credibility. (Be wary of wishful thinking when making this conclusion.) In other words, this is th same as CredTwo except you cannot locate a specific author or editor. Examples: A carefully written article but part of a commercial enterprise such as a tea shop, Wiki article, article in an online encyclopedia such as Britannica, self-published material.
4. CredFour - Not credible. This refers to material that is not credible in terms of academic content but might be useful as examples of how people think or act. Thus is it never a source of authoritative statements of information or for its analytic conclusions but might be useful for evidence of behavior (not to support a point you are making). The source has none of the above characteristics. Example: comments under a YouTube upload or under a news-feed, newspaper articles, popular magazine articles.

Some key points:

• lorem

Some key points:

• I require footnotes; in-text citation / parenthetic citation style is not accepted in most cases.
• Consider using Zotero to help track your research and generate citations: https://www.zotero.org
• CMOS-NB, 17th ed., Quick List: https://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/tools_citationguide/citation-guide-1.html
• CMOS-NB, 17th ed., full access (might need to proxy in): https://www-chicagomanualofstyle-org.libproxy.berkeley.edu/book/ed17/frontmatter/toc.html