Provides a historical survey of the principal works and theories of cultural studies. Offers an overview of the contemporary situation of cultural studies and assesses the possibilities for its future development. Introduction to research methods in cultural studies. Specific topics vary. Forum for the presentation of original and current research in cultural studies.
Students register for one credit per semester over a three-semester period.
Examines theories of visual culture, covering such topics as film, video, visual arts, music, display, ritual, performance, performativity, theories of the aesthetic, as well as their production, consumption, and reception. Key readings from theorists such as Adorno, Artaud, Benjamin, Brecht, Bryson, Doane, Fiske, Heath, Marcuse, Merleau-Ponty, and Sartre. Interrogates the various ways in which the notion of gender functions both in the maintenance and in the analysis of issues of social and cultural power. Examines conflicting notions of sexuality and their role in cultural signification. At the same time, the course seeks to explicate the relation between sexuality and gender.