PORTKEY DIRECTORY
home
about your professor
classroom
Muggle Studies 100
course outline
class list
class policies
lessons and homework
grades
best homework
Muggle Studies 25
course outline
class list
class policies
lessons and homework
grades
best homework
PHP castle
PHP forums
PHP mailing list
DISCLAIMER
Joanne Kathleen Rowling and her authorized publishers and Warner Bros. own the rights to the Harry Potter books, films, and trademarks. This website is made by a fan for the fans, and is a non-profit personal project. All non-original material are properly credited.
This website: Copyright November 2003 by prof_skywalker and Pinoy Harry Potter (Hogwarts Philippines)
Lesson 2: The Television and Pinoy Muggle Culture
There was once a Muggle named Benjamin Franklin who invented something very important to Muggles - eckeltricity. Errr... I mean, electricity. :)
Through electricity, Muggles are able to get along and live comfortable lives even without magic. And through electricity, Muggles are also able to enjoy one form of entertainment that to them is truly magical - the television. (Scientific concepts explaining how a television actually works is not covered in this course, but is tackled further in the advanced course Muggle Studies 107 - The Science of Muggle Entertainment Technology. Schedule of course offerings shall be available at the end of the term.)
Also known as a "TV" (tee-vee), the television set, as explained by researchers from the Ministry of Magic's Muggle Technology Research Center, is actually a device that shows moving pictures much like those on our paintings and photographs. But Muggles use the television for entertainment, creating "shows" that tell stories. These shows tell us a lot about Muggle culture.
Pinoy Muggles have taken creating "shows" on a level that they have managed to become very influential to Pinoy Muggles and their lifestyle and culture.
Take the shows called "variety shows" for example. These programs, as can be deduced through their name, involve different forms of entertainment like singing, dancing, contests, and other forms of live entertainment. The Muggle variety show entitled "Eat Bulaga", for example, has been running for decades, and have come to be a part of many a Muggle's lunchtime rituals. The personalities involved in these shows have also become influential trendsetters and popular icons.
Shows called "soap operas or telenovelas" and "situation comedies or sitcoms" also have the same effect on the Muggle populace. People will tend to run home immediately after work or school just to catch the many different "primetime" shows being offered by different television networks. Some even offer foreign shows dubbed in the local Tagalog dialect, facilitating an unusual merging of cultures in one program.
The television is also useful for disseminating information. Some television networks specialize in the production of news-oriented or educational programs.
The television has come to play a very important role in the lives of Pinoy Muggles, permeating many aspects of their cultures and lifestyle. This makes it a technology and a phenomenon worth studying in our quest to understand more about Pinoy Muggle culture.
HOMEWORK 2 BEATER: The Television and Pinoy Muggle Culture
DATE DUE - On or before Monday, 12 January 2004, 12:00 Noon
Instructions: The following questions are based on the lesson posted above. Answer them as completely as possible. 10 points each. This set of questions constitute half of your Homework #2 grade.
1. What is the name of the Muggle who discovered electricity, which powers Muggle technological devices like the television?
2. "Sitcom" is a short-cut term for what type of Muggle television program?
3. Name at least 2 elements of a Pinoy Muggle "variety show".
4. True or false. The television shows moving pictures.
5. What is the other term for a soap opera?
HOMEWORK 2 CHASER: The Television and Pinoy Muggle Culture
DATE DUE - On or before Monday, 26 January 2004, 12:00 Noon
Instructions: Reserve a slot in the Muggle Studies Laboratory to watch a Pinoy Muggle television show of your choice. (consult the program schedule in the Laboratory Technician's office). You may opt to watch either a noontime variety show, a primetime situation comedy, a primetime original Pinoy telenovela, or a primetime foreign soap opera dubbed in the local dialect. Make sure these shows are aired in a local television network, and not through a cable television channel (consult the lab technician if you have questions about this). Write a short account of your experience in watching your chosen show. Maximum grade for the report is 50 points, and this constitutes the other half of your Homework #2 grade. There is no minimum or maximum length for your report, but the following elements should be present:
1. Title of your chosen program
2. Television channel where your chosen program airs
3. Your chosen program's airing schedule
The following questions must also be answered:
1. What does your chosen program tell you about Pinoy Muggle culture?
2. How do you think does your chosen program influence Pinoy Muggle culture and lifestyle?
3. What is your initial reaction to watching a Muggle television program? How different is it from wizard forms of entertainment?
Your report must be in narrative form.
FURTHER HOMEWORK INSTRUCTIONS
1. Take note of the deadlines for both Homework 2's BEATER and CHASER.
2. Owl your homework to this address and this address only: eowynskywalker@yahoo.com. If your owls drop your homework in a different address, they will not be graded.
3. In your e-owl's subject tag, please write either "Muggle Studies 100 Homework 2 BEATER" or "Muggle Studies 100 Homework 2 CHASER", whichever is applicable.
Any questions about this lesson and the homework should be tackled in the appropriate threads in our classroom located at www.pinoyharrypotter.org. I will also be starting a discussion thread on this topic at our classroom, and I hope you will all participate. :)
The 3 best CHASERs will earn an extra 100 House points each and will be featured in our Best Homework page.
Good Luck!