This is a homework assignment on the documentary 56 Up. Just answer each of the 4 questions separately in about 3 to 4 sentences. Do not include references it is not an essay.

Question 1- After having viewed 56 Up, Think again about the idea “Give me a child until he is seven and I will give you the man.” To what extent do you think this idea was true? How did adult identity relate to the identities the subjects had when they were younger? Support your opinions with examples from the film.

Question 2- What did you learn about either gender or social class in Great Britain? Did it surprise you in any way? How did what you observed compare with your personal experience in the U.S.?

Question 3- What did you think of this approach to studying people over their life times? What strengths and weaknesses do you see in this approach? How does it compare to other methods such as ethnography, survey research or content analysis? Do you think that the fact that it is visual adds to or detracts from this research? Why?

Question 4- “I have a colossal amount of material on each person (the ratio of film shot to film used is 30 to 1) and could tell 50 different stories about each of them–I could recut the footage and make them all failures or successes, obnoxious or saintly. With a documentary one exercises tremendous power in the editing process, and the choices I make in the editing room teach me a lot about my own ingrained attitudes and beliefs.” Michael Apted (the film maker) in interview with the Los Angeles Times (February 9, 1992). What do you think about this quote? Does the ethnographer face the same issue? How should they deal with it?