Course handbook
Description
This course introduces students to various scholarly frameworks, theories and perspectives on popular culture. Students are encouraged to analyse the complexities of popular culture and its social and cultural function. Popular culture offers a way of examining societal attitudes, values and ideologies across time and geography. It also plays a powerful role in shaping societal attitudes, values and ideologies. Popular Culture and Society explores how gender, sexuality, race, ethnicity, class and other socially codified markers of identity are represented in popular culture and how popular culture potentially impacts audiences. In this course students will explore the many competing theories, methods, concepts and frameworks that surround, explain and situate popular culture, examine popular culture examples and case studies, and discuss critical issues such as ethics, politics and histories.
Availability2021 Course Timetables
Online
- Semester 1 - 2021
Learning outcomes
On successful completion of the course students will be able to:
1. Describe the relationship between popular culture and society.
2. Illustrate the significance of concepts such as class, race, ideology and spectatorship to popular culture.
3. Construct a critical argument regarding the issues surrounding popular culture at an intermediate level.
4. Combine scholarship with original analysis in a popular culture case study.
Content
This course focuses on the relationship between popular culture and society. Topics may include:
- Postfeminist and post-racial culture
- Fans, fandoms and audiences
- Affective capitalism and consumerism
- Reality TV
- Celebrity, politics and power dynamics
- Intersections between race, gender and class
- Representing queerness
Assumed knowledge
80 units at 1000 level
Assessment items
Written Assignment: Essay (40%)
Project: Podcast (30%)
Quiz: Online quiz (30%)
Contact hours
Online
Seminar
Online 2 hour(s) per Week for 12 Weeks
The University of Newcastle acknowledges the traditional custodians of the lands within our footprint areas: Awabakal, Darkinjung, Biripai, Worimi, Wonnarua, and Eora Nations. We also pay respect to the wisdom of our Elders past and present.