Department of English

This course provides a basis for a critical appreciation of film and television within a cultural studies framework.  Beyond the critic's "thumbs up or thumbs down" statement, the analytical approach of the course introduces the specialized languages of film and television criticism which will allow you to support your interpretations about a work.  The course simultaneously demonstrates that these media occur within cultural contexts of production and consumption.  The course will explore numerous factors which contribute to and shape the making of meaning particularly the role of ideologies in a variety of film/television genres and modes:  documentary, Hollywood, independent cinema, television news.