Reference no: EM132384830 , Length: word count : 2500

Essay- Ideology: Crime Control and language and consciousness

TITLE

Introduction

This essay presents an analysis of the ideological claim that...

Continue by explaining the part that comes after "claim that..."

More specifically, I argue that such ideological claims are driven by...

The essay also argues that such ideological claims have # significant consequences/implications...
Where # refers to a specific number of consequences and/or implications that you will demonstrate follow from the ideology under analysis

The ideological claim that... can be found [where?] The analysis that follows is based on [media reports? analysis of images? Some other source? How many? How sourced?]

Literature Review

It is not uncommon to encounter the claim that...

While this may appear to make sense, such a view is better understood as ideological

Or, "Such a view loses cogency when interrogated through CLS/when understood as a discursive formation"

I use the term ideology in [the Marxist sense/Gramscian sense - Or, CLS in Fairclough's sense, etc]

Make it clear that you understand ideology and how/why it is sensible to use it in this context. You may need to vary Marx's sense, or say you are "inspired" by Marx's notion. This may especially be the case if you are appropriating ideology to examine representations that are not about class per se, but some other hierarchical social divide. Or, make clear your understanding of CLS or discursive formation, etc.

As you are using "ideology" (or CLS or DF), the immediate implication is that what is claimed is somehow "false" or misleading (or just a particular claim-to-truth, especially if using Foucault's DF). So, your literature review should use literature to highlight how/why the claims under scrutiny are inaccurate.

Week 9 content can serve as an illustration: One of the ideological claims in media reports was that "criminals are rational actors and will therefore be deterred by harsher punishment." But Katz problematized that view by showing the emotional investments that shape the immediate context of criminal acts. If, for example, the ideological claim is that "tax cuts for corporations will create job growth," you would ideally want research that shows growing unemployment alongside tax cuts for corporations, or something along such lines.

And, yes, this means you need to debunk what is posited as an ideological claim. To do this, you need a compelling account of the "truth," or a plausible counter-claim. You may be able to extract from SOC 203 materials, but you might also need to find some academic accounts independently. It will depend on what you are specifically analysing.

This brief review raises a problem: If the claim that... is problematic, why does it get articulated with some degree of frequency? And, what are the consequences of such an ideological account?

This is basically a little bridge to leap into the analysis

Results

First section: An account of the sources/origins of an ideology

Second section: First consequence of the ideology

Third section: Second consequence of the ideology
Etc

For each of these sections, try to:

* Explain what you mean by the source / "consequence"

* Demonstrate how this is embedded in "data"/source material

* Organize your discussion around specific articulations/data

You may also need to draw from relevant theory/academic sources to help unpack your critical reading

Conclusion

As in other documents provided.

Some basic directions and a quick list of necessary ingredients

I would start by looking through "data." For example, look at how newspapers/media discuss a topic; identify an advertising campaign and consider its content; examine how films portray some aspect of social life, etc.

Bear in mind, these sources will not "pre-pack" ideological claims for you. You will have to look for patterns and, in all likelihood, create a label/name to designate an ideological claim.

Once you have that, then consider the sources/origins of the claims and how/why they are significant.

In other words, start from an analysis of how things are actually spoken about, and develop your theoretical account from there.

You will need:

* A clear, succinct label for your ideology/way to summarize what is being communicated

* Concrete data; examples of the ideology being communicated

* A clear sense of "ideology," or CLS, etc

* A clear way to debunk what you are suggesting amounts to an ideological claim. This will most likelyrequire the use of academic sources. You might, however, be able to debunk by identifying an internal contradiction, or irony, etc.

* In all likelihood, academic sources that facilitate the unpacking of origins and consequences. For example, you may end up saying something like, "Such an ideological claim only makes sense in the context of contemporary class inequalities..." Then, you might use some sources that unpack what is meant by "contemporary class inequalities."

* A strong grasp/command of your argument and ideas. The above is a "template" but it will only facilitate writing if accompanied by meaningful understanding of ideas and well thought out analysis. Simply trying to "fill in the blanks" will most likely lead to a piece that is not very cogent.