2014 Ü Key Concepts in Cultural Studies

    PLEASE NOTE: THIS PAGE IS STILL UNDER CONSTRUCTION. NOT ALL INFORMATION IS VERIFIED AND RELIABLE YET.

Please note: The BM7 module consists of

• a seminar ("Introduction to the Critical and Scholarly Discussion of Literature", offered in the previous winter term),
• a tutorial ("Research Methods", offered in the previous winter term),
• a (biweekly) lecture ("Historical Backgrounds and Critcal Concepts", offered this term )and
• a seminar ("Key Concepts of Cultural Studies", offered this term).

If you have already completed parts, but not the entire Basismodul in literary and/or cultural studies in previous semesters, please contact Michaela Koch.

On this page you will find detailed information on the lecture "Historical Backgrounds and Critical Concepts" and on the courses "Key Concepts in Cultural Studies".

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Course: Key Concepts in Cultural Studies 3.02.075 - Christian Lassen - Thu, 08:00-10:00, Room: V02 0-002 3.02.075 - Christian Lassen - Thu, 16:00-18:00, Room: A07 0-025 3.02.079 - Christian Lassen - Fri, 08:00-10:00, Room: A01 0-010a 3.02.071 - Michaela Keck - Thu, 10:00-12:00, Room: A01 0-010b 3.02.072 - Michaela Keck - Fri, 08:00-10:00, Room: A010 0-009 3.02.073 - Michaela Koch - Thu, 14:00-16:00, Room: A10 1-121a 3.02.074 - Michaela Koch - Thu, 18:00-20:00, Room: A01 0-010a 3.02.077 - Annika Karen McPherson - Fri, 12:00-14:00, Room: A06 0-009 3.02.078 - Annika Karen McPherson - Fri, 10:00-12:00, Room: A01 0-010a 3.02.080 - Daniel Sip - Fri, 12:00-14:00, Room: A10 1-121; HS F

Both the lecture and the courses are part of the Basismodul 7 and focus on key concepts in cultural studies and techniques of textual analysis in the context of discussing culture. The VL/Ü Key Concepts of Cultural Studies consists of 6 lectures on "Historical Backgrounds and Critical Concepts" and 13 courses/Übungen on "Key Concepts of Cultural Studies".

The Übung analyzes material and is relying on concepts and approaches complemented by the lectures. The analysis of the material from a cultural studies perspective is based on three guiding questions:

• 1. What are the specific and medial characteristics of the Material? (See Handouts: Conceptual Tools)
• 2. How is the material situated and what institutions are responsible for its existence and discussion?
• 3. What function and effect for identity formation can the material have?

Please make sure that you are registered for the lecture and ONE of the courses in Stud.IP and open a wiki account which will enable you to participate in online discussions.

The texts for our courses will come from a common pool, though each course may have a different choice.

The "analytical tools" will be presented by the lecturers (on a handout) in each meeting. The additional reading from which these 'tools' are taken is not obligatory, and it can be done either before or after each session.

Course work: You will be asked to complete a Written Test (Date: Saturday, July 26, 2014, 10:00-12:00, A14 Hörsaal 1 und 2), and produce a Research Paper Outline (2 pages, due on Aug 15). For the Research Paper Outline you will need to find your own topic to work on and document the preliminary work (this includes finding an appropriate title, writing a paragraph on the state of the art of your problem and one that describes your problem and your goal, and presenting a tentative table of contents as well as a short bibliography). The RPO is to be formatted according to the style sheet.

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Two useful links for all assignments:

• Literary Studies:Writing academic texts - esp. for the research paper outline

Session One, April 24/25: Working With Key Concepts in Cultural Studies I

Welcome

Preliminaries and General Course Information.

