Research Paper: Faith (and Faithlessness) in Contemporary Television

Often, much of what we know about a faith comes via the media. In fact, it is often a television series that gives us our first glimpse into a particular belief system. Those representations might vary from accurate and objective to stereotypical and biased, even offensive. Still, these depictions often help establish defining characteristics of a belief system. For your research paper, you will examine the representation of faith (or lack of faith) in an American television series from the last 25 years. The goals are to illustrate the ways in which a specific belief system is portrayed and to analyze that portrayal's impact on the general perception of those beliefs.

Requirements:

• Minimum 2,500 words (approximately 10 pages in length); include a word count at end
• MLA Style, including parenthetical citation
• Minimum of 6 outside sources—at least 3 from peer-reviewed academic texts—listed in a separate works cited page
• Illustrations are allowed, though they should be captioned
• Examine at least 4 relevant episodes of a major American television series (see list below), as well as 2 of a secondary series

Include in your research paper:

• A clear thesis, arguing how this particular faith (or lack of faith) is portrayed in a specific television program
• An analysis of:

• The program's representation of one belief system—via specific characters, plot lines, themes, etc. 
• The media's historical representation of this particular belief system
• A contrasting view of this belief system via a secondary source

• At least one secondary television program (no more than two episodes) to compare and contrasted with your primary source
• A conclusion that illustrates an understanding of this intersection of faith and media

The primary focus of your paper should be on one of the following television shows; your secondary source may also come from this list:

1. 30 Rock (NBC)
2. American Horror Story (FX)
3. The Americans (FX)
   
4. Battlestar Galactica (2004 remake; Syfy)
5. The Big Bang Theory (CBS)
6. Big Love (HBO)
7. Blue Bloods (CBS)
8. Bones (FOX) 
9. The Borgias (Showtime) 
10. Broad City (Comedy Central)
11. Buffy the Vampire Slayer (The WB/UPN)
12. Caprica (Syfy)
    
13. Carnivale (HBO)
14. Charmed (The WB) 
15. Curb Your Enthusiasm (HBO)
16. Dexter (Showtime)
17. Family Guy (FOX)
18. Game of Thrones (HBO)
19. Gilmore Girls (The WB)
20. Glee (FOX)
21. The Good Wife (CBS)
22. Grey's Anatomy (ABC)
23. House (FOX)
24. House of Cards (Netflix)
25. It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia (FX) 
26. Jane the Virgin (The CW)
27. Joan of Arcadia (CBS)
    
28. Justified (FX)
29. King of the Hill (FOX)
    
30. Lost (ABC)
31. Lucifer (FOX)
32. New Girl (FOX)
33. The O.C. (Fox) 
34. Orange is the New Black (Netflix)
35. Oz (HBO)
36. The Office (NBC)
37. The Path (Amazon)
38. Rome (HBO)
39. Seinfeld (NBC)
    
40. Seventh Heaven (The WB)
41. The Simpsons (FOX)
42. Seinfeld (NBC)
43. Sex and the City (HBO)
    
44. Six Feet Under (HBO)
45. The Sopranos (HBO)
46. South Park (Comedy Central)
47. Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (Syndicated) 
48. Star Wars: The Clone Wars (Cartoon Network)
49. Supernatural (The CW)
50. Touched By an Angel (CBS)
    
51. True Blood (HBO) 
52. True Detective (HBO)
53. The Tudors (Showtime)
54. The Walking Dead (AMC)
55. The X-Files (FOX)

Schedule:

Week 11: Fr 11.4 - RESEARCH PAPER THESIS AND OUTLINE (BRING 2 COPIES)

Week 13: Fr 11.18 - RESEARCH PAPER (UP TO PG. 3; BRING 2 COPIES)

Week 15: Fr 12.2 - REFLECTION 8; RESEARCH PAPER (UP TO PG. 6; BRING 1 COPY)

Week 16: Fr 12.9 - RESEARCH PAPER (UP TO PG. 9; BRING 1 COPY)

Week 18: Mo 12.19 – RESEARCH PAPER (FINAL DRAFT)