The information included in an essay will be determined by your argument, or what you are trying to say in your essay. The introduction should include a thesis statement, and the body paragraphs are where you provide examples and evidence to support your thesis.
She's the Man is inspired by Shakespeare's Twelfth Night. It is a modern adaptation, although not a perfect retelling. If you wanted to cover all three of those themes in your essay, you could compare the film to the play. For example, we could compare the relationship between Viola and Orsino in both versions. In Twelfth Night, Orsino only knows Viola as Cesario, until the end when she reunites with her brother and reveals her true self. In She's the Man, Duke encounters Viola at the Junior League carnival and starts to fall for her then. There is also a passing of time after she reveals herself during which he comes to terms with his feelings for her and heals after the deception. Shakespeare's conclusion is much speedier, as it takes place in one scene.
Alternatively, your essay could choose one theme to focus on. The film adds soccer to Shakespeare's story, and the underlying conflict is gender inequality in sports. While Shakespeare's Viola dresses as a man for protection in a new city after being shipwrecked, Amanda Bynes' character chooses to attend Illyria in her brother's place. She pretends to be her brother in order to prove a point: that she is just as talented as male players.
Gender equality, identity, and relationships are broad themes and you can decide how focused you want your essay to be. For example, an essay about identity can focus on Viola and include three body paragraphs with examples supporting your statement on Viola. Or, you could write about identity and each body paragraph could examine a different character's identity. An essay on relationships could be all about Viola and Duke, or it could compare the pair to Shakespeare's characters, or it could look at their relationship contrasted to other relationships in the film (such as Sebastian and Olivia, Sebastian and Monique, Viola and Justin, etc.).
You can provide quotes from the film as your evidence, describe the visual aspects of scenes, and even look up interviews with the director and/or cast to support your claim. If you are writing about the film in relation to the play, you will want to provide quotes from Twelfth Night.
The key to any essay is the argument, or the thing you are trying to prove, as expressed in a thesis statement. So the "information" you include depends on your argument, as the details you use must support your thesis. Writing about film can be difficult, because it is primarily a visual art form, so "quoting" from the film is complicated. But it is essential that you discuss specific sequences from the film related to your argument—that means identifying the parts that best express what you want to say about gender...
See This Answer Now
Start your 48-hour free trial to unlock this answer and thousands more. Enjoy eNotes ad-free and cancel anytime.
Already a member? Log in here.
equality, for example, describing those parts carefully, quoting dialog when necessary, and—this is crucial—analyzing those parts, explaining what the sequence means to you in relation to gender equality. It is really easy to end up with a paper that is mostly plot summary and doesn't really prove a thesis, so always keep in mind that any example you include must support an assertion you make in your thesis.
As for what that argument should be, I do think you need to address the connection to Twelfth Night. To what extent is Shakespeare interested in the themes you mention? Does the comic nature of the plot devices the movie borrows from Shakespeare encourage a critical understanding of these themes, or does the movie strictly play things for laughs? Another approach you might take with this is to try to account for the (mostly bad) reviews the film received. Finding a review you really disagree with, and using that as a basis for your argument, can be an effective way to structure essays like this. Good luck!
First, make sure that your essay begins with a thesis statement that explains the main idea of the writing piece. In this case, you can say that the movie She's the Man challenges traditional views of males and females in society, which tends to assign individuals specific roles based solely on gender and not on ability.
Then move on to explain that the way this challenge is presented in the movie is through the use of themes such as gender equality, relationships, and identity. These themes are prevalent throughout the interactions and dynamics in the movie, which continuously satirize those social expectations, making the public reconsider the way we think of others.
Then use one paragraph for each of the three themes: one for gender equality, one for relationships, and one for identity. In each paragraph, use one to two strong examples from the movie that illustrate the way the theme is used. It could be an excerpt of dialogue or an example of situational irony that you will then connect to the main idea. Use transitional sentences at the end of each paragraph.
Do not forget to close with a conclusion that restates the main idea that you propose in the introductory paragraph.
The movie She's the Man is, of course, an adaptation of Shakespeare's play Twelfth Night. An essay focusing on gender equality, identity, and relationships should include supporting details in each body paragraph to illustrate each of those major themes. Choose at least two strong examples, scenes, or quotes from the movie to focus on in each body paragraph. Moreover, it would be interesting as well to relate the movies' portrayals of each theme back to the original Shakespeare play and compare or contrast the modern version to the original. Another interesting aspect for consideration would be to include how the movie's use of characterization also influences the development of each theme.