[Comment from the teaching team: even if the following are A+ examples,
please note that they are not perfect/flawless. For example, some of them do
not cite their sources flawlessly]
Example 1
Mastery Question: would you say that any element of culture is now part of
popular culture? If so, how? If not, why not?
I would say that any element of culture is a part of popular culture. Popular culture
is sometimes defined as an opposition to other conceptual categories of culture, for
instance, high culture, as an “empty conceptual category” (Storey 1). It can be referred
to a culture that is popular among people, an “inferior kinds of work”, to gain people’s
favour, and to express individual interests (Storey 5). Some scholars argue that popular
culture serves as a commercial culture aiming for mass consumption (Storey 8). In this
sense, Possamai (197) states that popular culture encourages product consumption for
sensation enhancement as well as sensation gathering. Consumer culture is not only
limited to products and services, but also the devouring of signs and texts (Possamai 198).
To me, culture is a constantly evolving idea of widely loved symbols and texts, that is
composed of various elements, such as music, food, language and fashion. Thus, there is
not a single yet straightforward definition of culture. Taking Coca-Cola as an example, to
many, it is just a carbonated drink that you occasionally drink, for instance, we would pair
it with all kinds of food or drink it when we feel like a sugary drink. Perhaps we have never
thought of it as part of our culture. However, we could never ignore the presence of it in
our lives. Chidester (744) regards coke as a “sacred symbol” that embodies the concept
of “love, peace, and universal brotherhood”. Such product ideology formulates a sense
of conforming order and associates the beverage with a uniquely realistic mood and
motivation to its consumers (Chidester 749). With such significance, the act of drinking a
can of coke is more than a habit or a reflection of the brand’s popularity, but a way of life
and part of popular culture.
Product placement and music in movies also set as an excellent example of
suggesting mass consumption and being a part of popular culture. For instance,
Heineken, the world-famous beer brand has several shots of her well-known beer in 007’s
Skyfall film in 2012. British singer, Adele, is also invited to perform the movie’s theme music.
Some scholars point out that popular music moulds popular taste and eliminate
consumer’s free choice of music (Riesman 361). Under the influence of popular culture,
music is no longer an expression of the singers’ or the songwriters’ feelings, but global
merchandise that shapes people’s tastes. With this form of conformity, the music and the
beat itself connects with the protagonist’s actions and emotions, instituting different levels
of attachment and attention to the music and the movie. Furthermore, the audiences are
the active agents in producing cultural meanings and pleasures for the song. The song
thus acts as the raw material, which the audience uses in different and personal ways to
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give the music a new definition and meaning. The integration of ads and music, as well as
other cultural elements in daily life, make it a part of popular culture.
Reference List
Chidester, David. “The Church of Baseball, the Fetish of Coca-Cola, and the Potlatch of
Rock ‘n’ Roll: Theoretical Models for the Study of Religion in American Popular Culture.”
Journal of the American Academy of Religion, vol. 64, no. 4, 1996, pp. 743-65.
Possamai, Adam. “Cultural Consumption of History and Popular Culture in Alternative
Spiritualities.” Journal of Consumer Culture, vol. 2, no. 2, 2002, pp. 197-218.
Riesman, David. “Listening to Popular Music.” American Quarterly, vol. 2, no. 4, 1950, pp.
359-71.
Storey, John. “What is popular culture?.” Cultural Theory and Popular Culture: An
Introduction, 5th ed., Pearson, 2009, pp. 1-15.
Comments from the Teaching Team:
Thank you for your unique paper! You did an excellent job at synthesizing various scholar’s
work to consider how popular culture and culture are inextricably linked, as both blur the
line between so-called high and low culture, unite individuals with shared texts, and
provide opportunities for meaning-making
For next time, I encourage to work on your analysis of your examples. With your
extensions, try to meditate on the implications of your claims, the cultural significance of
your example, and potential criticisms of your argument. It can be helpful to focus on one
example. For example, with Coke, are there meanings that are associated with the brand
other than love and peace? For instance, is it not representative of rampant
consumerism, corporate greed, environmental waste, and unhealthy eating habits for
many? Who has the class privilege to access Coke and who has been exploited during its
production and sale? How have specific artists or consumers reworked this raw material
to produce new and subversive meanings (work of culture jammers comes to mind)?
