Module Information
Module Identifier
TF23820
Module Title
AMERICAN POPULAR TELEVISION
Academic Year
2008/2009
Co-ordinator
Semester
Semester 1
Pre-Requisite
TF10420
Course Delivery
| Delivery Type | Delivery length / details |
|---|---|
| Lecture | Lecture/Viewing 1 x 3 hours per week |
| Seminars / Tutorials | Seminars 1 x 1 hour per week |
Assessment
| Assessment Type | Assessment length / details | Proportion |
|---|---|---|
| Semester Assessment | Essay | 60% |
| Semester Exam | 40% |
Learning Outcomes
On successful completion of this module students should be able to:
- PARTICIPATE IN THE CRITICAL DEBATES WHICH INFORM THE STUDY OF POPULAR TELEVISION
- BE ABLE TO USE THE TELEVISUAL TEXT AS SUPPORT FOR THEIR PARTICIPATION WITHIN THOSE DEBATES
Brief description
This module examines American popular television as a dominant force within the discourse of contemporary television studies. Through examining some of the various theoretical debates within television studies, using American popular television shows as illustrative texts, this module focuses on developing students' abilities in textual analysis of the television text and their understanding of the relevant critical theory debates.
Content
Lecture topics and illustrative shows (subject to change):
"Must-See-TV": American network television (Friends, Seinfeld, Frasier); Ideology (ER, 24, Law and Order); Gender (Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Xena: Warrior Princess); Ethnicity and Race (The Sopranos); Exploitation and Reality TV (Cops, Mounties, Rescue 911); Satire (The Simpsons, South Park, The Family Guy); Postmodernism (Twin Peaks, Firefly); Fandom (Star Trek); Folklore (The X-Files); American TV: globalization or colonization?
Seminar topics (subject to change):
Textual analysis; Representational analysis; television as cultural discourse; postmodernism and self-reflexivity; colonialism.
"Must-See-TV": American network television (Friends, Seinfeld, Frasier); Ideology (ER, 24, Law and Order); Gender (Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Xena: Warrior Princess); Ethnicity and Race (The Sopranos); Exploitation and Reality TV (Cops, Mounties, Rescue 911); Satire (The Simpsons, South Park, The Family Guy); Postmodernism (Twin Peaks, Firefly); Fandom (Star Trek); Folklore (The X-Files); American TV: globalization or colonization?
Seminar topics (subject to change):
Textual analysis; Representational analysis; television as cultural discourse; postmodernism and self-reflexivity; colonialism.
Reading List
General TextAllen, Robert (1992 (various p) Channels of discourse, reassembled :television and contemporary criticism /edited by Robert C. Allen. Routledge Primo search Caldwell, John Thornton (c1995.) Televisuality :style, crisis, and authority in American television /John Thornton Caldwell. Rutgers University Press Primo search Creeber, Glen (2004.) Fifty key television programmes /edited by Glen Creeber. Distributed by Oxford University Press Primo search
Feuer, Jane. (1996.) Seeing through the eighties :television and Reaganism. British Film Institute Primo search Gitlin, Todd. (2000.) Inside prime time /Todd Gitlin. University of California Press Primo search
Notes
This module is at CQFW Level 5