AREA OF STUDY ONE: Reading and Responding
Text response essay to On The Waterfront directed by Elia Kazan
TOPICS FOR PRACTISING TEXT RESPONSE ESSAYS
1. On The Waterfront explores the relationship between character and environment. Discuss.
2. On The Waterfront is a parable of how society works; the individual is forced to conform to the majority no matter what the personal price. Discuss.
3. Redemption is possible if one is willing to pay the ultimate price. Discuss in relation to Elia Kazan’s On The Waterfront.
4. “The public has a right to know the facts.”
To what extent are the characters’ actions motivated by a desire to help their community?
5. On The Waterfront demonstrates that the truth will always set you free. Discuss.
6. How does the director lessen the social distance between the film and viewers in the text On The Waterfront?
7. Terry Malloy is incapable of action without the support of others. Do you agree?
8. Johnny Friendly is as much a victim of the system as those who he helps to exploit. Do you agree?
9. The story of Terry Malloy demonstrates that there is a price to pay for going against the majority. Do you agree?
10. How does Kazan endorse or challenge particular characters and values in the film text On The Waterfront?
11. On The Waterfront demonstrates that nothing really changes; the characters remain the same throughout the entire film. Do you agree?
12. Charley Malloy is just as heroic as his brother. Do you agree?
13. “You stand up and I’ll stand up with you.”
There are no individual heroes in On The Waterfront. Do you agree?
14. “Anybody who sits around and lets it happen, keeps silent about something he knows that happened, shares the guilt.”
On The Waterfront demonstrates that evil prospers when good men do nothing. Do you agree?
15. “You got a real friend here and don’t you forget it.”
On The Waterfront demonstrates that it can be difficult to know where to place your loyalties. Discuss.
16. How important is family loyalty in the film On The Waterfront?
17. Terry says to Charley: “I coulda been a contender. I coulda been somebody, instead of a bum. Which
is what I am”.
Does the film support Terry’s judgment of himself?
18. Symbols dominate On The Waterfront.
Therefore it becomes more than a story of one man taking on the mob. Discuss.
TYPES OF ESSAY TOPICS
Use the list of essay topics provided to put two examples of each type in the boxes provided.
STYLE:
Direct QuestionPropositional
Using quotation
CONTENT:
Exploring themes and ideasExploring characters
Exploring structures, features and conventions