Overall, this paper was a good start! I genuinely look forward to reading your next
assignment!
Mastery Question Step 1 Examples FILM240 © Philippe Gauthier 2020
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Example 2
Mastery Question: would you agree that popular culture may provide “tools to
think with”? Explain.
Popular culture introduces individuals to new information (Gauthier 2020). This
exposure to popular culture offers individuals the opportunity to understand complex
issues. Popular culture has become influential in addressing stereotypes and negative
attitudes towards marginalized individuals. I argue that popular culture provides
individuals with the tools to challenge their preconceived notions about marginalized
people as well as understand complex social issues.
Popular culture provides individuals with the tools to address unequal social
structures. Popular culture raises consciousness in individuals by introducing them to
complex ideas in an accessible format. Mac Neill states that the process of
deconstructing accepted realities involves consciously becoming aware of your
unconscious assumptions (2011). Popular culture acts a vehicle to deconstruct racial
stereotypes. In the United States, racial profiling has emerged as a common practice
performed by law enforcement officers. Antonovics and Knight assert that subconsciously
police officers use the dominant white culture as the norm and any individual who
appears different is a threat (2004). The Hate U Give introduces viewers to issues relating
to police brutality, racial profiling, and private prisons. In this film, Kahlil, a young black
teenager is killed by a white police officer. The police officer assumed that Kahli was
armed, however, he was holding a hair brush. This scenario challenges individuals to
assess their own privilege and reflect on how racial profiling affects marginalized people.
Popular culture can serve as a tool to increase empathy across racial and ethnic lines
(Pop Justice 2016). The Hate U Give allows privileged people in all white spaces the
opportunity to empathize with the challenges of marginalized groups.
In collaboration with conscious-raising, popular culture provides role models that
encourages individuals to consider their behaviour and how they could change it
(Gauthier 2020). Starr, the protagonist in the Hate U Give is present when Kahlil is killed by
the white police officer. Following this, Starr decides to engage in political activism in
order to address the entrenched system of racial discrimination. However, the film
portrays Starr’s struggles to decide if she should remain silent or take action because of
her ability to code switch between different environments. Popular culture has the ability
to create a perspective that will influence the beliefs and attitudes of people (1999). Starr
is a role model for people who have experienced racial profiling and individuals who
have a willingness to stand in solidarity with marginalized groups. The Hate U Give
provides viewers with the opportunity to challenge their stereotypes about people of
colour.
In all, popular culture provides us with the tools to think about social justice issues.
Moving forward, popular culture will be an important method to provide individuals with
information regarding how to tackle prejudices against outgroups (Pop Justice 2016). As
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technology continues to expand, I believe popular culture will be a powerful tool to
expose individuals to social justice issues. Popular culture should continue to address
social issues in order to provide people with the opportunity to consider their prejudice
and position in society.
Reference List
Antonovics, Kate and Brian Knight. "A New Look at Racial Profiling: Evidence from the
Boston Police Department." The Review of Economics and Statistics vol. 91, no.1 2004, p.
163-177.
Brawley, Edward Allan, and Emilia E. Martinez-Brawley. "Promoting Social Justice in
Partnership with the Mass Media." Journal of Sociology and Social Welfare, vol. 26, no. 2,
1999, p. 63-86.
De La Torre-Mac Neill, Joaquin. "Consciousness Raising and Reality Construction Within
Oppressed Groups: Bridging the Gap Between Feminist Theory and Critical Race Theory,"
Res Cogitans, vol. 2, no.4, 2011, p. 29-36.
Gauthier, Philippe. (2020) Week 3: What Are the Functions of Popular Culture? Ideology
and Popular Consciousness (Part 1). Retrieved January 23rd, 2020 from
https://onq.queensu.ca/content/enforced/317227-FILM240MediaandPopularCultureASOW20/Course%20PDF%20notes/m-2-3-what-are-the-functionsof-popular-culture-KzfcAKOm.pdf?ou=317227
Godsil, Rachel D, et al. Research Review of Pop Culture, Perceptions, and Social Change,
#PopJustice: Volume 3. The Perception Institute. Retrieved January 23rd, 2020 from
https://www.unboundphilanthropy.org/sites/default/files/PopJustice%20Volume%203_Res
earch%20Review.pdf
Comments from the Teaching Team:
Thank you for your thoughtful paper! You offered a strong argument, claiming that
popular culture can make complex issues related to race relations more accessibl while
also empowering cross-race allyship and grassroots activism to ameliorate the unjust
police surveillance and violence experienced by people of colour. You concisely framed
salient features of Dr. Gauthier’s slides in your own words, and nicely complicated them
with the work of other scholars before extending these concepts to the analysis of The
Hate U Give.
