The Sopranos

Hot subject right now: The Sopranos.

Their final season began last night--probably a highly talked-about topic for adolescents. Conceptualizing this media, I had a thought on how to incorporate this into the classroom.

Perhaps my idea could work with any episode of The Sopranos, since I will be focusing on the effect of setting to plot. However, this first episode would be highly effective in analyzing the significance of setting.

Like we saw in our field trip to the alternative school in Ithaca, use movies/tv to explain and analyze literary elements to students. Plot was essential in the first episode of The Sopranos last night because they left their home in a wealthy section of New Jersey to explore the quiet, rustic areas of Upstate New York. I plan on teaching in this area, specifically referenced last night in the episode as Glens Falls, so using a popular media source that references the area to which students live would be highly engaging and exciting for students.

The scenes were shot in areas that my students could be familiar with. They could analyze the significance of the change of setting to how the characters behaved. Last night, the characters behaved in a more primitive way, perhaps influenced by the new setting in a foreign, nature-esque environment.

The Sopranos is a bit touchy to bring into a class because of language and sexuality, but if a teacher only showed a certain length of time, the clip would be appropriate. There was not much language or sexuality in the clip I would envision using.

Students are familiar with Tony Soprano and the characters in the show, as Jennifer Donnelly pointed our during her presentation at the DATE Conference. We're starting with what students know and building on this prior knowledge. The Sopranos is just one example, and this would be a great example since many, many students probably watched the episode last night. Keep the curriculum relevant, intriguing, and most importantly, up to date.