• Introduction to the BM 7 Curriculum, Aims and Goals
• Introduction to the BM 7 Programme BM 7 Programme

Analytical Tools: Culture, Discourse, Media, Identity

• Handout Key Concepts in Cultural Studies: Discourse
• Handout Key Concepts in Cultural Studies: Culture
• Handout Key Concepts in Cultural Studies: Identity
• Handout Key Concepts in Cultural Studies: Media

Further Reading

• Ang, Ien. "Cultural Studies." The SAGE Handbook of Cultural Studies. London: SAGE, 2008. 227-48. Print.
• Chouliaraki, Lilie. "Discourse Analysis." The SAGE Handbook of Cultural Studies. London: SAGE, 2008. 674-96. Print.
• Clarke, Simon. "Culture and Identity." The SAGE Handbook of Cultural Studies. London: SAGE, 2008. 510-29. Print.
• Kaplan, Carla. "Identity." Keywords for American Cultural Studies. Eds. Bruce Burgett and Glenn Hendler. New York: NY: New York UP, 2007. 123-7. Print.
• Yúdice, George. "Culture." Keywords for American Cultural Studies. Eds. Bruce Burgett and Glenn Hendler. New York: NY: New York UP, 2007. 71-6. Print.

Session Two, May 02: Working with Key Concepts in Cultural Studies II

Analytical Tools: Culture, Discourse, Media, Identity

• Handout Key Concepts in Cultural Studies: Discourse
• Handout Key Concepts in Cultural Studies: Culture
• Handout Key Concepts in Cultural Studies: Identity
• Handout Key Concepts in Cultural Studies: Media

Further Reading

• Ang, Ien. "Cultural Studies." The SAGE Handbook of Cultural Studies. London: SAGE, 2008. 227-48. Print.
• Chouliaraki, Lilie. "Discourse Analysis." The SAGE Handbook of Cultural Studies. London: SAGE, 2008. 674-96. Print.
• Clarke, Simon. "Culture and Identity." The SAGE Handbook of Cultural Studies. London: SAGE, 2008. 510-29. Print.
• Kaplan, Carla. "Identity." Keywords for American Cultural Studies. Eds. Bruce Burgett and Glenn Hendler. New York: NY: New York UP, 2007. 123-7. Print.
• Yúdice, George. "Culture." Keywords for American Cultural Studies. Eds. Bruce Burgett and Glenn Hendler. New York: NY: New York UP, 2007. 71-6. Print.

Session Three, May 08/09: Working with Key Concepts in Cultural Studies III

• Culture, Discourse, Media, Identity

Analytical Tools: Culture, Discourse, Media, Identity

• Handout Key Concepts in Cultural Studies: Discourse
• Handout Key Concepts in Cultural Studies: Culture
• Handout Key Concepts in Cultural Studies: Identity
• Handout Key Concepts in Cultural Studies: Media

Session Four, May 15/16: Analyzing Print Media: Slave Narrative I (Introduction: Medium, Genre, Context)

Primary Material

• Douglass, Frederick. Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave, Written by Himself. Eds. William L. Andrews and William S. McFeely. New York: Norton, 1997. Print.

Secondary Material

• Foner, Eric. “The Peculiar Institution.” Forever Free: The Story of Emancipation and Reconstruction. New York: Vintage, 2005. 3-33. Print.

Analytical Tools

• Handout: Narratology

Session Five, May 22/23: Analyzing Print Media: Slave Narrative II (Focal Point: Identity and Genre)

Primary Material

• Douglass, Frederick. Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave, Written by Himself. Eds. William L. Andrews and William S. McFeely. New York: Norton, 1997. Print.

Secondary Material

• Foner, Eric. “True Likenesses.” Forever Free: The Story of Emancipation and Reconstruction. New York: Vintage, 2005. 34-40. Print.

Analytical Tools

• Handout: Narratology

Session Seven, June 05/06: Analyzing Print Media: Slave Narrative III (Focal Point: Discourse)

Primary Material

• Douglass, Frederick. Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave, Written by Himself. Eds. William L. Andrews and William S. McFeely. New York: Norton, 1997. Print.

Secondary Material

• Nwankwo, Ifeoma C.K. “Douglass’ Black Atlantic: The Caribbean.” The Cambridge Companion to Frederick Douglass. Ed. Maurice S. Lee. Cambridge: CUP, 2009. 146-59. Print.

Analytical Tools

• Handout: Narratology

    WRITTEN ASSIGNMENT I, due: Thursday, June 12, 2014

Session Eight, June 12/13: Analyzing Visual Media: Graphic Novel I (Introduction: Medium, Genre, Context)

Primary Material

• Moore, Alan and David Lloyd. V for Vendetta. New York: Vertigo, 2008. Print.

