Tuesdays with Morrie
Critical Summary
Media Lit
DIRECTIONS… After viewing the movie Tuesdays with Morrie, your next step is to write a critical
summary. A critical summary does two things. First, it summarizes the piece you watched. If someone
asked you what Tuesdays with Morrie is about, the summary would clearly tell that. Your summary should
be so clear that a person who hasn’t watched the movie would KNOW what it’s about after reading your
summary. Second, a critical summary evaluates the movie. Give your opinion whether you like or dislike
the presentation of Tuesdays with Morrie in movie form and EXPLAIN WHY! Feel free to compare it to
the book and use logical reasoning to support your viewpoint. Don’t just say that it was good or bad.
Instead, give reasons so that the reader will understand your point of view. Also, pick a side – did you like
it OR didn’t you?
DIRECTIONS…
1. Watch the TV movie version of Tuesdays with Morrie.
2. While or after watching the movie, note the storyline, along with any major differences between it and
the book we read in class. ALSO, with regard to those differences, note your opinion of the movie
compared to the book based on the major differences, and based on production techniques and storyline.
3. Write a SIX PARAGRAPH CRITICAL SUMMARY according to the following directions:
A. LIMIT your paper to SIX PARAGRAPHS.
B. The paper should include:
1) INTRODUCTORY PARAGRAPH (minimum 2-3 sentences)… The FIRST SENTENCE should
grab the reader’s attention (the hook) while somehow relating to your paper and the
storyline. The LAST SENTENCE should give your opinion about the movie. This
SENTENCE is your THESIS STATEMENT which must be supported throughout the paper.
2) PARAGRAPHS TWO & THREE (minimum 5-7 sentences each)…
This is where your 2 paragraph SUMMARY of Tuesdays with Morrie
should occur. Make sure your paragraphs have topic sentences,
supporting sentences, and concluding sentences. ALSO, include quotes
and/or storyline descriptions from the movie to help explain your
summary.
3) PARAGRAPHS FOUR & FIVE (minimum 5-7 sentences each)…
This is where your 2 paragraph EVALUATION of Tuesdays with Morrie
should occur. Make sure your paragraphs have topic sentences,
supporting sentences, and concluding sentences. ALSO, include quotes,
storyline descriptions, and film techniques from the movie to help
support your argument.
4) CONCLUDING PARAGRAPH (minimum 2-3 sentences)… You should conclude/wrap up
your paper with a conclusion that supports/rewords your thesis statement and/or main
ideas of your paper. DO NOT bring up new ideas in your conclusion.
4. REMEMBER, paragraphs must have a TOPIC SENTENCE and SUPPORTING SENTENCES.
5. Be as CLEAR AND SPECIFIC as possible. Although we’ve read the book and seen the video, it doesn’t
guarantee we’ll know what you’re talking about!
6. A rough draft and final draft will be used for this assignment.