I encourage you to continue developing your research skills by consulting cultural studies
research that is directly relevant to your topic. For instance, are there critical race theorists
who have critiqued police surveillance of racialized communities? Robyn Maynard’s
Policing Black Lives immediately comes to mind. I also wonder about the power relations
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at play here – how can the film draw attention to and challenge the insidious, or in this
case overt, structures of white supremacy that marginalize and endanger people of
colour? Does eliciting an empathetic response from privileged white viewers perhaps
reiterate a dangerous white saviour narrative (this is a common methodological problem
that critical whiteness studies scholars must negotiate, as unpacking the unearned
privileges of whiteness can end up recentring the nefarious systems of whiteness they are
trying to dismantle, rather than actually forming genuine coalitions with people of
colour)? These are just some thoughts to help complicate an already excellent paper!
Please remember that MLA format uses author page number style for parenthetical
citations, not author year
This was a fantastic paper! I look genuinely forward to reading your next assignment!
Mastery Question Step 1 Examples FILM240 © Philippe Gauthier 2020
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Example 3
Mastery Question: would you agree that popular culture may provide “tools to
think with”? Explain.
Within Barbie Nation (1998), Susan Stern states that “people have this amazing
ability to take a mass-produced object and make something completely unique from it.”
This quote can be used to illustrate that popular (pop) culture, provides individuals with
the tools to think, as they are not confined to use pop culture in a predetermined way.
Rather, pop culture serves as a foundation for individuals to “interpret, evade, and/or
reconstruct the world” (Gauthier, 2020). In particular, I believe pop culture equips
individuals with tools to think as it can enlighten and empower them. This is apparent as
pop culture is a medium in which individuals become exposed to “new information about
their world and even change their minds about things” (Gauthier, 2020).
A recent example of pop culture that allows individuals to reconstruct the world
around them while being enlightened and empowered is through the movie Black
Panther (Faithful, 2019). Before Black Panther was released in 2018, superheroes in the
Marvel Cinematic Universe were predominantly white males cast in the lead roles. This
essentially made individuals who are not white feel as though they had difficulties finding
a representation of themselves in mass media and the multifaceted nature of humanity
(Smith, 2018). Additionally, American media had “left little room for other interpretations”
of what African culture could look like beyond its common portrayal as “backward,
savage, and chaotic” (Johnson, 2018). It is for these reasons why Black Panther was such
a groundbreaking film as it used a cast of predominantly African-American to
demonstrate “that making movies about black lives is part of showing that they matter”
(Smith, 2018).
Additionally, I recognized Black Panther was a milestone for pop culture as I began
to see children in stores asking their parents to buy them Black Panther figurines. This is
something that I did not have the exposure to in my childhood, as the only superhero
figurines I grew up with were mainly of white males. The exposure to such forms of pop
culture can also be crucial for teaching diversity in classrooms in isolated white
communities to better understand black racial identities (De Freitas, 2008).
Using Black Panther as an example, it is clear that pop culture provides individuals
with tools to think, as individuals are able to reconstruct their views of superheroes and
African culture to understand their complexities. Additionally, this movie can empower
and enlighten many individuals of African descent as it provides role models for
behaviour as it “invites them to not be ashamed of themselves” (Gauthier, 2020).
Expanding on these findings, I believe that pop culture is able to establish social
change. This is derived from the fact that pop culture is “often the primary source of
information people have about other racial or ethnic group” (Godsil, 2016). With this
information, I believe that a greater abundance of diversity in films can increase the
recognition of a shared humanity amongst different societies as pop culture is a lead
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factor in one’s perceptions of the world (Godsil, 2016).
Reference List
Barbie Nation: An Unauthorized Tour. Directed by Susan Stern, performances by Ruth
Handler, PBS, 1998.
De Freitas, Elizabeth, and Alexander McAuley. "Teaching for diversity by troubling
whiteness: Strategies for classrooms in isolated white communities." Race Ethnicity and
Education 11.4 (2008): 429-442.