Secondary Material

• McCloud, Scott. Understanding Comics: The Invisible Art. New York: HarperPerennial, 1994. 24-59. Print.

Analytical Tools

• Handout Conceptual Tools for the Analysis of Comics and Graphic Novels

Session Nine, June 19/20: Analyzing Visual Media: Graphic Novel II (Focal Point: Reading Graphic Narratives)

Primary Material

• Moore, Alan and David Lloyd. V for Vendetta. New York: Vertigo, 2008. Print.

Secondary Material

• Little, Ben. "Constructing the Reader's Perspective in V for Vendetta." International Journal of Comic Art 11.1 (2009): 182-202. Print.

Analytical Tools

• Handout Conceptual Tools for the Analysis of Comics and Graphic Novels

Session Ten, June 26/27: Analyzing Visual Media: Graphic Novel III (Focal Point: Graphic Narratives and Identity Formation)

Primary Material

• Moore, Alan and David Lloyd. V for Vendetta. New York: Vertigo, 2008. Print.

Secondary Material

• Greenblatt, Jordana. "I for Integrity: (Inter-)Subjectivities and Sidekicks in Alan Moore's V for Vendetta and Frank Miller's Batman: The Dark Knight Returns." ImageTexT: Interdisciplinary Comic Studies 4.3 (2009): no pag. Web.

Analytical Tools

• Handout Conceptual Tools for the Analysis of Comics and Graphic Novels

    WRITTEN ASSIGNMENT II, due: Thursday, July 03, 2014

Session Eleven, July 03/04: Analyzing Audiovisual Media: Film I (Introduction: Medium, Genre, Context)

Primary Material

• Calamity Jane. Dir. David Butler. Perf. Doris Day and Howard Keel. 1953. Warner Home Video, 2003. DVD.

Secondary Material

• Bischoff, Mark, and Ulrike Ordon, eds. The Syntax of Film: A Glossary 3rd ed. Seesen, 2012.

Analytical Tools

• Handout Conceptual tools for the Analysis of Film

Session Twelve, July 10/11: Analyzing Audiovisual Media: Film II (Focal Point: Gender and Identity)

Primary Material

• Calamity Jane. Dir. David Butler. Perf. Doris Day and Howard Keel. 1953. Warner Home Video, 2003. DVD.

Secondary Material

• Butler, Judith. “Imitation and Gender Insubordination.” Inside/ Out: Lesbian Theories, Gay Theories. Ed. Diana Fuss. New York and London: Routledge, 1991. 13-31. Print.

Analytical Tools

• Handout Conceptual tools for the Analysis of Film

Session Thirteen, July 17/18: Analyzing Audiovisual Media: Film III (Focal Point: Gender, Genre, and Media)

Primary Material

• Calamity Jane. Dir. David Butler. Perf. Doris Day and Howard Keel. 1953. Warner Home Video, 2003. DVD.

Secondary Material

• * Savoy, Eric. "'That Ain't All She Ain't': Doris Day and Queer Performativity." Out Takes: Essays on Queer Performativity and Film. Ed. Ellis Hanson. Durham and London: Duke UP, 1999. 151-82. Print.

Analytical Tools

• Handout Conceptual tools for the Analysis of Film

Historical context: 1950s in the US Foner "An Affluent Society" (optional reading)

    WRITTEN ASSIGNMENT III, due: Thursday, July 17, 2014

Session Fourteen, July 24/25: Presentation and Discussion of RPOs / Recap in Preparation for Written Test

Skills and Activities

Brief Report on 'Work in Progress': Your Term Paper Projects

     [BM7 - Introduction to Litertary and Cultural Studies - Research Paper Outline (due on Aug 15)]

Guidelines for finding your RPO topic:

1. Your RPO topic needs to be related to at least one of the four key concepts: identity, media, discourse, culture
2. As the material basis for your analysis you will need to pick material from the Übungen: Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, V for Vendetta, Calamity Jane

You have access to the scholarly discourse on the material from the Übung through the MLA database.

    WRITTEN TEST: Saturday, July 26, 2014, 10:00-12:00, A14 Hörsaal 1 und 2