HEURISTIC FOR ANALYZING A TEXT

Your name:

Corinne Hebert

Title of the text:

The Aftermath of a Relationship; Let it Go

Genre:

Dance

1.NOTICINGS What do you notice about the text?

2.ANALYSIS QUESTIONS List the elements that

3.CONTEXTUAL CONNECTIONS Who

Describe it in as much detail as possible; use objective,

nonjudgmental descriptors:

make up the work, and then raise questions about the choices
the artist / author / creator made while developing the text.

created the text? Did one person produce it? a team? an

organization or corporation? What medium is used to
communicate the texts message?

two people, guy and a girl

start separate
both in black
dancing
in a large space with a sofa and various objects
no talking
relying on each other
some physical contact
dancing together (same moves)
dancing separate(same moves and some different)
fighting against each other
one action can affect the other person
balance
roughness
running back to one another
telling a story
dark lighting
ending apart
emotions in this dance, different levels (five stages of breaking up
in a relationship)

Why did the dancers wear all black?

Why did the girl wear her hair down?
Why did they perform the dance in this environment?
Why did they choose a calm, peaceful song?
Why are there some soft AND hard, sharp movements?
What kind of message did they want to convey?
Who is the audience? People who broke up or couples together?
Maybe this is demonstrating not a break up story, but one that
someone lost something or lost someone.

Talia Favia along with Madonnas lead dancer, Chaz Buzan

and Courtney Schwartz
Dance and movement is the medium

Brainstorm a list of the texts connections to social, cultural,

and/or historical contexts.
Social life- people dating, relationship with people in society, how
society sees a breakup
Historical- the history and research of physiological things that
happen with a breakup (5 stages of grief)

4.TOUCHSTONES Describe the texts audience, and

5.INQUIRY-GUIDED WONDERINGS

6.POSSIBLE LINES OF INQUIRY Begin

then list the rhetorical devices (logical, emotional, and/ or ethical

appeals) the creator of the text employs to enhance the
plausibility of his/her message.

Review the notes in boxes one through four. Circle the ideas or
questions that you find especially compelling. Use this space to
generate more questions or to explore the thoughts in more
detail.

drafting an inquiry question, a generative, open-ended question

that will guide the analysis. Usually, such questions begin with
how or what.

Very emotional- can relate to someone that had recently or in the

past had a breakup
-can relate to someone in a relationship, show that what could
happen if you do something to harm or affect your partner

USE THE HIGHLIGHTED IDEAS

audience:
created for people who broke up
created for people in relationships
anyone who likes emotional dances (dancers)
someone who wants to understand the effects of a breakup

appeals: emotional (melody of the song and the idea or concept)

(theme), logical (this is what really happens in most grief
situations

Questions to ask to help you interpret the meaning of the text:

What ideas might the artist have been trying to convey? To whom? Why? (Touchstones)
What in your own life are you reminded of as you observe this text? (Touchstones)
What does the text mean to you personally? How did the creator of the text reach you with its message? (Touchstones)
What are some of the issues with which the artist was concerned? (Context)
What might the text mean to society as a whole? (Context)