Faithful, George. "Dark of the world, shine on us: the redemption of Blackness in Ryan
Coogler’s Black Panther." Religions 9.10 (2018): 304.
Gauthier, Phillipe, “Module 1: What is Popular Culture? Communication, Critical Theory
and Mass Culture- PART 2”, Queens University. 18, January, 2020.
Gauthier, Phillipe, “Module 3: What are the Functions of Popular Culture? Ideology and
Popular Consciousness- PART 1”, Queens University. 20, January, 2020.
Godsil, Rachel D., et al. "Editorial Director: Liz Manne." (2016).
Johnson, Tre. “Black Panther is a gorgeous, groundbreaking celebration of black
culture: The newest Marvel movie is about more than a superhero’s journey. It’s about
black culture’s journey.” Vox, 23, Feb. 2018.
Smith, Jamil. “The Revolutionary Power of Black Panther: Marvel’s New Movie Marks A
Major Milestone” Time, 2018.
Comments from the Teaching Team:
Thank you for your thoughtful paper! You did a good job at framing how popular culture
gives audiences raw materials from which they construct a new world, particularly by
offering empowering roles models, like the powerful representations of people of colour in
Black Panther that help counteract a white normalizing media landscape. Your paper
was well written and a pleasure to read!
I encourage you to put the course content in your own words to demonstrate a mastery
of the material. I thought your paper could be complicated further by considering how
pop culture can make critical race theory more accessible, and how it can project more
inclusive futurities (you gesture to this second point but don’t fully develop it). You did a
good job at connecting course content to some relevant work from critical race theorists,
but you only really consulted two academic texts – please remember that only scholarly
journal articles and books count as academic sources. With your extensions, I would like
Mastery Question Step 1 Examples FILM240 © Philippe Gauthier 2020
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to know more about specific representations of blackness from Black Panther that are
particularly progressive, beyond just adding diversity. A more sustained close reading of
specific details would be helpful. You use of MLA could be finessed (please remember
that MLA uses author and page number, not author and year, in the parenthetical
citations, and your formatting on your "Works Cited" page could be improved) [please
consult
https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/mla_style/mla_formatting_and_style_
guide/mla_formatting_and_style_guide.html].
Overall, this was a great paper! I genuinely look forward to reading your next assignment!
Mastery Question Step 1 Examples FILM240 © Philippe Gauthier 2020
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Example 4
Mastery Question: how do readers actively impose their own meanings on a work of
popular culture?
Every text contains many possible meanings. Meanings are socially constructed and
are based on one’s knowledge and experience (Smith). This means that readers can
interpret their own meanings from media (Oliver, 19-22), and some might decode texts in
unpredictable ways (Gauthier). I believe that readers actively impose their own meanings
when watching films, which can lead to different interpretations amongst a group of
people.
This reminded me of the film Frozen. Although not explicitly stated in the film, some
argue that it contains a queer subtext. The main character Elsa lacks a romantic interest
and promotes self acceptance. Some readers interpret this as an expression of her
sexuality (Rodosthenous, 223). Her ability to control ice and snow can be seen as a
metaphor for non-heterosexual sexuality (Wright, 82-85). For example, the challenges Elsa
faces, based on her identity surrounding her powers, can be related to the challenges
many LGBTQ+ individuals may feel. Her song “Let it Go” is an anthem for self acceptance
and can be associated with maintaining a closeted identity and the relief that coming
out can produce (Jordan, 41-63). These are just a few examples of elements in Frozen that
could lead readers to believe that Elsa has a non-heterosexual sexuality. However, other
readers may watch the film and see Elsa as a heteronormative character whose romantic
interests were not a focus. People with different experiences and information about nonheterosexual sexualities may interpret Elsa’s character differently, which shows that they
are actively imposing their own meanings. One implication of this is that the reader may
not abstract the intended meaning (Oliver, 19-22). This could lead to the formation of
stereotypes or incorrect plot analysis.
Another example that shows how readers impose their own meanings is when films
end with a cliffhanger. A cliffhanger is an act of deliberate disruption, where the text
breaks off seemingly at the wrong place (Poot, 52). The reader must use their own
experiences to determine what happens. An example of this is the film The Giver. The
Giver is set in a world where certain memories have been erased. At the end of the movie
the main character, Jonas, has rejected his community values and executes an escape.
The final scene shows him struggling in the snow, then tobogganing towards a house.
Some believe that Jonas was able to make it to “the elsewhere” safely while others
believe that the house is a hallucination while he is dying. Depending on your knowledge
and experiences you may interpret the ending of the film differently. This shows that
readers are actively imposing their own meanings.
Therefore, all texts contain many possible meanings. This is evident with different
different analysis of characters such as Elsa in Frozen and different interpretations of
movie endings such as The Giver. Readers actively construct their own meanings of a text
based off of their personal knowledge and experiences. This results in many
interpretations of a single text, some of which may be unpredictable (Gauthier).
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Reference List
Gauthier, Philippe. “M6: What is the Object of Popular Culture Study? Narrative, Genre
and Reception.” Queen’s University, FILM 240, 2020.
Jordan, Karen M., and Robert H. Deluty. “Coming Out for Lesbian Women.” Journal of
Homosexuality, vol. 35, no. 2, 1998, pp. 41–63., doi:10.1300/j082v35n02_03.
Oliver, Mary Beth., and Robin L. Nabi. The SAGE Handbook of Media Processes and
Effects. SAGE, 2009.
Poot, Luke Terlaak. “On Cliffhangers.” Narrative, vol. 24, no. 1, Jan. 2016, pp. 50–67.,
doi:10.1353/nar.2016.0001
Rodosthenous, George. The Disney Musical on Stage and Screen: Critical Approaches
from "Snow White" to "Frozen". Bloomsbury Methuen Drama, 2017.
Smith, Ken, et al., editors. Handbook of Visual Communication: Theory, Methods,and
Media. Routledge, 2020.
Wright, Salora. Queering the Princess Role: A Critical Cultural Analysis of Disney’s Frozen.
Auburn University, 2017.
Comments from the Teaching Team:
Thank you for your thoughtful paper! You demonstrated a good understanding of the
course content, noting how reception theory holds that readers can generate
polyphonic meanings from the same text, depending on their knowledges, desires, and
social backgrounds. Great work extending reception theory to Frozen! I like how you
flagged that the film can be read as an embracing of proto-queer identity, or
alternatively, as a largely heteronormative narrative, depending on the reader.
I would have liked you to say a bit more about reception theory in relation to
intertextuality (how a particular text, and interpretations of that text, are always informed
by the many texts that have come before it). You did an excellent job synthesizing
relevant theory and critical scholarship on Frozen! With your analysis, I encourage you to
stick to one example and meditate on it deeply. I was curious about what your personal
interpretation of the film was? Also, I wonder if the film might be potentially read as a
tribute to asexual / aromantic identities as well? Your writing was clear, professional, and
stylish. Your use of MLA could be finessed (there are minor formatting errors throughout)
[please consult
https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/mla_style/mla_formatting_and_style_
guide/mla_formatting_and_style_guide.html].
Overall, this was an excellent paper! I look forward to reading your next assignment!
Mastery Question Step 1 Examples FILM240 © Philippe Gauthier 2020
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Example 5
Mastery Question: how do readers actively impose their own meanings on a work of
popular culture?
Popular culture carries different meanings based upon the individual who is
interpreting the text (Gauthier 2020). Individuals interpretation of a text is influenced by
their culture as well as their subjection to different experiences. I argue that individuals
impose their own meaning on a work of popular culture as a result of exposure to their
own culture which impacts their interpretation of texts.
Readers establish their understanding of a work of popular culture based on their
own experiences. The basis of reception theory is that viewers play an active role in the
production of meaning (Gauthier 2020). In popular culture texts, there is a disparity
between the representation and the real which creates an open space for interpretation.
Love Simon is a coming-of-age film that depicts a homosexual relationship in a romantic
comedy genre. This film demonstrates to viewers the struggles of navigating your sexual
identity in a heteronormative world. In this film, Simon, the protagonist, delves into his
identity and his journey to announcing his sexuality. The LGBTQ+ community had an
overwhelmingly positive response to the film. Viewers expressed that Love Simon
motivated them to explain their sexual orientation to their families (Haley 9). The LGBTQ+
community identified with Simon because of their prior experiences relating to their
struggle of feeling comfortable enough to claim their sexual identity.
In contrast, conservative Christian groups believed that Love Simon aimed to
exploit young people to believe that homosexuality is an accepted behaviour. Individuals
have pre-established social codes that impact how they assign meaning. Cochrane
identifies that religious institutions continue to discriminate against gay citizens (163).
Specifically, conservative Christian groups attack sexual minorities because they view
them as a threat to the ideal traditional family (Clarke 350). Anti-gay activist and
conservative Christian, Peter LaBarbera stated in his point of view, Love Simon is a
propaganda film that aims to normalize homosexuality and mainstream a sexual sin (Riley
2018). LaBarbera argued that this film promoted homosexual behaviour which is a
deviant act based within the Bible. Busenitz indicates that the Bible commands all to
follow a traditional marriage, comprised of a male and a female (211). In this scenario,
LaBarbera is using his knowledge of the Bible to construct his interpretation of Love Simon.
He uses the Bible as a mechanism to denounce the legitimacy of Simon’s sexuality. The
Bible has taught LaBarbera that a heterosexual couple is the only acceptable form of
marriage in the eyes of God. Conservative Christians interpretation of Love Simon
demonstrates the plurality of popular culture texts.
In all, individuals understanding of a work of popular culture depends on their
exposure to their own culture. Popular culture texts create an environment that allows
individuals the freedom to construct their own interpretations. I believe this freedom of
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interpretation is potentially dangerous because it allows individuals to engage in
discriminatory ways of thinking. Individuals interpretation of popular culture texts is based
within their own experiences which allows for multiple perspectives to be developed.
Reference List
Busenitz, Irvin. “Marriage and Homosexuality: Toward a Biblical Understanding,” Master’s
Seminary Journal, vol.19, no.2, 2008, pp. 203-216.
Clarke, Jesse. “Global Movements, Global Opposition: Sexual Rights Claims and Christian
Conservatism,” Canadian Journal of Development Studies, vol.24, no.3, 2003, pp. 347-367.
Cochrane, Donald. “Christian Opposition to Homosexuality.” I Could Not Speak My Heart:
Education and Social Justice for Gay and Lesbian Youth, edited by James Mcninch and
Mary Cronin, University of Regina, 2004, pp. 163-181.
Gauthier, Philippe. (2020) Week 6: What is the Object of Popular Culture Study (Part 2).
Accessed 28th February 2020 from
https://onq.queensu.ca/content/enforced/317227-FILM240MediaandPopularCultureASOW20/Course%20PDF%20notes/m-3-6-what-is-the-object-ofpopular-culture-study-part-ii-JawGCkO0.pdf?ou=317227
Haley, John. “Love Simon as a Modern, Gay Coming-of-Age Narrative: A New Point of
Contention and Engagement for Queer and Popular Culture,” Cinesthesia, vol.9, no.1,
2018, p. 1-14.
Riley, John. “Anti-Gay Activist is Upset that Love Simon Did Not Mention the Judgement of
God on Gay People.” Metro Weekly, 6 April 2018,
https://www.metroweekly.com/2018/04/anti-gay-activist-upset-love-simon-mentionjudgment-god-gay-people/. Accessed 28th February 2020
Comments from the Teaching Team:
Thank you for your paper! You very concisely framed Gauthier’s musings on reception
theory, and then argued how texts can yield potentially liberatory or discriminatory
readings, depending on the reader. For instance, you note how while some members of
the LGBTQ+ felt that Love, Simon was an empowered representation for vulnerable
individuals navigating a heteronormative world, some conservative Christians used the
film to prop up bigoted ideas.
Your writing was smooth and clear, and you did an excellent job at synthesizing
Gauthier’s thinking with other relevant scholars. Great work extending the course content
to flagging two potentially divergent readings of the film! To complicate your ideas
further, I was curious to know more about your thoughts on intertextuality. More precisely,
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how does an audiences’ exposure to other texts inform their reading practice? For
instance, what is the film’s place in the queer cinematic canon, or how might
conservative Christians react to the film when they have only been exposed to
heteronormative media? With your analysis, I thought it might be helpful to research
homonormativity a bit more – has there been criticism of the film from within the LGBTQ+
community? For instance, are its representations exclusionary? What kinds of classed,
raced, or embodied subjects does it normalize or exclude?
This was an excellent paper! I genuinely look forward to reading your next paper!
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